Photoshop Ninja
Expert Photoshop tips and tricks for designers and photographers since 2005
Editing multiple layers of type together
If you have lots of layers of type in Photoshop this technique is fantastic!
Here is a very rarely documented feature-when you are working with text in Photoshop, you often have lots of different layers containing it. It’s always a hassle if you want to change some or all of them to update a design or try out new design options quickly, you also might miss one layer out – which could be disastrous if you are working on something at the 11th hour with a big hairy courier breathing down your neck!
Well, worry not, you don’t have to edit them individually any more, or scribble down figures and settings to use on other layers! First, link the layers you want to change together. Then simply click in the layers palette to select one of the linked layers, hold down shift and change the font, size, colour and other all other attributes. As long as you keep that shift key down, the rest of the linked layers will take on the altered attributes of the layer you are editing!
Note that when you change the colour of the type, you have to have the shift button held down, as usual, but you can let go of it whilst the colour picker is open – you can hold it down, but whatever you do only the active layer takes on the colour change until you hit OK. You have to shift down again before you click OK to confirm your colour choice and apply it to the linked layers.
This is also a quick way to make different styles of type on different layers all the same as another layer of type. Just link them all up, select the layer with the desired type style in, hold down shift and change a single attribute, a colour change is simple as it retains type formatting – they will then all take on the characteristics of the selected layer of type. You can then change the colour back to the original.
Simple and fast – just right for any Photoshop Ninja! This one is useful for anyone, but I think my web developer friends may particularly like this one – I’m sure they will find it very useful when building visuals in Photoshop to quickly be able to try out new typefaces and colourways, change navigation design and it would be good for visualising stylesheets.
(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)
Loading ...
Written by Jonny Allbut - freelance graphic designer
Last modified: 16 March, 2009 (13:25) | First published: 14 June, 2005
Filed under Photoshop Top Tips, Shortcuts - Other, Techniques - Web 9 Comments »
If you like this, you might also find this related Photoshop content useful too!
No related posts.
Comment by Ron
August 23, 2009 @ 10:59 am
Thanks for the tip
Can You Have multiple font layers with the same name Like “RON” Change The Type to “Billy” and all Layers would Change to the same name and keep the same fonts
Comment by Photoshop Ninja
September 28, 2009 @ 1:58 pm
Not as far as I know Ron, sorry!
Comment by Vic
January 5, 2010 @ 1:18 pm
This only works for text, right?
I am working on a file that has approximately 10 layers of different images, and they are all solid yellow. I would like to change them all to solid purple. Just to emphasize, there are no shades of yellow or anything, just one solid color because I’m planning to print the file to a t-shirt for a project.
Is there any way I can change all the layers’ color from yellow to purple? Thanks.
Comment by Photoshop Ninja
January 15, 2010 @ 3:58 pm
Sounds like a hue and saturation or gradient map adjustment layer is what you need – you can then either create a layer mask on that, or duplicate and merge all your layers into one and use http://photoshopninja.com/photoshop-top-tips/isolating-transparency-of-a-layer-the-easy-way/ technique to lock the adjustment layer to the merged yellow artwork layer.
Comment by carol sharp
February 23, 2010 @ 7:18 pm
I have multiple layers of type which I am exporting to illustrator to do an outline for etching. I need the type to be smooth edged and not pixelated. I could use the Layer>type>create workpath a single block of text, but for these layers I only seem to be able to create a path for one layer. When I do another one it removes the previous one I created.
Any ideas very welcome, thank you.
Comment by carol sharp
February 23, 2010 @ 7:45 pm
Ahh I have just discovered that a workpath is only temporary and I have to make a new path for each selection. I have a lot of paths now!
Comment by Photoshop Ninja
March 4, 2010 @ 11:56 pm
Carol – you are not saving your path, so when you start a new one it deletes ‘work path’ (shown in italic). You want to drag the ‘work path’ down onto the new path icon aat the bottom of the palette, this is the quickest way to save it.
Comment by mayumi
June 7, 2010 @ 6:35 am
Thanks for this! I tried it for Photoshop CS5 and to make it work, I have to select on all the layers which are linked, then with all of them selected, edit the font size and then hit enter. If I just simply link them without selecting the layers, font changes I do to one layer doesn’t translate to the other layers. Fyi :0)
Comment by Photoshop Ninja
June 13, 2010 @ 2:11 am
Yup, hold down shift to apply to all layers is very usefull, especially when working on web design work with lots of text layers!