Improve Apply Image, Apply Image as Adjustment Layer, Blend mode manager

[przemoc]

Blending-related wish list:

• Adding "Use beneath layers as initial Destination" button in Apply Image filter.

  Such button would allow for typical use case when you want to perform custom blending.

  Nowadays you have to:

  • temporarily hide the layer "S" you want to blend,
  • Merge Visible,
  • unhide the layer "S" and move it below new merged layer "D",
  • switch to layer "D",
  • Apply Image and drag layer "S" onto its dialog window to use it as Source.
• Supporting presets for equations in Apply Image.

  It's obvious enhancement for better automation.

• Defining custom blend mode via Adjustment Layer (possibly called Blend Adjustment).

  It would work for such layer only when it is a child layer. Presets here are also crucial.

• Defining custom global (accessible in all documents) or local (accessible in current document) blend modes.

  The most robust solution for users performing repeatedly their own custom blending.

  In Blend Mode Manager there should be a way to see (in a read-only manner) already existing blend modes with equations (for blend modes expressable in plain equations).

Blend mode definition should be performed using equations where:

S (Source) = current layer [aka Active or A]

D (Destination) = beneath layers [aka Background or B]

 

In case of Blend Adjustment source would be the parent layer.

 

Example of custom blend mode:

Remove

DR=(DR-SR*SA)/(1-SA)
DG=(DG-SG*SA)/(1-SA)
DB=(DB-SB*SA)/(1-SA)
DA=DA

(It doesn't make sense for truly opaque layer, of course.)

[zx82affin]

I second this, It would be a very powerful feature.

 

I think it would become even more powerful coupled with a presets function in the "Custom Blur" filter, preferably with a larger maximum kernel size. The ability to apply a custom kernel followed by a custom blend would allow some very cool effects.