masking impossible in PSE

[Draco55]

I have  had  conversation with folks  in the  Photoshop forum where  I was  told that if  the  user  has photoshop elements it is  impossible to using the  masking option, in that it simply will not work.

I can verify this  because  I have  used  elements for  several years  and  have  had  zero success.

I was  told  this morning from a  source  outside the  forums  that this  is  an Adobe  marketing strategy where information is  deliberately supressed so that the  user is  forced tobuy into a  monthly premium to have  this  tool work proerly.

SO, PSE  users.. if  you are having zero success with masking in Elements... this  is  why!

[Greg_S.]

What are you trying to do with masking and what happens when you try it?  Elements does not have all of the features of Photoshop CC, but most masking features are available.

[Draco55]

Hi Greg, thx  for  responding.

to condense my hundreds of  experiences to one simple  sentence, it is  as  follows:

I can open a  masking layer, I can use a brush to remove or  reduce  opacity... I understand  how to do that, but every time  I attempt to close/merge all layers, I get no result... I get the  original photo as  if  nothing happened.

This  has  to be a software issue unique  to elements... I dont know  what else  to call it other  than that fact that information is  missing and  is  only avialable  to those  people  who know  how to find  it.

[Greg_S.]

You need to be more specific about what you are trying to do with a mask.  Frankly, by your current description, it sounds to me like you do not fully understand what it does or how to use it.  In the following example, I took a color photo of my family by the Grand Canyon.  I copied the layer and applied a sketch filter to the photo. I then masked it so that only my family is filtered with the sketch. 

Of course, there is much more that you can do with a mask, but until you give us a better description of what you are doing, we really can't help you.  A screenshot of your photo and the layers panel will help us diagnose the problem.

Also, what OS and version of Elements are you using?