Photoshop: new layer style: Noise

[PECourtejoie]

Layer styles are useful because of their parametric and their non-destructive natures. Smart Filters are useful, but require the creation of a smart object beforehand.
I'd like to suggest new layer styles, of commonly used effects, that would help to automate time-consuming tasks.

This one is not one of my suggestions, it was made by Mark Reynolds in the user-to-user forum after my new styles suggestions, but I support it wholeheartedly:

Noise - at the moment its possible to use Pattern Overlay and generate patterns to put grain texture and noise into layers. But a layer style with the correct parameters, grain size, blur, intensity, saturation (Saturation applies to the saturation of the noise not the image), would be useful.

This brings me back to feature request made about a year or so ago, that it woud be possible to sample overall image 'noise' or 'grain' and to apply this to areas. It would use image analysis techniques, although Im not sure yet what these would be - to create an 'average' grain structure for the existing image (probably the base layer but this could be redefined). This would mean that any bad retouching (blurring or image softening) could be more easily salvaged, and would also mean that its easy to do much more destructive editing, more freely on an image than before, without the worry of banding on output.

I hope that other users will chime in with proposed refinements, or additional (useful and feasible) layer styles they'd like to see.

[s_mahn]

I really like this idea. Often, rather than cloning it's more convenient to airbrush/paint an area, and then add noise (seamless backgrounds, jewelry, etc). But if one then wants to come back and paint more they can't on the same layer, and then add noise again, because old areas would get a double dose. But if noise were added as a layer effect the amount would be uniform despite repeated additions of content to the layer.

[c.pfaffenbichler]

The size for the Linear Light-Pattern Overlays I occasionally just edit in the Pattern Overlay’s Scale setting, but that can produce somewhat whack results.
Quite frankly I wonder what resampling is employed in scaling Patterns, as the results don’t seem to be identical to any of the five methods’ available for image resizing.

[s_mahn]

"I hope that other users will chime in with proposed refinements, or additional (useful and feasible) layer styles they'd like to see. "

Any tips on what's feasible for Layer Styles?

For instance, I'd love if Unsharp Masking, Smart Sharpen and Clarity could be part of Layer Styles. Is that feasible?

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

Layer styles work entirely on the layer transparency data -- they cannot blend or filter the data behind the layer, only with the layer itself. And their effect has to be very locallized.

Most of Photoshop's filters, and a few adjustments, are already available as Smart Filters.

[s_mahn]

'Most of Photoshop's filters, and a few adjustments, are already available as Smart Filters.'

one of the conveniences of layer effects is the ability to save them as
'styles'. it would be nice if combinations of parametric smart filters could also be saved as 'presets/styles', and thus easily saved and later attached to multiple layers and files.

[DSetter]

i would also like to see this as a layer style as opposed to having to do it as a smart object. I just want to echo the need for multiple sliders for size, blur, intensity type controls.

It would also be great to have those controls on the main filter noise dialog!!

[Dominik Sourcé]

Although this request is quite old I think it's still important. Why:

– Adding noise to an image is a "compressing hell" hence the PSDs get huge quite easily. especially when you deal with multiple noise layers in a 10000x10000 px compositing. a guess a procedural/parametric approach would be better in that regard.
– Besides that it would just be the simplest approach for the given task and therefore definitely a timesaver.
– I think it would also make much more sense from an UI/UX standpoint to add noise to a layer like that.
– The current workflow (clipping a gray layer with added noise to a layer and set it to overlay) unnecessarily clutters your layers panel.

By the way: I think the layer style should basically have the same parameters as the noise feature in the blur gallery filters.

[c.pfaffenbichler]

I cerated a few Noise Patterns (based on neutral gray naturally) and have been using them in the Layer Style Pattern Overlay for a long time now,

clipping a gray layer with added noise to a layer and set it to overlay

is not necessary. 
The Pattern Overlay can also be applied to a Group, so it’s quite useful to me. 

[Dominik Sourcé]

That's actually a great suggestion, although I still think it would be more versatile to have a "real" parametrically generated noise as a layer style. Many thanks for your workaround!

[c.pfaffenbichler]

Apart from monochromatic and non-monochromatic noise (of a few different strengths possibly) you may also want to create one (or a few) upscaled versions. 
When trying to match the noise of an image with a Pattern Overlay it may sometimes appear too small – but the scaling of the Pattern appears to employ such an interpolation that noticable artefacts might appear. 

On the left a Smart Object of a plain noise Pattern at Linear Light, 20% Opacity and 300% size, on the right the same pattern, Blend Mode, opacity, scale but as a Pattern Overlay. 

[Dominik Sourcé]

I just ran into the "problem" you described. The interpolation seems a little strange to me. Maybe something to investigate ... to be honest I don't normally use Pattern Overlays, Fills etc. very often so I didn't encounter this behavior before. Thanks for your detailed input!

[c.pfaffenbichler]

The Interpolation used for Patterns also makes the improvement of being able to rotate Patterns in 21.2.0 useless for certain Patterns because the artefacts are so bad. 
A while back I tried to figure out which Interpolation Method it is and as fas as I could tell it was none of the standard ones available in the Image Size-dialog and in the General Preferences. 

[Dominik Sourcé]

I haven't tried this feature until now, but you are totally right. Makes it pretty much useless 😞 Reminds me of the new warp tool – great idea but unfortunately a poor implementation ... I really hope to see some of these very old and even some very new bugs fixed in version 22.