How to flip a layer in Photoshop: A complete guide

A picture of a bird, flipped in Photoshop
Seeing double? This image has been flipped and blended with the original (Image credit: Future)

This tutorial will teach you how to flip a layer in Photoshop, and then blend the results with the original. It isn't the most common request, but being able to flip an image is a basic Photoshop skill. If you've ever had to flip a portrait in editorial to face into the page, or mirror an image to create a mandala pattern, you'll understand why it should be in every designer's toolkit. But as with most Adobe software, even the simplest of effects can have many different approaches. 

These are the basic Photoshop techniques for flipping an image, and how to blend it with the original. To refine your skills even further, you could check out our roundup of Photoshop tutorials, or boost your toolkit with some Photoshop plugins or free Photoshop brushes.

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Matt Smith
Designer and Video Producer

Matt has worked for various publishing houses and design agencies, covering studio photography, video production, editorial design, branding, illustration and motion graphics. He currently works for Future PLC with brands such as T3, Woman&Home, Marie Claire, Music Week, TechRadar, Golden Joysticks, Cycling Weekly, Brand Impact Awards, Horse&Hound and Tech&Learning. In the past he has designed titles including Mac|Life, IQ, Bow International, Drummer, iDrum, Acoustic, Clay Shooting, Sea Fishing and GunTradeNews. He has experience across the full Adobe Suite and is currently spending a lot of time creating projects in Blender and After Effects.

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