# Creating & Adding Layers

Layers are the building blocks of your image compositions in Fater's **Image Editor**. You can create new layers in several ways, each suited for different purposes in your workflow. All new layers are added to the currently active **Layer Workspace**.

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### 1. Adding an Empty Layer

* **Purpose:** Empty layers are transparent "canvases" that you can draw on using tools like the **Pencil** without affecting the pixels of other existing layers. They are also useful as a base for pasting content or for certain AI operations if you need a blank starting point within a specific area.
* **How to Add:**
  1. Navigate to the **Layers Tab** in the Right Sidebar.
  2. Click the **`+` (Add New Layer)** button (often with an `ImagePlus` icon) located at the top of the Layers Tab.
  3. A new, empty, transparent layer will be added to the top of your layer stack in the current workspace. It will occupy the actual bounding box space. *(Placeholder: Add screenshot)*

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### 2. Adding Uploaded Image Layers

* **Purpose:** To bring external images into your project as new layers, either as a base image, a new element for compositing, or as a reference.
* **How to Add:**
  * **Drag & Drop onto Canvas:** The simplest way. Drag an image file (e.g., `.png`, `.jpg`, `.webp`) directly from your computer folder and drop it onto the main **Inpaint Canvas**. Fater will automatically create a new layer containing this image. The new layer will respect it's content ratio, while being centered in the actual bounding box at the largest possible width or height.

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### 3. Adding Layers from AI Generation Results

* **Purpose:** When you use an AI model in the Image Editor to generate content (e.g., Text-to-Image, Inpainting), the results are typically added as new layers.
* **How it Works:**
  1. After an AI generation task completes, the **first result is automatically added as a new layer** at the top of your current layer stack, positioned appropriately (e.g., within the masked area for inpainting).
  2. Other results from the same batch appear as thumbnails in the **Generation Task List**. Clicking a different thumbnail will swap the automatically added layer with the newly selected result. *(Placeholder: Add visual)*

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### 4. Creating Layers by Merging

* **Purpose:** To combine the visual content of two adjacent layers into a single new layer, simplifying your layer stack.
* **How to Merge:**
  1. In the **Layers Tab**, identify the layer you want to merge *down* (the upper layer).
  2. Ensure there is a visible layer directly beneath it in the same workspace.
  3. On the upper layer's item in the list, click the **Merge Down** icon (`Merge` icon, often looks like two layers combining with a downward arrow - typically appears on hover if not the bottom-most layer).
  4. The two layers will be combined into a new layer that replaces the bottom one, and the original top layer is removed.

{% hint style="warning" %}
*This is a destructive operation for the original two layers involved. Consider making layers copies first.*
{% endhint %}

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### 5. Creating Layers from Masked Areas

* **Purpose:** To isolate a specifically masked part of your image onto its own new layer, allowing for independent adjustments or compositing.
* **How to Create:**
  1. Create a precise mask on your **Inpaint Canvas** using any of the **Masking Tools**.
  2. On the **Inpaint Toolbar**, click the **Extract Masked Area to Layer** icon (`Scissors` icon).
  3. Fater will copy the pixels from the visible layers within the masked area and place them onto a new layer, often with transparency around the extracted content.

{% hint style="info" %}
*If no area is masked, this action trigger an "AI Autocut" to attempt an automatic subject selection.*
{% endhint %}

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Each method of adding layers serves different stages of the creative process, from setting up a base to integrating AI-generated content and refining your composition.