Drop shadows are confusing…..please help…..

JH
Posted By
Jim_Hubbard
Oct 14, 2008
Views
268
Replies
3
Status
Closed
I don’t get drop shadows. I can apply a drop shadow to an object on a layer, then if I apply a drop shadow to another item on another layer the drop shadow on the first item is changed to be the same as the new drop shadow that I am applying to the second object/layer.

Why does a new drop shadow, on a different layer, affect a previous drop shadow on a separate layer? How can I apply different drop shadows to different layers?

MacBook Pro 16” Mockups 🔥

– in 4 materials (clay versions included)

– 12 scenes

– 48 MacBook Pro 16″ mockups

– 6000 x 4500 px

M
Mylenium
Oct 14, 2008
Umm, disable the "use global angle/ light" option?! Easily done.

Mylenium
RB
Robert_Barnett
Oct 14, 2008
Photoshop tries to keep the angle of the drop shadow the same from one application to another in the same file. There is a check box in the drop shadow options section to turn this off. They does this because in a single document you generally what all of the drop shadows to look like they were created from the same light source.

Robert
JH
Jim_Hubbard
Oct 14, 2008
Cool. I didn’t know what the setting was called, so I didn’t know what to search for. From the PS CS3 Help file…..

Set a global lighting angle for all layers
Using global light gives the appearance of a common light source shining on the image.

———————————————-
" Do one of the following:
Choose Layer > Layer Style > Global Light. In the Global Light dialog box, enter a value or drag the angle radius to set the angle and altitude, and click OK.

In the Layer Style dialog box for Drop Shadow, Inner Shadow, or Bevel, select Use Global Light. For Angle, enter a value or drag the slider, and click OK.

The global lighting applies to each layer effect that uses the global lighting angle." ———————————————-

You will see the Use Global Light checkbox right next to the angle selector dial in the Layer Style dialog boxes for Drop Shadow, Inner Shadow or Bevel.

It’s not that using global lighting effects isn’t a good thing. It is! It keeps your project’s lighting looking natural. Problem is, I wanted a little depth using shadows to emulate the shadows seen when looking into a box.

Thanks to Robert and Mylenium for their help.

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