Planet Photoshop

Speedy clipping mask

Sometimes a masked layer is just an Option-click (PC: Alt-click) away. Simply click-and-drag the layer to be used as a mask directly above the layer to be masked. Press-and-hold Option (PC: Alt) and hover your cursor over the horizontal line separating the layers. The cursor (hand) becomes a Clipping Mask icon; just click on it to convert the layer above into a mask.

Posted by Corey Barker

Corey is the newest education and curriculum developer for the National Association of Photoshop Professionals. He is a graduate of the Ringling School of Art & Design in Sarasota, Fl, with a degree in Illustration. Over the years, Corey has worked as a graphic artist in a variety of disciplines such as illustration, commercial design, large format printing, motion graphics, web design and photography. His expertise in Photoshop and Illustrator have earned him numerous awards in illustration, graphic design and photography. Using Photoshop since Version 2, his expertise and creativity have evolved exponentially with every new version, which makes Corey an invaluable addition to the NAPP team.