Pro Layer Editor

Photoshop-Style Layer Editor – Layers, Selections and Brushes in the Browser

PixlReady’s pro editor brings the layout people know from desktop editors into the tab: a left toolbar, a centre canvas, and a right-hand panel with colour, layers and history. Open an image and paint, select, fill, type and composite with layers — without a subscription or an install.

The canvas starts at 800×600 pixels and every brush, selection and blend is computed locally. There is no upload queue and exports are flattened PNGs with no watermark.

Key features

• Move, marquee, lasso, magic-wand, quick-select and pen tools
• Brush, pencil, eraser, gradient, paint bucket, blur, sharpen, smudge, dodge and burn
• Layer stack with add, duplicate and delete, opacity and 14 blend modes
• Foreground/background colour, hex input, swap and quick swatches
• Undo/redo and a history panel; export as a flattened PNG

How to use

1. Open an image with the folder button; it becomes the background layer.
2. Pick a tool from the left toolbar and tune size, opacity and tolerance on the option bar.
3. Add layers, set blend modes and opacity, and use history to step back.
4. Export the flattened result as a PNG.

Who this editor is for

When the simple image editor is not enough — because you need to composite two images, mask part of a layer, or experiment with blend modes — this editor provides the layer stack and selection tools those one-purpose pages lack. It is aimed at quick compositing and retouching in the browser rather than a full desktop replacement.

• Designers compositing a cut-out subject onto a backdrop.
• Power users who want layers, opacity and blend modes on a small project.
• Anyone editing on a shared or locked-down computer where installing software is not allowed.

The toolbar, tool by tool

The left rail groups the familiar tools. The move tool repositions layers; rectangular marquee, lasso, magic wand and quick-select build selections; the pen draws paths; brush, pencil and eraser paint; gradient and paint bucket fill; blur, sharpen, smudge, dodge and burn retouch local areas; the text tool adds type; eyedropper samples a colour; zoom and hand navigate the canvas.

• For brush-type tools the option bar exposes size (1–100, default 10), brush opacity (1–100, default 100) and hardness (0–100, default 80).
• The magic wand exposes a tolerance slider (1–100, default 32) that sets how similar a colour must be to be selected.
• The canvas opens at 800×600; “new document” clears the project back to that size after a confirmation.

Layers, blend modes and history

The right panel is where the pro work happens. Add, duplicate or delete layers; each layer has an opacity slider (0–100%) and a blend mode chosen from normal, multiply, screen, overlay, soft light, hard light, colour dodge, colour burn, difference, exclusion, hue, saturation, colour and luminosity. The history panel records states, and undo/redo step through them.

• The colour panel sets foreground and background colours, accepts a hex value, swaps them, and offers eight quick swatches.
• Exports flatten the visible stack to a single PNG; transparency in the bottom layer is preserved by the PNG output.

Step by step

1. Click the folder icon and open one image; it loads as the background layer.
2. Choose a tool, adjust size/opacity/tolerance on the option bar, and paint or select.
3. Add layers from the layers panel and set their blend mode and opacity.
4. Use undo/redo or the history list to correct a step, then export as PNG.

Privacy and limits

All drawing and compositing happens in your browser; files are never uploaded and there is no account. The editor is deliberately focused: it provides the core layer and selection workflow, and exports a flattened PNG rather than a layered project file. For fast one-photo fixes, the lighter image editor opens quicker.

Related tools

• Simple Image Editor — lighter adjust, filter, text and doodle workspace
• Background Remover — cut out a subject to bring into a layer
• Product Photo Studio — automated marketplace compositing

Frequently Asked Questions