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Merge objects in the Layers panel

To alleviate clutter, you can merge objects in the Layers panel. Objects and bitmaps to be merged do not have to be adjacent in the Layers panel or reside on the same layer.

Merging down causes all selected vector objects and bitmap objects to be flattened into the bitmap object that lies just beneath the bottommost selected object. The result is a single bitmap object. Vector objects and bitmap objects cannot be edited separately once merged, and editability for vector objects is lost.

  1. Select an object on the Layers panel that you want to merge with a bitmap object. Shift-click or Ctrl-click to select multiple objects.

    You can merge the contents of a selected layer into a bitmap object that is the topmost object on the layer immediately beneath the selected layer.

  2. Do one of the following:

    • Select Merge Down from the Layers panel Options menu.

    • Select Modify > Merge Down.

    • Right-click (Windows) or Control-click (Mac OS) the selected objects on the canvas and select Merge Down.

      Note: Merge Down does not affect slices, hotspots, or buttons.