Today’s Question: I’ve run into a problem where if I choose the Camera Raw filter in Photoshop, I’m getting a blank white image instead of the actual image I’m working on. Is this a bug or am I doing something wrong?
Tim’s Quick Answer: You are most likely choosing the Camera Raw filter (from the Filter menu) without selecting the image layer you’re trying to adjust, such as by clicking on the thumbnail for the Background image layer on the Layer panel before choosing the Camera Raw Filter command.
More Detail: When you apply a filter in Photoshop, including using the Camera Raw filter to access Camera Raw adjustments for an image that is already open in Photoshop, the filter applies to the currently active layer. That layer can be a normal image layer or a smart object that contains an image.
If the preview in the dialog for the Camera Raw filter shows an all-white image, the most likely reason is that you had an adjustment layer selected on the Layers panel when you chose the Camera Raw filter from the menu. As a result, you would be applying the filter to the layer mask for the adjustment layer, rather than the underlying image. By default, a layer mask is entirely white, but could also contain black or shades of gray if you had a selection active when you added the adjustment layer or otherwise modified the layer mask.
So, simply click the thumbnail for the image layer you want to apply the filter to before choosing the filter from the menu. In most cases that would mean the Background image layer, but it could be a different layer if you’re working with a composite image, for example.
