23 Types Of Blending Modes In Adobe Photoshop

Choose blending modes from the pop-up menu in the Painting Tool Options palette. The various paint modes in combination with opacity/pressue settings have a selective control on which pixels are affected when you use the painting and editing tools. The result is more of a blending of the paint colour and the colour of the base pixels than simply one colour replacing another.
Dissolve
Produces a grainy, chalk-like effect. Not all pixels are coloured as you drag across the image, leaving gaps and holes in the storke. Reduce the Opacity setting to control the effect.
Clear
Makes pixels transparent. You can only access this mode on a layer with the Lock Transparency option deselected. Available for the Brush, Paint Bucket, Pencil and Line tools.
Behind
Only available when you are working on a layer with a transparent background. Make sure Lock Transparency is deselected for the layer. Use behind to paint behind the existing pixels on a layer. Paint appears in the transparent areas, but does not affect the existing pixels.
Darken
Applies the paint colour to pixels that are lighter than the paint colour – doesn’t change pixels darker than the paint colour.

Multiply
Combines the colour you are painting with the colour of the pixels you drag across, to produce a colour that is darker than the original colours.
Color Burn
Darkens the base colour by increasing the contrast in base colour pixels, depending on the contrast in base colour pixels, depending on the blend colour. More pronounced when paint colour is dark. Blending with white has no effect.
Linear Burn
Darkens the base colour by decreasing brightnessdepending on the blend colour used. Blending with white has no effect.
Lighten
Replaces pixels darker than the paint colour, but does not change pixels lighter than the paint colour.
Screen
Produces the opposite effect to Multiply. It multiplies the opposite of the original colour by the painting colour and has the effect of lightening the pixels.
Color Dodge
Brightnes the base colour by deceasing contrast. More pronounced when the paint colour is light. Blending with black has no effect.
Linear Dodge
Brightnes the base colour by increasing the brightness depending on the blend colour. Blending with black has no effect.
Overlay
This increases the contrast and saturation, combining the foreground colour with the pixels you drag across. Highlights and shadows in the base colour are preserved.
Soft Light
Creates a soft lighting effect. Lightens colours if the painting colour is lighter than 50% grey, darkens colours if the painting colour is darker than 50% grey.
Hard Light
Multiplies (darkens) or screens (lightens) pixels, depending on the paint colour, and tends to increase contrast.
Vivid Light
Burns or Dodges base pixel colours by increasing or decreasing contrast depending on the blend colour.
Linear Light
Burns Dodges base pixel colours by increasing or decreasing brightness depending on the blend colour.
Pin Light
Replaces base colour pixels depending on whether the blend colour is lighter or darker than 50% grey.
Difference
It looks at the brightness of pixels and the paint colour, then subtracts paint brightness from pixel brightness. Depending on the result, it inverts the pixels.
Exclusion
The result is similar to difference, but with lower contrast.
Hue
In colour images, applies the hue (colour) of the paint, without affecting the saturation or luminosity of the base pixels.
Saturation
Changes the saturation of pixels based on the saturation of the blend colour, but does not affect hue or luminosity.
Luminosity
Changes the relative lightness or darkness of the pixels without affecting their hue/saturation.
Color
Applies the hue and saturation of the blend colour, but does not affect the luminosity of the base pixels.