How can I apply a Smart Filter like Unsharp Mask to multiple layers in Photoshop CS5?
Asked 5/3/2011
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I’m scanning film and doing dust/cloning cleanup on a separate layer above the background. My usual sharpening workflow is to duplicate the content layers, merge the duplicates into a single layer, and then apply Unsharp Mask to that merged result. I’d like to make sharpening non-destructive by using a Smart Filter instead. Is there a way to apply one Smart Filter to multiple layers, or what’s the best workflow for this in Photoshop CS5?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
15y ago
2 Answers
8
Instead of merging the layers together, try to convert them to a Smart Object. The smart object contains all the original layer data (which also can be later edited — just double click the smart object), but appears as a "single layer" in the Layers window.
If you now apply the Unsharp Mask filter to the smart object, it is created as Smart filter and as such, can also be non-destructively edited later on. As the smart object you previously created contains multiple layers, your filter is effectively applied to multiple layers.
Originally by user1913. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user1913
15y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Yes—put the layers you want to sharpen into a Smart Object, then apply Unsharp Mask to that Smart Object as a Smart Filter.
In Photoshop, Smart Filters are applied to a single layer, not directly to several separate layers at once. A Smart Object is the usual workaround: it behaves like one layer in the main document, but still preserves the original layers inside it. You can later double-click the Smart Object to edit those underlying layers non-destructively.
So instead of duplicating and merging your cleanup/background layers for sharpening, select those layers, convert them to a Smart Object, and then run Unsharp Mask. The sharpening will be editable afterward as a Smart Filter.
If your current workflow already ends with a merged sharpening layer, you can also just sharpen that one final layer—but if your goal is non-destructive editing, the Smart Object approach is the better fit.
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