GIMP's Layer Modes (Somewhat) Demystified – Part 4: A Pictorial Comparison

For a final comparison among the layer modes, I created several examples that visually show the effects of combining various layers.

Grayscale on Grayscale

First, I created a square non-dithered grayscale linear gradient lower layer, then made a copy and rotated it 90º for the upper layer. I chose each layer mode to see the effect. Here's a visual representation of what occurs with each layer mode.

GIMP's Layer Modes (Somewhat) Demystified – Part 3: Grain Extract to Value

In this article I discuss the following layer modes: Grain Extract, Grain Merge, Divide, Hue, Saturation, Color, and Value. I will use the same test images I used for Part 1 and Part 2.

Color Patterns on Color Blocks	Roses on Macaw
Macaw	Grayscale Gradient

For each of the test images, I changed the layer mode of the upper layer to each mode and saved the result. I've included these images in each section below as references. What follows are my observations and thoughts about how to use each layer mode. Feel free to copy any of these images to your desktop so you can load them into GIMP for a closer look.

The layer modes are presented in the order in which they appear in the Mode drop-down menu. Here's a full list with quick links.

Normal	Multiply	Grain Extract
Dissolve	Burn	Grain Merge
Lighten Only	Overlay	Divide
Screen	Soft Light	Hue
Dodge	Hard Light	Saturation
Addition	Difference	Color
Darken Only	Subtract	Value

GIMP's Layer Modes (Somewhat) Demystified – Part 2: Darken Only to Subtract

In this article I discuss the following layer modes: Darken only, Multiply, Burn, Overlay, Soft light, Hard light, Difference, and Subtract. I will use the same test images I used for Part 1.

Color Patterns on Color Blocks	Roses on Macaw
Macaw	Grayscale Gradient

For each of the test images, I changed the layer mode of the upper layer to each mode and saved the result. I've included these images in each section below as references. What follows are my observations and thoughts about how to use each layer mode. Feel free to copy any of these images to your desktop so you can load them into GIMP for a closer look.

The layer modes are presented in the order in which they appear in the Mode drop-down menu. Here's a full list with quick links.

Normal	Multiply	Grain Extract
Dissolve	Burn	Grain Merge
Lighten Only	Overlay	Divide
Screen	Soft Light	Hue
Dodge	Hard Light	Saturation
Addition	Difference	Color
Darken Only	Subtract	Value