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Centering the Contents of a Layer in a Photoshop Document

Get your images and text lined up perfectly

By Sue Chastain Sue Chastain Writer St. Petersburg College Sue Chastain is a former Lifewire writer and a graphics software authority with web design and print publishing credentials. She's also skilled in WordPress administration. lifewire's editorial guidelines Updated on April 8, 2020 Tweet Share Email Tweet Share Email Design Graphic Design Photoshop Animation & Video 3D Design Adobe Photoshop provides several tool options for using guidelines and establishing symmetry in its documents. One of the most basic is the ability to center images and text located on layers in the document.

Finding and Marking the Center of a Photoshop Document

Before you can find and mark the center of a Photoshop document, turn on Rulers and Snap to Guides, or confirm they are already turned on. Open an existing file or create a new document using File > New. Select View on the menu bar, and then click Rulers to toggle the rulers on. You can also press Command-R (Mac) or Ctrl-R (PC) on your keyboard to toggle rulers. Return to the View menu, click Snap To and select Guides. Now, with Rulers and Snap to Guides turned on, you can find the centers of elements and layers. Make sure you've selected the layer you want to find the center of if you have multiple layers in your document. Click and hold on either the horizontal or vertical ruler. Drag a guide from the ruler onto the document. When you reach the center of the selected layer, it will snap into place. Drag a guide from the other ruler to the approximate center of the document until it snaps into place. The place that the guides meet is the center of the layer. You can also place a guide manually by opening View > New Guide and entering an orientation and position in the pop-up menu that appears.

Centering Layer Contents in a Document

When you drag an image onto a layer, it centers automatically on its own layer. However, if you resize the image or move it, you can recenter it in this manner: In the Layers palette, select two or more layers that you want to center. Choose Layer on the menu bar, followed by Align and Vertical Centers to center the layer contents vertically. Choose Layer > Align > Horizontal Centers to center the layer contents horizontally. With the guides in place, you can also use the Move tool to align elements. The centers of layers you move will snap to the guides. You can use guides to find the center of a layer even if it doesn't take up the entire canvas, so you can line up offset photos or arrange elements in columns. If a layer contains more than one object — say, an image and a text box — Photoshop treats the two objects as a group, and it centers them that way, rather than an individual item. If you select several layers, the objects on all the layers center one on top of another in the document. Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! Get the Latest Tech News Delivered Every Day Subscribe Tell us why! Other Not enough details Hard to understand Submit More from Lifewire Greeting Card Template and Instructions for Adobe Photoshop How to Make a Timeline on Google Slides How to Indent in Word and Use Tabs and Rulers How to Show the Ruler in Word How to Make a Pattern in Photoshop How to Make a GIF in Photoshop How to Apply Rubber Stamp Effects in Photoshop Elements 8 How to Rotate an Image in Photoshop How to Resize a Layer in Photoshop How to Add a Border in Google Docs How to Change Background Color in Photoshop How to Rotate an Image in Google Docs How to Customize the Adobe InDesign Document Area Creating and Using Custom Brushes in Photoshop Elements 10 Best Free Photo Editing Programs Adobe Photoshop Basics: Menu Bar Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. Cookies Settings Accept All Cookies