Aspose.PSD Graphics Editor for .NET - Developer Guide

Aspose.PSD Graphics Editor for .NET is a streamlined API designed to let .NET developers programmatically inspect and modify every common Photoshop® layer type—Text, Smart Object, Adjustment, Shape and more—without requiring Adobe® Photoshop® itself. Whether you need to update text in a PSD, swap out smart-object contents, tweak adjustment settings or alter vector shapes, this plugin provides a complete, code-driven editing toolkit.

Installation and Setup

Begin by adding the NuGet package to your .NET project (see detailed steps on the Installation page).
Enable metered licensing exactly as you would in the full-featured Aspose.PSD product—refer to our Metered Licensing guide for configuration and best practices.

Features and Functionalities

Text Layer Editing

• Read and write layer text, fonts, sizes, colors and paragraph formats.
• Support for complex scripts, OpenType features, font subsetting and fallback selection.
• Fine-grained control over line spacing, alignment, indents and text bounding boxes.

Smart Object Handling

• Access embedded or linked smart-object contents without rasterizing.
• Replace or update smart-object source files programmatically.
• Preserve native PSD smart-object references when saving back to disk.

Adjustment Layer Manipulation

• Create, remove or reorder brightness/contrast, levels, curves, hue/saturation, vibrance and other adjustment layers.
• Read and modify properties (e.g., black/white points, RGB curves control points, hue/saturation ranges).
• Layer stacking order and clip-to-layer controls for selective adjustments.

Shape Layer Editing

• Inspect and modify vector paths, anchors and control handles.
• Update fills (solid, gradient or pattern), strokes (width, color, dash styles) and join/cap settings.
• Support for compound shapes, boolean operations (unite, subtract, intersect) and path trimming.

Layer Effects (Styles)

• Add or edit drop shadows, inner shadows, glows, bevel/emboss, satin, color overlays and more.
• Control blend modes, opacity and effect-specific parameters (angle, distance, size).
• Toggle individual effects on/off for dynamic styling scenarios.

Blending Modes and Opacity

• Apply any Photoshop blending mode (normal, multiply, screen, overlay, etc.) per layer.
• Adjust global and per-channel opacity for fine-tuned composite results.
• Programmatically sample composite output for real-time previews.

Layer Grouping and Hierarchy

• Create layer groups (folders), nest groups and move layers between groups.
• Flatten or ungroup layers while preserving visual appearance.
• Query group membership and iterate through hierarchical layer trees.

Masks and Clipping Paths

• Read and write layer masks (pixel masks, vector masks, quick masks).
• Apply or remove clipping masks to control visibility of lower layers.
• Edit mask channels—paint, invert or clear mask regions via code.

Import, Export and Serialization

• Load PSD files from disk, stream or byte array with full layer fidelity.
• Save back to PSD or export composite images to PNG, JPEG, BMP, TIFF.
• Control export options: color profiles, compression, transparency and interlacing.

Tips and Best Practices

• Always dispose PsdImage and related objects promptly (e.g., via using blocks) to free native resources.
• For large files or batch processes, work with streams instead of temp files to reduce I/O overhead.
• Validate layer types before casting—use provided layer-type checks to avoid runtime exceptions.
• Cache common resources (fonts, patterns, adjustment presets) rather than recreating them for each layer.
• When automating complex edits, maintain a change log or snapshot of layers to support rollback or undo scenarios.
• Leverage our Metered Licensing early in development to monitor usage and avoid surprises.