Blend modes

Blend modes (or Mixing modes) in digital image editing and computer graphics are used to determine how two layers are blended into each other. The default blend mode in most applications is simply to hide the lower layer with whatever is present in the top layer. However, as each pixel has a numerical representation, a large number of ways to blend two layers is possible.The top layer is not necessarily called a 'layer' in the application. It may be applied with a painting or editing tool. The top layer can also be referred to as the 'blend layer' or 'active layer'.Example top layerExample bottom layerMultiply blend mode applied to the example picturesScreen blend mode applied to the example picturesScreen blend mode applied to the example picturesColor Dodge blend mode applied to the example picturesLinear Dodge (Additive) blend mode applied to the example pictures Blend modes (or Mixing modes) in digital image editing and computer graphics are used to determine how two layers are blended into each other. The default blend mode in most applications is simply to hide the lower layer with whatever is present in the top layer. However, as each pixel has a numerical representation, a large number of ways to blend two layers is possible.The top layer is not necessarily called a 'layer' in the application. It may be applied with a painting or editing tool. The top layer can also be referred to as the 'blend layer' or 'active layer'. Most graphics editing programs, like Adobe Photoshop and GIMP, allow the user to modify the basic blend modes - for example by applying different levels of opacity to the top picture.