The Magnify effect enlarges all or part of an image. This effect can act like a magnifying glass placed over an area of the image, or you can use it to scale the entire image far beyond 100% while maintaining resolution.

This effect works with 8-bpc color.

Original (top left), and with variations of Magnify applied (bottom left and right)

Shape

The shape of the magnified area.

Center

The center point of the magnified area.

Magnification

Percentage by which to scale the magnified area.

Link

How the size and edge feathering of the magnified area are affected by the Magnification setting. Setting Link to any value other than None disables the Resize Layer option.

None

The size and edge feathering of the magnified area don’t depend on the Magnification setting.

Size To Magnification

The radius of the magnified area is equal to the Magnification value (a percentage) times the Size value.

Size & Feather To Magnification

The radius of the magnified area is equal to the Magnification value (a percentage) times the Size value. The thickness of the edge feather is equal to the Magnification value times the Feather value.

Size

The radius of the magnified area, in pixels.

Feather

The amount of edge feather, in pixels.

Opacity

The opacity of the magnified area, as a percentage of the opacity of the original layer.

Scaling

The type of scaling used to magnify the image:

Standard

This method maintains sharpness in the image but produces pixelated edges at higher values.

Soft

Uses spline algorithms. If you scale the image beyond 100%, Soft reduces edge pixelation and maintains image quality. Soft works well at large magnification amounts.

Scatter

Creates scatter or noise in the image as the image enlarges.

Blending Mode

The blending mode used to combine the magnified area with the original layer. The None option displays transparent pixels around the magnified area.

Resize Layer

If Resize Layer is selected, the magnified area can extend beyond the original layer’s boundaries.