Why does the layer switch when using move tool?

[GeorgeKaplans]

I'm used to CS3 so switching to 2020 has been a learning cerve!

It used to be the case that I could click on a layer and move it around with the Move Tool.

Now it seems that the layer will switch to whatever the cursour is touching (usually the top layer) as if photoshop assumes this is the layer I want to move.

As a work-around, I've been switching the layer that I want to move to the top, move-tooling it to where I want it, then retuning it to the place in the layers where it origianally was.

There must be a way of disabling this function!

Any help would be appreciated.

[jane-e · Accepted solution]

Hi

Turn off Auto-Select in the options bar for the Move tool.

~ Jane

[GeorgeKaplans]

I suspected it would be something ridiculously simple!

Thank you very much!

[jane-e]

You're welcome, George, I'm glad it's working for you now! 😊

~ Jane

[Shaun5C3A]

Yes! worked for me too. Kinda makes you wonder why the newest software comes with Smoothing at 100%, which means the paint drags behind the cursor by about an inch, or why Auto-select is ticked when it means when you try to move a selected object on a selected layer with the move tool, any layer that is not specifically locked is also added to the selection... now, if only I knew how to stop the whole screen contents randomly sliding off the screen to the left, Photoshop will once again be as good as it used to be! - theses weren't issues with the 2019 release - that just had the invisible brush cursor.