Layer Group¶

Takes a second layer stack, merges it into a single layer and adds that layer to your main stack. It works like a group folder in Photoshop that has its own blend mode, opacity and mask.

Layer Group — before / after


In ComfyUI	`Add Node → ComfyUI-JH-PixelPro → compositing → Compositing: Layer Group (nest)`
Good for	Keeping a set of grading layers together, fading a whole look in and out, masking several layers at once

When to use it¶

When a look is made of several layers (for example a tint, a vignette and a glow), you often want to control them as one. Build those layers in their own stack, then nest the stack with Layer Group and set a single blend mode, opacity and mask for the whole thing.

Quick start¶

Main chain: Load Image → Layer Stack Start → any Layer Add nodes → parent_stack.
Group chain: a second Layer Stack Start with its own Layer Add nodes → sub_stack.
Set group_blend_mode (try overlay) and group_opacity (try 0.8).
Continue with more layers, or finish with Layer Flatten.

Settings¶

Setting	Default	What it does	Tip
`parent_stack`	—	The stack that receives the group.	The group goes on top of it.
`sub_stack`	—	The stack to merge into the group.	Needs its own background layer from Layer Stack Start.
`group_blend_mode`	`normal`	How the merged group mixes with the layers below.	Same 27 modes as Layer Add.
`group_opacity`	`1.0` (0 to 1)	How strongly the group shows. It is applied once, as the group's only strength control.	Lower it to fade the whole look.
`group_mask` (optional)	none	Where the group shows.	White shows the group, black hides it.

Output: LAYER_STACK, the parent stack with the group on top.

Tips from retouching¶

The merged group is a full-frame picture, including the background of its own stack. Use a blend mode such as overlay or soft_light, or a mask, so the layers below stay visible.
Put the mask on the group instead of on each layer inside it when you want one soft area for the whole look.
Build the group's layers on the same image as the main background if you want them to react to the same picture.

Under the hood

The sub-stack is rendered first with the same renderer as Layer Flatten (compose_stack in core/blend_modes.py), resized to the parent canvas, and appended to the parent stack as one ordinary layer that remembers its sub-stack. A group has no separate fill: group_opacity is the only strength control and is applied once (fixed in v1.5.4; earlier versions applied it twice, so the group looked weaker than the slider said). Source: nodes/layer_compositing.py.

Example workflow¶

Layer compositing: group and clipping. Copy workflows/sample_portrait.jpg into ComfyUI/input/.