Hi:

I've been using Photoshop CS3 for a few months and am having a problem with it: when I use filters in smart objects, the settings I use in my filters don't show in the picture unless I have the filter open. When I close it it's as if I hadn't applied any filters.

For example, one of the filters I use most often is the Smart Sharpen. If I make a composite layer, convert it to a smart object, then open the Smart Sharpen filter, I can see the picture sharpened while I'm adjusting the Amount and Radius. When I get the photo to where it looks good to me, I click OK, but as soon as the filter closes, the changes do not seem to have been applied. If I open the filter again, I can see the changes, but when I close it, they're gone...

If it's of any help, I'm running CS3 on a dual quad core Mac Pro with 10 Gigabytes of RAM, so I know it's not a processor speed or RAM issue.
Anyone else notice this or have any advice?

Thanks very much.

mashny

I'm running CS3 on a dual quad core Mac Pro with 10 Gigabytes of RAM...
GAH! :eek: ... and I'm sick with envy :heul:

Seriously tho... did you check the visibility on your smart filter stack?

I did. The opacity is 100%, my mask is white, and all my eyeball icons are visible. And, again, as soon as I doubleclick into the filter, I can see my changes in the image. When I click OK, my changes vanish. This has never happened to you?

Filters work a bit differently when used with smart objects. They must be visible much like a layer. So you need to make sure that you can see the eye icon for both the filter, and for the smart filters layer. Smart filters can also be masked out. Therefore, you should also make sure the mask is white. That is that box immediately to the right of the eye on the smart filters layer. If the box is black, then you won't see any filter effects.

Everything indicates that my changes should be visible. I'm attaching a jpg of my layers. My mask is white and all my eyeball icons are visible, indicating that my changes should be visible as well.

Another thing to check that you did not fade the blend by mistake.

You will notice a little icon at the right side of your filter layer that looks like a couple of sliders. Make sure the opacity is 100% and the layer blend is Normal. With Smart Filters, you can set opacity and blend mode for the individual filters in the stack.

Something else to check is the layer style settings. Make sure you do not have Blend If settings that might be restricting the effect.

The thumbnail for filters do not pay any attention to opacity, layer blend, etc. Those effects are added to the layer after the filter is applied.

With a filter plug-in, the filter gets the pixels for the layer. It changes the pixels and returns the result to Photoshop. Layer opacity, Blend If, etc. are not permanent changes to pixels. Otherwise you could not change them later. So the filter does not get those details. And that's why what you see in the thumbnail and what happens to the photo can look different.

Cheers,

Mitch

GAH! :eek: ... and I'm sick with envy :heul:




So is NASA!

Are you viewing the image at 100% at all times mashny?

Another thing to check that you did not fade the blend by mistake.

You will notice a little icon at the right side of your filter layer that looks like a couple of sliders. Make sure the opacity is 100% and the layer blend is Normal. With Smart Filters, you can set opacity and blend mode for the individual filters in the stack.

Something else to check is the layer style settings. Make sure you do not have Blend If settings that might be restricting the effect.

The thumbnail for filters do not pay any attention to opacity, layer blend, etc. Those effects are added to the layer after the filter is applied.

With a filter plug-in, the filter gets the pixels for the layer. It changes the pixels and returns the result to Photoshop. Layer opacity, Blend If, etc. are not permanent changes to pixels. Otherwise you could not change them later. So the filter does not get those details. And that's why what you see in the thumbnail and what happens to the photo can look different.

Cheers,

Mitch

I'm away for the day, but I'll check that later tonight.

Regarding the magnification, I've looked at the image at 100% among other magnifications, but I get the problem regardless of the magnification.

I'm attaching the Blend if information as well as the Smart Sharpen Smart Object slider dialogue window. For the slider window, it is 100% opacity and Normal blending mode. For the blend if, it is blend if Grey with the entire range of grey selected, so as far as I understand, the whole thing should blend. Am I doing something wrong? No one else has had this problem?

Messed around with the picture some more. What seems to be happening is that perhaps 50% of the filter effect is seen, but definitely not the full effect. Everything that can be adjusted is set to 100% so I have no idea why the effect is being weakened when I close the filter dialogue box.

Messed around with the picture some more. What seems to be happening is that perhaps 50% of the filter effect is seen, but definitely not the full effect. Everything that can be adjusted is set to 100% so I have no idea why the effect is being weakened when I close the filter dialogue box.

You need to double-click on the icon with two sliders at the righthand side of your filter layer. That controls the Fade To setting.

The Smart Filter layer can have it's own blend mode and opacity. So can each of the filter layers underneath. That's what that little icon is there for. It's not just a decoration. ;)

Cheers,

Mitch