Quote Originally Posted by Jaxilon View Post
What you do for the 50% grey is create a new layer (I like to call it Shadows or something like that). Place this over the one you are working on. Fill it with hex color 808080 (I think that's the right one) and set this layer to OVERLAY mode. Now, if you use the burn tool on it the image will darken and vice versa if you dodge. It is the best way to do it - I just gave you the quick and dirty method.
Ummm yea... DUH!! I kind of forgot the most important part! Thanks for the assist Jax. And yes, it IS the bet way to go since it means you never break your original objects. If you mess up, just paint the messed up area with 50% grey and it's fixed. As much as possible, try to avoid doing things that actually alter an underlying object. This also helps in cases where you want "just a little more" where you can duplicate the overlay layer and adjust the opacity downward if it's "too" much.