| Modifier | Effect |
|---|---|
| Align as Group | Moves the whole selection together as one rigid block, preserving each layer’s position relative to the others, instead of moving each layer independently. |
| Align to Anchors | Uses each layer’s anchor point instead of its bounding box. Useful when a layer’s anchor has already been offset for another effect. |
| Align to Masks | Uses a layer’s mask shape instead of its visible content when calculating its bounds. Only affects layers that actually have a mask. |
Some combinations are disabled
Align Pro greys out buttons and modifiers that wouldn’t produce a meaningful result together:- Align to Outside disables Align Horizontally, Align Vertically, Align Center, and Align to Anchors, since outside alignment only makes sense relative to an edge.
- Align to Selection disables Align as Group, since you can’t align a group to its own bounds.
- Align to Key Layer combined with Align to Anchors disables Align Left, Right, Top, and Bottom, leaving only centering, since an anchor is a single point with no distinct edges.
- Align as Group disables Align to Selection, Align to Anchors, and every Distribute and Distribute Spacing button, since a rigid group has no relative spacing left to distribute.
- Align to Masks disables Align to Anchors, since an anchor point doesn’t have a mask shape.
- Align to Anchors disables Align to Outside, Align as Group, Align to Masks, and the four edge-based Distribute buttons (Top, Bottom, Left, Right). Centering and Distribute Spacing still work, since an anchor’s “center” is just its point.
If a control is disabled, it’s because the current Align to target or another active modifier makes it meaningless in that combination. This is expected, not a bug. See Troubleshooting.