LayerStyle: InnerShadow V2

The inset counterpart to Drop Shadow: instead of a subject floating above a surface with a shadow behind it, Inner Shadow makes it look pressed into the surface - a soft shadow cast just inside the edge. Photoshop calls this Inner Shadow; this node is the ComfyUI implementation, V2 revision.

What changed from V1

Same parameters as the original InnerShadow - same offset, grow, blur, and color controls, and the same conservative defaults (small distance and grow values, since this effect is meant to stay subtle and tight to the edge rather than project a shadow well clear of the subject). The difference is blend_mode: V2 carries the full 30-mode Photoshop list rather than V1's shorter 19-entry set.

How it works

The mask defines the subject's boundary. A shadow shape is built from it, offset by distance_x/distance_y, grown or shrunk, blurred soft, and composited inside the shape - the inverse geometry of an outer drop shadow. The defaults (distance_x/distance_y at 5/5, grow at 2) keep it tight; this isn't meant to project far.

The inputs and outputs that matter

• distance_x / distance_y (default 5/5) - the inset shadow's offset. Keep these small for a "recessed" look; push too far and it reads as a misaligned second shape instead.
• blur (default 15) - softness of the shadow edge.
• grow (default 2) - how far the shadow extends from the boundary.
• opacity (default 50) and shadow_color (default #000000).
• invert_mask (default true) - flip if the shadow lands outside the subject.
• background_image, layer_image, optional layer_mask, plus blend_mode (30 options).

Output: a single composited image.

How to install it

Ships with the ComfyUI Layer Style pack. ComfyUI Manager → search ComfyUI Layer Style → install → restart. Manual:

cd ComfyUI/custom_nodes
git clone https://github.com/chflame163/ComfyUI_LayerStyle
pip install -r ComfyUI_LayerStyle/requirements.txt

then restart. Lives under 😺dzNodes → LayerStyle. No models needed.

Common issues & troubleshooting

Shadow reads as floating outside the subject instead of pressed in. invert_mask - flip it. An inverted inner shadow effectively becomes an outer one, which is usually how people first notice something's wrong.

Effect seems too subtle to see. That's the defaults doing their job on a small subject - distance_x/distance_y and grow are deliberately tight. Scale them up on a larger subject rather than assuming nothing's happening.

Looks harsh, more like a dark ring than depth. Raise blur, drop opacity a little. Soft reads as recessed; crisp reads as outlined.

With 30 blend modes on offer, an aggressive one can make the shadow look wrong rather than subtle. normal or multiply are the safe starting points for a shadow effect - modes from the dodge/light family will brighten instead of darken, which defeats the point.

Node's missing. Pack-level import failure - LayerStyle's dependency chain is long, and transformers paired with a stray TensorFlow install is the classic way the whole pack fails together. Check the console, hit "Try Fix" in Manager.