Without blending a couple of photos together in Photoshop Elements, first you need to open them. Then go ahead and open the images you want to use. And then blend it. Just one thing to keep in mind is that you have to maximize mode turn off. That’s why both photos are appearing in a document window. After turning it off, go to the Window menu which is at the top of the screen, then choose Images, and Maximize Mode doesn’t have a checkmark beside it. click on the option to turn it off, if it does. Now both Photos will be appearing in their own document window.
To blend your two images together, you need to get them both into the same document. The easiest way to do that is to just drag one photo into the document window of the other photo. Select the move tool, you will find it on the top of the Tools palette and do it. Very simple, right? If you love shortcuts, then press V on your keyboard to select the Move Tool with the keyboard shortcut. Now it’s time to click anywhere inside one of the images and drag it into the other image. Before releasing your mouse button, hold down Shift key and then release the mouse button. With this you can center the photo inside the document window.
Step 3: Add adjustment layer between the two layers
You must know Photoshop Elements supports layer masks only with adjustment layers. So, since you need a layer mask, add an adjustment layer. Photoshop Elements gives you several various types of adjustment layers to choose from, but it actually doesn’t matter which one you choose here since you are not really going to do anything with it. You only need one for its layer mask, and you need to add it between your two existing layers. That’s why to select it, first you need to click on the Background layer in the Layers palette. After then click on the new adjustment layer icon which is on the top of the Layers palette and choose a Levels adjustment layer from the list. It makes no difference which type of adjustment layer you choose since you won’t be doing anything with it, but for the sake of keeping you both on the same page and choose Levels. After the levels dialog box appears, this time just click OK in the top right corner to exit out of it. If you look again in the Layers palette, you can see that now you have your levels adjustment layer or whichever adjustment layer you chose between the two layers containing your images. And you can also see the layer mask thumbnail for the adjustment layer, which you are going to use to blend your two images together.
Now you have your layer mask. But there is a problem, the layer mask is on the adjustment layer and what you need is for it to be on Layer 1. You can use it to blend the image on Layer 1 with the image on the background layer. There is no way for you to add a layer mask to anything other than an adjustment layer in Photoshop Elements. For that reason you need some way of sharing that layer mask on the adjustment layer with Layer 1 above it. The adjustment layers are amazingly useful, but they also happen to be pretty easy going and they have no problem with the idea of sharing their layer mask with any other layer that needs it. Now you need to group the adjustment layer and “Layer 1” together. To do that first, click on Layer 1 in the Layers palette and select it. Then use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+G or go to the Layer menu at the top of the screen and choose Group with Previous easily. You added a layer mask to a normal layer in Photoshop Elements, and you can now use the layer mask to blend the two images together.
You need to have your layer mask selected, then click on the layer mask thumbnail in the Layers palette to select it.
Now select the gradient Tool from the Tools palette, or press G to quickly select it.
Now with the Gradient Tool and the black to white gradient selected, just click inside your photo and drag it out a gradient where you want the transition area between the two images to appear. You are not actually dragging the gradient on the image itself, you are just dragging it out on the layer mask. The longer the gradient, the larger the transition area between the two images will be. When you release your mouse, then Photoshop Elements will draw the gradient on the layer mask. If you look at the layer mask thumbnail in the Layers palette, you can see the black to white gradient that was drawn. The narrow gradient area in between is the area where the two images will blend together, and if you look at the photo itself in the document window, you can see that the two images have in fact been blended together.
