Let's say that I have two layers:
- Layer 2: An image with an Outer Glow layer effect.
- Layer 1: An image that I want to use to mask Layer2.
In the example below, Layer 1 is the white brush and Layer 2 is the red brush with a glow effect applied.
If I create a layer mask from Layer 1 and apply that to Layer 2 (and set "Layer Mask Hides Effects" to off), then I get this result:
But I would prefer to use a clipping mask instead of a layer mask because, in my case, Layer 1 is actually a group of many layers with a complex timeline-based animation, and so a single layer mask won't mask correctly for every frame of animation. A clipping mask is by far the easier way to mask based on an animation. But when I use a clipping mask instead of a layer mask, I get this:
Note how the glow is also clipped by Layer 1, which is not what I want, and I see no corresponding "Clipping Mask Hides Effects" option like there is with layer masks.
My current work-around is to create a duplicate of Layer 2 for every frame of animation and give each a separate layer mask, but obviously that solution would be very impractical for animations with more than a handful of frames.
Is there any easier way to mask a layer by the layer or layer group underneath when the layer/group underneath is animated, without also masking the effects of the top layer?
