Procreate – Layer Selection Shortcut

Procreate is full of tools that make an artist’s life easier, save time, and allow digital creators to unleash their creativity. The shortcut feature is one of these super helpful tools.

One of my favorite shortcuts available in Procreate is Layer Select Shortcut. You can use this shortcut to select a specific layer, and all you have to do is to touch the content on the canvas without needing to go to the Layers menu. And in this article, I will show you how to turn on the Layer Select shortcut and how to use it.

How to turn on the Layer Select shortcut

To be able to select layers without using the Layers menu simply by touching the layer’s content on the canvas, we first have to activate the Layer Select shortcut.

To do that go to Actions > Prefs > Gesture Controls > Layer Select. Under Layer Select, you will see different options for shortcut activation. I would go with the first option, “Touch,” which means that a finger touch will invoke the Layer Select shortcut.

How to use the Layer Select shortcut

Once you’ve chosen a touch for Layer Select, all you have to do to start using it is to take your finger and drag it around the canvas, showing you all the layers you currently have visible. If you stop for a moment, the Layer Select pop-up will appear to show all available layers visible in that specific location of your canvas.

Once the Layer Select pop-up menu is expanded, I can lift my finger off the canvas, and the Layer Select pop-up will remain on the screen, and it will stay on until you select a layer or tap it off.

But of course, you don’t have to drag your finger in order to select a layer; you can just tap on the area with the layer you want to select. The layer pop-up menu will appear, and you can choose the layer you want to work on.

Conclusion

Shortcuts in Procreate are fantastic! They let you work faster, saving time and making art creating process easier and smoother.

I hope this tutorial was helpful and will inspire you to create more fun and beautiful illustrations in Procreate. Please consider checking out my other Procreate tutorials and subscribing to Procreate Member Area, where you will find the biggest Procreate Resources Library.