You cannot crop individual layers. The crop feature applies to the entire document. The only way I can see that you could do this would be to use a copy of the document and crop it. Then, use that cropped image as a layer on your other one.
Mike,
A crop will crop the entire shebang. What you can do is use the marquee tool to perform a "crop". Choose the tool, change the option for the tool from Normal to Fixed Size if desired. Plug in your dimensions, drag the marquee, choose Select>Invert, hit the delete key on keyboard. Clicking/dragging with the selection box will reposition the selection box within the image. Go to Image>Transform>Free Transform. Hold down the shift key and drag a corner outwards.
Or you can separate to a new file the selected portion and use Image Resize to set dimensions and resolution.
Nancy,
I can tell that my creative mind is nearly gone. That was an excellent tip. I keep thinking I know quite a bit about Photoshop Elements, but when I read ideas like the one you just presented, I realize it’s time for me to shut up and learn more from people like you 🙂 :).
Jim
Jim,
That’s not so. Input from many people is what makes this forum go ’round. I’m sure you know ways to accomplish a certain task that I don’t, so don’t be so hard on ourself. We all have something to contribute!
Nancy
Thanks Jim and Nancy for your replies. Fast too!
I have tried the Marquee select earlier and it seemed to do the same thing. I will print this page and follow along exactly what you suggested. I had also thought of cropping and saving each individual file then inserting into a new layer but I cannot find how to do that! To insert a new file into a new layer in an existing image. I have been reading the help over and over for a week!
The overall plan was to crop and resize each new layer to create a zoom effect on a single window of a building when animated to a gif.
Mikeeee
To insert additional images, all you have to do is open your "main" image. Now, leaving that image open, open each additional image and use the move tool to drag a copy of that image onto your main image. Each image will be on its own layer. It will probably work best if all images are of the same resolution.
Mike,
Firstly, you must have your Layers Palette visible on the side of your workarea.
Double click the "Background" notation for your starting image. Accept the offer to rename it "Layer 0" (it is just a name, but some editing functions are not available to a "background" layer).
You will have to make a duplicate of your Layer 0 on a new layer above the original. In the Layers Palette, click on Layer 0, hold mouse down and drag it to the icon at the bottom which looks like a page with upturned corner.
On this copy of Layer 0, select the marquee tool and do as advised. Only the duplicate layer will be cropped. Use the transform/scale technique. Turn off the eye to the underlying layer so you can see what you’re doing.
Duplicate this cropped layer as mentioned above. Now you have a third layer. Use the marquee tool to crop (I don’t have the program running, but you may have to use the marquee tool again, after cropping, just to outline your crop before the transform) and transform to resize. Can repeat these steps for more layers…
HOWEVER
the problem will be that as each layer blown up to the size of the original, it is going to appear softer and softer with each new layer(like out of focus), as you are stretching the original pixels to a much larger size. Using the filter, Unsharp Mask, you can add back in some degree of perceived sharpness, but it depends how many crops and how severe they are as to quality of your final product.
Mike,
It might work better to do it this way:
Duplicate your image, "crop" that layer. Ctrl/J on that layer to select it. Go to Edit>Copy. Go to File>New, accept the dimensions it says, go to Edit>Paste. On that new file go to Image>Resize>Image Size. Have "Resample" checked, leave the resolution alone, but type in physical dimension values that match your original. Use Unsharp Mask to sharpen. Get the Move Tool from the Toolbox, click on new file and drag/drop on original file. Repeat for each successive layer.
It worked. Thanks for the note.
Mark H.
