Photoshop 2025 - Gradient Mask Not Working!

[YohMama]

I've been a Photoshop user for over 30 years. The new Photoshop 2025 update is not allowing me to create a gradient mask on an image. I've sat through every tutorial I could get my hands on and I'm very frustrated. HELP!!

1. Adobe Photoshop 2025, 26.0.0 Release
2. MacOS Sonoma version 14.7.1

3. Image layer selected, click on layer mask icon, click on Gradient tool, adjust the Gradient properties to my desired settings (black to transparent), click and drag and nothing happens.
4. Expect to see one end as transparent and it's not working.

[CMass · Accepted solution]

Hey! @YohMama, 

It looks like the Mode is set to "screen" on the top bar. Change that to normal and let us know if it works. 

^CM

[mckenna_3860]

Hi there!! I was also having this issue but however every YouTube video I watch and info I find, my screen looks like theirs for the gradient tool settings, mode is normal, etc. transparent is on and everything and whenever I drag it across the photo, it isn't transparent at all and is just black and white. I'm at a loss

[YohMama]

CMass!!
Thank you!! It worked!!! Don't know why it defaulted to "screen" instead of "normal." Sheesh!
Appreciate it!
Many thanks,
YohMama

[CMass]

Hehe, even after ahem years, it still happens to me too! Thank you for sharing the screenshot—that really helped narrow down what might be causing the issue. 🙂

^CM

[Gregory22520102tw31]

There's still a blending issue with the gradients in 2025. I tend to leave my gradients on multiply & now when I go to apply them to a mask, it blends as on normal (tho the dropdown still says multiply). Only way I've found to fix it is change the blend setting to something else, then put it back to multiply. Which is really annoying.

[matusb89753410]

exactly as below - there is a bug (several version unadressed and extremely annoying) - when gradient tool is set to "multiply" mode, each time I restart photoshop, the tool says it is set to "multiply", but it behaves as it is set to normal - only when I change it to something alse and then again to multiply - it behaves correctly. This is super annoying

[Nationwide Im37253220lla8]

Hey, I am facing the same issue. Did you get any solution?

[Sameer K]

Hey, @Nationwide Im37253220lla8. Welcome to the Photoshop Community.

There is a correct answer on this thread. If that does not help, please share more info and include screenshots, including the Layers panel. 

Also, check if changing the blend mode & opacity of the Layer masks helps. 

Awaiting to hear from you. Thanks! 

Sameer K

(Type '@' and type my name to mention me when you reply)

[nathanw51574665]

I'm just gonna add, I to have used PS for 30 years and this gradient tool, while you do have more control is really, really, really weird. The properties panel has some strange things going on. Scale, what is this? What is the scale based on? Smoothness with a transpancy is color to color, so it is useless. Making one switch between the gradient and mask is a step not needed. Make it like Illustrator or InDesign. Or better yet stop changing things. We use this tool for work and the last thing I need is to relearn my tool on a Friday at 7:00pm to hit a deadline.

[ginagiaccardo]

I agree. There are so many random changes in Photoshop 2025 that just disturb my workflow and do not make productivity better in the least.

[ginagiaccardo]

I get a pop-up message, "Could not complete your request because of a program error" when I try to use the gradient tool in a layer mask.

[ginagiaccardo]

I finally asked Google AI in the right way and got the answer: switch to Classic Gradient in the drop down menu.

[getho]

there is a bug in the gradient tool in PS 2025 - when using it on a mask of a clipped adjustment when there is more than one adjustment layer it gives an error:

1. create a eg curves adjust layer, then create another

2. Clip both to a pixel layer below
3. attempt to use gradient tool on the topmosts layer mask

[Nicho_22]

Hola buena tarde espero estén bien, yo tengo un pronblema un tanto diferente, quizá sea el hecho de que vengo de versiones anteriores sin embargo es la priemra vez que me pasa algo así cuando utilizo una herramienta de selección, ya sea ejemplo seleccionar sujeto, y quiero aplicar mascara de capa para poder ajustar ciertos detalles manualmente no me aplica la mascara y se queda toda en blacno, mi problema como tal es con las mascaras de capas, alguien podría ayudarme? Muchas gracias por su tiempo. 

 

[elguapo007]

Good morning, I don't have as much experience as you in PS so I may sound like a dummy. But...how do you have that top bar with all that info? I click on "Gradient" in the task bar and I don't get all that information. I'm trying to do a gradient and the foreground and background colors are pink and blue. But, the color on the top bar defaults to black (box to the right of "Gradient". There is no "screen" Mode or "normal" Mode. Thanks!

[Rob_Cullen]

And I don't have much experience in PS! yet I find:

"that top bar with all that info? "   The top bar is specific to the tool selected. When you have the Gradient Tool selected you should see-

It is in the Properties panel (Window) where you will see the Gradient editor-

[jane-e · Accepted solution]

how do you have that top bar with all that info?

By @elguapo007

The "top bar" is called the options bar. It is where you set the options for how a (selected) tool behaves until the options changed or reset. It can be opened from the Window menu or by resetting the Essentials Workspace.

Jane