Blending modes are a part of digital art that I’ve been using all this time without fully understanding what all of them actually do. Sure, Multiply makes art go darker, Add makes art go lighter, but what are these blending modes really doing, and when should you actually be using them?
Today we’re fixing that!
Here you’ll find a roundup of what each blending mode does, how it works, and when to use it. Hopefully this helps make us all bigger, better, badder, b-more efficient artists!
Buckle up—this is a long one.
It was supposed to be a quick reference, but I can’t not go down a rabbit hole, and I definitely can’t not put images in to demonstrate the art things we’re talking about. In fact, there was so much information that each blending mode ended up getting its own page!
But before we get into the weird stuff, we need to establish our baseline.
Normal
She’s our basic, vanilla, default blending mode. In Normal mode, the color on the top layer simply covers the color on the layer below. There’s no special blending math involved — the top layer wins.
When to Use It
Pretty much always: Normal is the default mode for painting, drawing, and adding color. If you’re not intentionally trying to make one layer interact with another, Normal is usually what you want.
Normal is our base. Every other blending mode is doing something to change how the colors on one layer interact with the layers underneath.
Now for the good stuff! Boop the blending mode you want to learn about below:
Don’t feel like reading? No problem. Here’s the cheat sheet:
| Blending Mode | What It Does | When to Use It | Tags |
|---|---|---|---|
| Normal | Places the top layer over the layer below. | Painting, drawing, or adding color normally. | base |
| Darken | Keeps the darker values from each layer. | Simple shading, ink, and dark textures. | shading, darkening, texture |
| Multiply | Combines colors to create a darker result. | Shadows, shading, and coloring under line art. | shading, darkening |
| Color Burn | Darkens while increasing contrast and color intensity. | Rich, dramatic shadows and intense color grading. | shading, contrast, color |
| Linear Burn | Creates a deep, direct darkening effect. | Heavy shadows and dark texture overlays. | shading, darkening, texture |
| Subtract | Subtracts the top layer’s color from the bottom layer. | Harsh shadows, color shifts, and experimental effects. | shading, effects, experimental |
| Lighten | Keeps the lighter values from each layer. | Highlights, light effects, and dark-background textures. | highlight, lighting, texture |
| Screen | Brightens the image with a soft, luminous effect. | Highlights, soft lighting, and gentle glows. | highlight, lighting, glow |
| Color Dodge | Brightens intensely while boosting color and reducing contrast. | Strong highlights, neon, glows, and light rays. | highlight, glow, lighting |
| Glow Dodge | Creates an even stronger Color Dodge effect. | Intense glows, dazzling light, and bright reflections. | glow, lighting, highlight |
| Add | Adds color values together to increase brightness. | Bright light, energy effects, sparks, and glows. | glow, lighting, highlight |
| Add (Glow) | Creates a stronger, more concentrated Add effect. | Atmospheric glows, magic, lasers, and intense light. | glow, lighting, effects |
| Overlay | Darkens dark areas and brightens light areas. | Contrast, textures, color grading, and lighting passes. | contrast, texture, color |
| Soft Light | Gently lightens or darkens based on the blend color. | Subtle lighting, color grading, and soft shading. | lighting, shading, color |
| Hard Light | Strongly lightens or darkens based on the blend color. | Dramatic lighting, strong color washes, and contrast. | lighting, contrast, effects |
| Difference | Calculates the difference between the two layers. | Color inversions, alignment checks, and surreal effects. | effects, inversion, experimental |
| Vivid Light | Intensifies contrast using Color Dodge or Color Burn. | Extreme lighting, color effects, and dramatic contrast. | contrast, lighting, effects |
| Linear Light | Intensifies brightness or darkness in a direct, linear way. | Strong lighting, color boosting, and dramatic grading. | contrast, lighting, color |
| Pin Light | Replaces colors based on the blend color and brightness. | Harsh effects, unusual color treatments, and posterized looks. | effects, experimental, contrast |
| Hard Mix | Reduces each color channel to either black or white. | Extreme posterization, psychedelic effects, and graphic looks. | effects, experimental, contrast |
| Exclusion | Creates a softer, lower-contrast Difference effect. | Muted color inversions and experimental color effects. | effects, inversion, color |
| Darker Color | Chooses the entire pixel with the lower overall brightness. | Selecting the darker version of two layers without mixing colors. | comparison, darkening |
| Lighter Color | Chooses the entire pixel with the higher overall brightness. | Selecting the lighter version of two layers without mixing colors. | comparison, lighting |
| Divide | Divides the base color by the blend color, creating a brightening effect. | Unusual glows, color correction, and experimental effects. | effects, lighting, color |
| Hue | Applies the blend layer’s hue while keeping base saturation and brightness. | Recoloring objects while preserving their shading. | recolor, color |
| Saturation | Applies the blend layer’s saturation while keeping base hue and brightness. | Boosting or toning down color intensity. | color, recolor |
| Color | Applies the blend layer’s hue and saturation while keeping base brightness. | Coloring grayscale art and recoloring shaded artwork. | recolor, color |
| Brightness | Applies the blend layer’s brightness while keeping base hue and saturation. | Changing values or lighting without changing the colors. | lighting, color |
Thanks for reading! Check back soon for the super special Tool Blending Modes!