In Photoshop, a Smart Object is a layer that contains image data from a raster or vector image, or another Photoshop document. Smart Objects preserve an image’s source content with all its original characteristics, enabling you to perform nondestructive editing to the layer. When you edit a Smart Object, the changes are applied to all its linked instances.
There are two ways to create a Smart Object in Photoshop:
- Open an image that you want to convert into a Smart Object, and then choose File > Place. Select the image file, and click Place.
In the Place dialog box, click Smart Object, and click Place. The image is placed as a Smart Object on its own layer in the Photoshop document.
- Layer via Copy or Duplicate: Select the layer that you want to convert into a Smart Object in the Layers panel, and then do one of the following:
- To create a copy of the layer as a Smart Object, choose Layer > Smart Objects > Convert to Smart Object. A copy of the selected layer is added as a Smart Object above the original layer.
How Do You Make a Smart Object in Photoshop?
In Photoshop, there are two ways to make a Smart Object. You can either open an image and choose File > Place, or you can Layer via Copy or Duplicate. If you choose File > Place, select the image file and click Place. In the Place dialog box, click Smart Object.
The image will be placed as a Smart Object on its own layer in the Photoshop document. If you choose Layer via Copy or Duplicate, select the layer that you want to convert into a Smart Object in the Layers panel. To create a copy of the layer as a Smart Object, choose Layer > Smart Objects > Convert to Smart Object. A copy of the selected layer is added as a Smart object above the original layer.
Converting layers into Smart Objects is helpful because it allows you to make edits nondestructively. This means that you can go back and edit the original content of the layer at any time. Additionally, when you edit a Smart Object, any changes that you make are automatically applied to all other linked instances of that object.