Adobe Photoshop includes layer effects such as bevels, strokes, shadows and glows to change the appearance of layer contents. The effects are nondestructive, which means they don’t permanently change the original image, and they are linked to the layer contents. You can modify them to change the effect on the layer contents at any time.
What Rasterize Means
Photoshop creates type and shapes in vector layers. No matter how much you enlarge the layer, the edges remain sharp and clear. Rasterizing a layer converts it to pixels. When you zoom in, you can see the edges are made up of tiny squares.
These instructions apply to Photoshop CS2 and later. Some menu items and keyboard commands may differ between versions.
When you rasterize a layer, it loses its vector features. You can no longer edit the text or scale text and shapes without losing quality. Before you rasterize a layer, duplicate it by choosing Layer > Duplicate. Then, after you rasterize the duplicate layer, you have the original saved if you ever need to go back and make any changes.
Rasterizing Before Applying Filters
Some Photoshop tools—filters, brushes, eraser and paint bucket fill—work only on rasterized layers, and you’ll receive a message to warn you when you try to use a tool that requires it. When you apply layer style effects to text or shapes and then rasterize the layer—which is necessary with filters—only the text or shape content is rasterized. The layer effects stay separate and editable. Usually, this is a good thing, but if you then apply filters, they apply to the text or shape and not the effects.
To rasterize and flatten the entire layer contents, create a new, empty layer in the Layer palette below the layer with the effects, select both layers and merge them to a single layer by going to Layers > Merge Layers. Now everything is affected by the filter, but you can’t modify the effects anymore.
Smart Objects Alternative
Smart objects are layers that preserve the image pixel and vector data with all its original characteristics. They are a powerful tool you can use to speed up the workflow while maintaining the image quality. When you receive the warning that a layer must be rasterized before a specific filter can be applied, you’re often given the option to convert to a Smart Object instead, which allows you to perform nondestructive editing.
The keyboard command to merge layers is Command/Ctrl-E
Smart objects keep the original data intact while you rotate, apply filters, and transform an object. You can use Smart Objects to:
- Scale, rotate, skew, warp and transform perspectiveWork with vector data from other applications that would be rasterized in PhotoshopDo nondestructive filtering. You can even edit filters you apply to Smart ObjectsUpdate all Smart Objects that share the same source file by altering only one fileReduce the size of files.Work with low-resolution images as placeholders, and then replace them with high-resolution versions
You can’t use Smart Objects to do anything that alters pixel data, such as painting, dodging, cloning and burning.
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