Things You'll Need

Instructions

1

Open your image in Adobe Photoshop. You will notice that the Layers panel shows your image as Background. If you cannot see the Layers panel, navigate to the Windows tab and click "Show Layers."
2

Under the Layers tab, click "Duplicate Layers," and you will see the dialog box that will allow you to name the layer or to open the layer in a new document.
3

Notice that each layer has a slider control for opacity. You can also lock a layer to retain the detail in that layer. Notice the background layer is locked. Double-click on Layer 1 to open the Layer Style palette.
4

You can now adjust the opacity of Layer 1 by using the slider or typing in a number. Change the blend mode to Screen and lower the opacity to 80, making the image more transparent and useful as a background in a page makeup program or on a Web page.
5

Notice the image thumbnail of Layer 1 is lighter and more transparent than the Background image. You can now merge these two layers into one by selecting "Flatten Image" from the Layer drop-down menu.
6

Once the image is flattened, the two layers are merged into one layer, creating a new image that is more transparent and suitable as a background.