Question

You have made a selection on a layer. You want to copy the pixels in the selection to a new layer, and you want the pixels to be in the exact location as in the original layer. What should you do?

1) Choose Layer> New> Layer via Copy
2) Using the move tool, drag the selection to the New Layer icon in the Layers palette
3) Click the new layer icon in the Layers palette to automatically copy the selection to a new layer
4) Copy the selection, create a new layer, paste the selection, then choose the options from the Layer> align linked menu

Answer 1

The correct way to copy a selection of pixels to a new layer without changing their location is to use the menu command Layer > New > Layer via Copy or use the shortcut Ctrl+J (Cmd+J on a Mac).

Step-by-step explanation:

If you have a selection on a layer and you want to copy the pixels in the selection to a new layer without changing their location, the correct action to take would be to choose Layer > New > Layer via Copy. This command can also be executed by pressing the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+J (Cmd+J on a Mac). This will create a new layer containing only the selected pixels, which will be placed in the exact same location as they were on the original layer.

It's important to note that the other options you've mentioned will not achieve the task as described. Unlike creating a new layer through the Layer menu or with the shortcut, dragging the selection to the New Layer icon would just create an empty new layer, while clicking the new layer icon by itself won't copy anything. Pasting a selection into a new layer could potentially position it incorrectly, and using Layer > Align linked would be an unnecessary step since the selection is already positioned correctly when using Layer via Copy.