Expert: LizaL - 3/30/2005

Question
sticking w/ question 1 for now.
when i double click on it, i get a "layer style" window opening. and cannot type over the name.......



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Followup To
Question -
i am on a mac g4, photoshop 6.1

1. how do you rename a layer, after it's been worked on?
like change it from, say, "background copy" to, say, the name of a filter  

2. how do i find the camera settings from my digital captures?  want to know what f/stop and speed it was taken at.
Answer -
Hi Edie,

Your first question is an easy one :-) If this is a new file, and you have a layer called Background, that's the default name for the bottom layer in a Photoshop file. Just double-click on the word Background in your layers palette, and you'll be presented with a New Layer dialog box, and here you can type in the new name of the layer.

If you want to change the name again, or change any other layer's name, just double-click on it and it will highlight. Then you can type over the old name. But that initial "Background" layer must first be unlocked by double-clicking on it.

Like this:
http://little-works.com/all_experts/layers.mov

I use Photoshop CS, but I'm almost positive this is the same in v.6.


Now for your second question, I'd have to refer you to your camera's manual. Generally speaking, Photoshop has no way of generating that type of information. Photoshop will only display the information from your pictures, not the camera settings.

Of course, all rules have exceptions! If you have the Camera Raw plug-in installed, that information could be stored on your hard drive. This plug-in is basically a tool that lets you open and edit images shot with different cameras.

Camera Raw was introduced in 2003, so if you're using version 6.1, you might not have the plug-in. But at any rate, here's information about Camera Raw:
http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop/cameraraw.html

I do know that Camera Raw information is stored on your hard drive, and I think it might give you what you need to know about an image's settings.

The information below is directly from Photoshop's Help section, concerning where to find Camera Raw information:

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     When a camera raw image file is opened with the Photoshop Camera Raw plug-in, the settings are stored in one of two places: the Camera Raw database file or a sidecar XMP file. The stored settings let Photoshop remember the setting for each individual camera raw image file. When you open a given camera raw image the next time, all the settings sliders default to the same values used the last time to open that specific camera raw image. Image attributes (target color space profile, bit depth, pixel size, and resolution) are not part of the stored settings.

     You can determine where the settings are stored using the Camera Raw Preferences.

To specify where a camera raw image file's settings are stored:

  1. Open the Camera Raw Preferences by doing one of the following:
         * (Windows and Mac OS) In the Advanced mode, choose Preferences from the Photoshop Camera Raw plug-in menu.
         * (Mac OS) With the Camera Raw dialog box open, choose Photoshop > Camera Raw Preferences.
  2. In the Camera Raw Preference dialog box, choose one of the following from the Save Image Settings In menu:

     Camera Raw database

     Stores the settings in a Camera Raw database file, generally located in the user's Application Data folder as Document and Settings/user name/Application Data/Adobe/ CameraRaw (Windows) or the user's Preferences folder as Users/user name/Library/Preferences (Mac OS). This database is indexed by file content, so settings stick to the image even if the camera raw image file is renamed or moved.

     Sidecar ".xmp" files

     Stores the settings in an XMP file in the same folder as the raw file with the same base name and an XMP extension. This option is useful for long-term archiving of raw files with their associated settings, and for the exchange of raw files with associated settings in multi-user workflows. These same sidecar XMP files can be used to store IPTC (International Press Telecommunications Council) data or other metadata associated with a camera raw image file. If you are opening camera raw files from a read-only volume like a CD or DVD, be sure to copy the files to your hard drive before opening them. The Photoshop Camera Raw plug-in cannot write an XMP file to a read-only volume and will default to writing the settings to the Camera Raw database file.

     These XMP files can be viewed in the File Browser by choosing View > Unreadable Files.

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Long story short, if version 6.1 doesn't support Camera Raw, my advice would be to check your camera's manual, and/or the manufacturer's Web site.

Hope this helps!

Lisa

Answer
Hi again Edie,

Make sure that you're NOT clicking on the preview icon in the Layers palette. Make sure you click just on the NAME of the layer.

Watch this little movie, using the link below -- you'll see that when I double-click on the little preview icon, I do indeed get the Layer Styles dialog box.

But when I double-click on the layer name itself, and only that layer name, it becomes editable and I can rename it.

http://little-works.com/all_experts/layer_select.mov


So it's really all a matter of what you're double-clicking on. Be sure just to double-click on the layer name.


Lisa