Photoshop CS3  |  Go to CS4 Help

Create a Photomerge composition

When you set up a Photomerge composition, you identify your source files, and the panorama is automatically assembled. After the panorama is assembled, you can fine‑tune the placement of the individual photos, if necessary.

  1. Do one of the following:

    • Choose File > Automate > Photomerge.

    • In Adobe® Bridge CS3, choose Tools > Photoshop > Photomerge from the Bridge menu bar. Skip to step 5.
      Note: In Bridge, choosing the Photomerge command uses all images currently displayed in Bridge. If you only want specific images used, select them before choosing the Photomerge command.
  2. In the Photomerge dialog box, choose an option from the Use pop‑up menu:
    Files
    Generates the Photomerge composition using individual files.

    Folders
    Uses all the images stored in a folder to create the Photomerge composition. The files in the folder appear in the dialog box.

    Or, click Add Open Files to use images you have open in Photoshop as your source files for the Photomerge.

  3. Click the Browse button to navigate to the source files or folder you want to use to create the Photomerge composition.
    You can add more files by clicking the Browse button again and navigating to the source files. You can always remove a file from the Source Files list by selecting the file and clicking the Remove button.
  4. Choose a Layout option.
    Auto
    Photoshop analyzes the source images and applies either a Perspective or Cylindrical layout, depending on which produces a better photomerge.

    Perspective
    Creates a consistent composition by designating one of the source images (by default, the middle image) as the reference image. The other images are then transformed (repositioned, stretched or skewed as necessary) so that overlapping content across layers is matched.

    Cylindrical
    Reduces the “bow‑tie” distortion that can occur with the Perspective layout by displaying individual images as on an unfolded cylinder. Overlapping content across layers is still matched. The reference image is placed at the center. Best suited for creating wide panoramas.
    Adding Cylindrical Mapping

    A.
    Original

    B.
    Cylindrical Mapping applied

    Reposition Only
    Aligns the layers and matches overlapping content, but does not transform (stretch or skew) any of the source layers.

    Interactive Layout
    Choose this option to open the source images in a dialog and position them manually for the best result. See Create a photomerge interactively.

  5. Select Blend Images Together (the default) if you want Photoshop to find the optimal borders between the images and create seams based on those borders, and to color match the images. With Advanced Blending off, a simple rectangular blend is performed. This may be preferable if you intend to retouch the blending masks by hand.
  6. When you’ve added all the source files, click OK to create the Photomerge composition.
    If the composition can’t be automatically assembled, a message appears on‑screen. You can assemble the composition manually in the Photomerge dialog box using the lightbox.

Photoshop creates one multi‑layer image from the source images, adding layer masks as needed to create optimal blending where the images overlap. You can edit the layer masks or add adjustment layers to further fine tune the different areas of the panorama.


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