5 Smart Ways To Apply Color Swatches In Photoshop
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- 0:00 Intro
- 1:00 Drag-and-drop swatches to a Background Layer
- 2:04 Drag-and-drop Color Swatches to pixel Layers and Smart Objects
- 3:47 Drag-and-drop Color Swatches to Vector Graphics
- 4:50 Drag-and-drop Color Swatches to Text Layers
- 5:08 Drag-and-drop Color Swatches to multiple layer types.
- 6:02 Drag-and-drop Color Swatches from a Library to a Layer
Your choices stick across every tutorial on this device.
Color swatches in Photoshop recolor almost any layer with a single click or drag.
In this tutorial, you will learn 5 different ways to apply color swatches in Photoshop and improve your workflow!
In Photoshop 2020, the easiest way to add colors from the Swatches panel is to drag a color swatch onto a layer in the Layers panel. You don’t have to select the layer because Photoshop will automatically select the layer as you drop the swatch onto it.
However, how the colors will apply depends entirely on which type of layer you have selected or which shortcut keys you are using.
These techniques for color swatches in Photoshop have not changed since this video was recorded.
Key Takeaways
- Photoshop decides how a color swatch applies based on the layer type you drop it on, not a menu setting.
- Dropping a swatch on a locked Background layer or a pixel layer creates a new Color Fill layer instead of painting the pixels directly.
- Hold Alt (Windows) or Option (macOS) while you drag a swatch onto a pixel layer to skip the clipping mask.
- Hold CtrlAlt (Windows) or CommandOption (macOS) while you drag a swatch to apply it as a Color Overlay layer style instead of a fill layer.
- On a vector shape or text layer, a dropped swatch only changes the fill color. The stroke stays exactly as it was.
- A color saved in the Libraries panel cannot be dragged onto a layer. Select the layer first, then click the color to apply it.
Table of contents
- What You Will Learn
- Requirements
- Color Swatches in Photoshop: Keyboard Shortcuts
- Drag-and-drop to Apply Color Swatches to a Background Layer
- Drag-and-drop Color Swatches to Pixel Layers and Smart Objects
- Drag-and-drop Color Swatches to Vector Graphics
- Drag-and-drop Color Swatches to Text Layers
- Drag-and-drop Color Swatches to Multiple Layer Types
- Drag-and-drop Color Swatches from a Library to a Layer
- How to Save a Color in Your Libraries Panel
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Conclusion
- Related Links
What You Will Learn
- How to apply a color swatch to a locked Background layer
- How a swatch behaves differently on a pixel layer versus a vector shape or text layer
- The keyboard shortcuts that skip the clipping mask or apply a swatch as a layer style
- How to recolor two or more selected layers at once
- How to save your own colors to the Libraries panel for reuse
Requirements
Before you start
- Photoshop 2020 (version 21.0 or later) or the current version
Practice Files
Download the images used in this tutorial and follow along step by step.
Color Swatches in Photoshop: Keyboard Shortcuts
| Action | Windows | macOS |
|---|---|---|
| Create a Color Fill layer without a clipping mask | Alt | Option |
| Apply a swatch as a Color Overlay layer style | Ctrl Alt | Command Option |
| Select two or more layers | Shift | Shift |
| Undo the last change | Ctrl Z | Command Z |
Drag-and-drop to Apply Color Swatches to a Background Layer
Let’s start with the locked Background layer.
Add the Swatches panel to your workspace by going to Windows > Swatches.
On the Swatches panel, you have a list of primary colors and your recently-used color swatches.
If you can’t view the color swatches that you have recently used, click on the flyout menu and click on Show Recents to enable it.
The recently-used swatches will appear on top of the panel, and any color picked up by the Eyedropper tool will be added to the line-up.
Now, from the Swatches panel, click-and-drag on a color swatch and drop it on the Background layer. This will automatically create a Color Fill layer directly above it.
If you would rather recolor an existing background photo instead of a blank layer, see how to change the background color in Photoshop with a Solid Color adjustment layer.
With a Color Fill layer active, you can easily swap it with a different color swatch just by clicking on any color in the Swatches panel.
Another way of doing it is by double-clicking on the Color Fill layer thumbnail. It will open up the Color Picker window, where you can click-and-drag on a hue and adjust the slider. You can also go to the Color Libraries for more color palettes.
Then, press OK to apply the set color.
Drag-and-drop Color Swatches to Pixel Layers and Smart Objects
Next, let’s work on Pixel layers. Working with a Pixel layer is similar to working with a Smart Object, you can work on it non-destructively.
On the Pixel layer, there is a sun-shaped object created with the Custom Shape Tool.
If you click-and-drag a color from the Swatches panel and drop it on the pixel layer, Photoshop automatically turns it into a Color Fill layer. It transforms every pixel into that color through a Clipping Mask.
The Clipping Mask works by applying its properties to every pixel on the layer directly below it. That is why even the stroke on the sun-shaped object has changed its color as it affects not by color or style but by pixels.
If you want to create a Color Fill layer above the pixel layer without the Clipping Mask, then select a color from the Swatches panel.
Hold Alt (Windows) or Option (macOS), then drag it onto the pixel layer for Photoshop to create a Color Fill layer above it.
Another way to add a color swatch is by holding CtrlAlt (Windows) or CommandOption (macOS) while you drag it onto a layer. Photoshop applies it as a Layer Style instead of a fill.
In this example, it transformed into a Color Overlay.
Double-click on the Color Overlay, it will open the Layer Style window where you can change the color or the Blend Mode.
Tip: Once a swatch becomes a layer style, you can resize it independently of the layer. See how to scale layer styles in Photoshop.
Drag-and-drop Color Swatches to Vector Graphics
Select the Direct Selection Tool and click on the vector shape to show the points. You can adjust them by clicking-and-dragging on these individual points to stretch, bend, or distort.
Going back to the Swatches panel, click-and-drag any color and drop it onto the vector shape.
Unlike in the pixel layer, clicking-and-dragging a color only changes the Fill color, as you can see in the Options bar.
The Stroke style or color is not affected as it is separate property.
Another way of doing it is by clicking-and-dragging a color from the Swatches panel and dropping it onto the Vector layer, and this will give you the same result.
Drag-and-drop Color Swatches to Text Layers
The Text layer is also affected in the same way. If you click-and-drag a color swatch onto the layer, it will automatically change the color of the text.
It also gives you the same result when you click-and-drag a color from the Swatches panel directly onto the text.
Drag-and-drop Color Swatches to Multiple Layer Types
Another cool way of applying color swatches is by selecting two layers at the same time.
Hold Shift (Windows) or Shift (macOS) and click on two layers to select them both.
Then, click on a color in the Swatches panel to fill both layers into the selected color.
However, this technique only changes the Fill color, so the color of your Stroke remains the same.
Drag-and-drop Color Swatches from a Library to a Layer
Select the Text layer, Vector layer, Pixel layer, and go to the Swatches panel to select on a color. The selected color will apply to both the Text and the Vector layer.
However, the Pixel layer remains the same. This is an excellent point to remember if you select multiple layers but notice one layer is not filled with the chosen color.
Before concluding this tutorial, look at what happens if you apply the same technique with colors saved in your Libraries panel.
Select a color in your library and drag it to your Layers panel.
You may notice that nothing happens, and instead, the “prohibited” symbol appears.
However, the other way around works! If you select on a layer and then click on a color saved on your Libraries panel, it will change the Fill color, but the Stroke color unchanged.
If you double-click on a color saved in your Libraries panel, Photoshop applies it, but it opens the Color Picker window.
As a rule of thumb: On your Libraries panel, one-click applies it, and double-click opens the Color Picker window.
How to Save a Color in Your Libraries Panel
If you want easy access to your favorite colors, select a color from the Swatches panel or double-click the Foreground color. Either way opens the Color Picker window, where you can select any color and press OK.
Go to your Libraries panel and click on the plus icon at the bottom.
You can select the current Foreground color or the Text color and add it to your Libraries panel.
Selecting the Foreground color, it will be added to the Non-Grouped section, and from there, you can organize it in the right group.
With this technique, you can organize your swatches into groups based on the project you are working on. They stay separate from your other swatches in the panel.
Photoshop’s Hue/Saturation adjustment layer also uses interactive color swatches to target one color at a time. Learn more in Mastering the New Hue and Saturation Adjustment Layer in Photoshop.
Hopefully, these five different ways to apply color swatches encourages you to work smart and achieve your desired effect in a few simple steps!
Frequently Asked Questions
Open the Swatches panel from Window > Swatches. Click and drag any swatch onto a layer in the Layers panel, and Photoshop applies the color automatically.
Dropping a swatch on most layer types creates a Color Fill layer above it instead of changing the pixels directly. This keeps the color edit nondestructive, so you can swap or delete it later without losing the original layer.
Hold Alt (Windows) or Option (macOS) while you drag the swatch onto a pixel layer. Photoshop creates a Color Fill layer above it instead of clipping the color to the pixels below.
Yes. Hold CtrlAlt (Windows) or CommandOption (macOS) while dragging the swatch onto a layer, and Photoshop applies it as a Color Overlay layer style. Open the Layer Style window to adjust it further.
A vector shape has separate Fill and Stroke properties. Dragging a swatch onto the shape only changes the Fill, so the Stroke color stays exactly as it was.
Select two or more layers by holding Shift (Windows) or Shift (macOS) and clicking each one. Click a color in the Swatches panel to fill every selected layer at once, though a pixel layer in the selection stays unaffected.
Photoshop does not support dragging a Libraries panel color directly onto a layer. Select the layer first, then click the color in the Libraries panel to apply it.
Pick a color from the Swatches panel, or double-click the Foreground color to open the Color Picker. Open your Libraries panel and click the plus icon to add it as a saved color.
Conclusion
These techniques for color swatches in Photoshop cover every layer type you will run into: locked backgrounds, pixel layers, vector shapes, text, and colors saved in your Libraries panel.
Once you know which modifier key changes the result, applying the right color becomes a one-click habit instead of a guessing game.
Watch the full video above for every example in action, and comment on the video if you have a question.
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Next, learn how to create your own color swatches from external files in Photoshop.
