Centre Objects in Photoshop

If you need to center something in your Photoshop image, you can use built-in tools instead of trying to eyeball it. The Move tool in the Photoshop toolbox allows you to quickly snap the selected layer to the center of your image. These steps also work with similar image editors like GIMP.

Steps

  1. Select the layer that you want to center in the image. Use the layer selection window to select the layer that you want to center.
    • If the layer is locked, you'll need to duplicate it to unlock it. Press Ctrl/⌘ Command+J to duplicate the selected layer. See Unlock Layers in Photoshop for more details.
    • If you just want to center one aspect of a layer, you'll need to use the selection tools and then create a new layer from your selection. Right-click on the selected part of the image and select "Create Layer from Selection."
  2. Press .Ctrl/⌘ Command+A to select the entire layer. You'll see the dashed selection box appear around the edge of the layer.
    • You can use this same method to center an object in the middle of your selection, instead of the middle of the image. Instead of pressing Ctrl/⌘ Command+A to select everything, use the Selection tool to define your own area in the image. When you follow the process below, the image will be centered in the selected area.[1]
  3. Click the "Move" tool. You'll find this in the toolbox on the left side of the screen. It looks like a mouse cursor with a crosshair next to it. You can also press V to select it.
  4. Click the "Align vertical centers" button. You'll find this in the toolbar at the top of the window, or in the attributes window that appears beneath the toolbox on the left side of the screen. It looks like a skinny dark rectangle, with a white square to the right of it. This will align the selected layer so that it is vertically centered.[2]
    • The location of these buttons may vary depending on which version of Photoshop you are using, but they should always be present when you select the Move tool.
  5. Click the "Align horizontal centers" button. You'll find this near the "Align vertical centers" button. It looks like a white box centered above a horizontal dark rectangle. This will center the selected layer horizontally.
  6. Make manual adjustments. If the object you were trying to center was not centered already in the layer, you may have to make some manual adjustments to get it exactly centered.
    • You can create a guide that will show you the exact center of your image. Click and drag from the left ruler bar to create a vertical guide line. Slowly drag the line to the center until it snaps into place. Then click and drag a guide line from the top horizontal ruler, and slowly drag it to the center until it snaps into place. Where the lines meet is the exact center of your image. Use this to help make manual adjustments to the layer you are trying to center.



Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ http://www.heathrowe.com/photoshop-center-alignment-tricks/
  2. ↑ http://www.solveyourtech.com/how-to-center-a-layer-in-photoshop-cs5/
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