Pixels offers two ways to refine an image: change its painted pixels, or keep the change as an editable adjustment above the artwork. Choose an adjustment layer when you want to compare versions or return to the settings later.

Choose And Reuse Colors

Foreground and background swatches supply colors for painting and gradients. Open a swatch to choose visually or enter an RGB, HSB, or HEX value. The picker also provides opacity, preset colors, recent colors, and a comparison with the original color.

Sample from the artwork when you want a color that already appears in the composition. A shared visual palette is easiest to maintain when you reuse those colors rather than estimating each shade again.

Adjust Without Repainting

Create an adjustment layer from the Layers controls or More > Layer > New > Adjustment Layer. Its position matters: it evaluates the artwork beneath it. Move it in the stack when the intended result changes.

Use the adjustment's preview and intensity controls to judge its contribution. Masks and visibility can limit or temporarily hide the result. A subtle change is easier to evaluate by switching it off and on than by repeatedly undoing it.

A fill layer is different: it supplies its own solid color, gradient, or pattern. Use one for a background or a reusable color surface.

Apply A Change Directly

Commands under More > Image > Adjustments can apply an adjustment to eligible raster pixels. Review the preview before accepting. Cancel leaves the accepted artwork unchanged.

A direct adjustment changes pixels; an adjustment layer keeps editable settings. Both can be useful, but they produce different kinds of document. An active selection can restrict supported direct adjustments to part of a raster layer.

Filters provide effects such as Gaussian Blur, Sharpen, Noise, and Mosaic. Preview the amount before applying. Some menu entries are unavailable; their presence does not mean that the effect can currently be used.

Common Questions

Why does an adjustment affect more than one layer?

An adjustment layer works on underlying artwork according to its place in the stack. Check its position and mask. Use a direct raster adjustment when you specifically intend to change eligible pixels on one layer.

Will another editor keep the same adjustment controls?

Keep a .vspixels project for continued Pixels editing. Exported images keep the rendered appearance, and PSD exchange does not preserve every Pixels adjustment as an equivalent editable effect. See Import And Export.