Using Blending Modes
with Adjustment Layers

I've just been 'introduced' to blending modes. How have so many years of working with photographs gone by without having knowledge of this marvelous tool. I've searched the internet for good examples using phtographs and could find very little. First, check out one or the other of these two articles:
Layer blend Modes in Paint Shop Pro or Blend Modes for Photoshop If you have Photoshop Elements 5 type in "About blending modes" in the Help files. With Photoshop CS2 type "List of blending modes" in the Search for: box.

Paint Shop Pro Users Page.

To see the original images that were used for this tutorial Look Here
I'm sorry that I can't have a long series of larger images so that you could see the differences better. But the page would take forever to load! So click on each of the thumbnails for a larger size!

The original photograph as it appears in Photoshop Elements 5 with the Layers Palette showing.

Original

Here's the Layers palette showing and I have chosen to create an Adjustment layer, and am using Brightness/Contrast as the type of layer. Now click OK to close the Brightness/Contrast box.You won't be using it any more. Be sure to see the larger size. Next you will choose the blending mode from the drop-down menu below.

2 Days Later: I don't know where I got the miss-information about creating a new adjustment layer! You don't have to do that. A better way is simply to go to Layer>Duplicate Layer and you'll be immediatley ready to begin experimenting with Layer Modes!!  So please ignore the layer name of Brightness/contrast in the examples below.

Layers Palette

Now select the blending mode you want from the drop-down menu, in this case the Multiply mode.

Multiply chosen

Blend mode: Multiply with the Opacity set at 100%. You can move the Opacity slider back and forth until you see the correction you want to use. Unlees the shot was really under exposed you probably wont want the full 100%! You could also start over and work with the Darken mode instead.

Multiple-100

Blend mode: multiply with the Opacity set at 50%

Multiple-50
Screen-100

Continue to click on the thumbnails to see different modes with the opacity set at both 100% (left) and 50%,on the right.
The Screen mode.

Screen-50
Overlay-100

The overlay mode.
<100%

50%>

 Overlay-50
Softlight-100

The soft light mode.
<100%

50%>
Softlight-50

Bored with that photo? This one demonstrates the Hard Light mode. This is the original.

Hard light
Hardlight-100

The hard light mode.
<100%

50%>
Hardlight-50

Go to page 2 for examples using the black and
white image, and the same blending modes.

You can certainly spend an interesting evening playing around with the modes I've shown as well as the others. Don't be surprised if some don't seem to do anything.
Read the articles linked at the top of the page.