# LayerDiffusion: Layered Controlled Image Editing with Diffusion Models

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2305.18676 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2305.18676/

## Key facts

- Cited by 40 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Placed in Image generation, text-to-image and editing, one of 14 directions in Diffusion models.
- Builds on 37 of its 40 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 30 May 2023.

## Placed in

- Diffusion models / [Image generation, text-to-image and editing](https://mlsanity.com/diffusion/image-generation-text-to-image-and-editing/)

## Builds on (most cited first, 30 of 37)

- [Adam: A Method for Stochastic Optimization](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1412.6980/) (2014)
- [Learning Transferable Visual Models From Natural Language Supervision](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2103.00020/) (2021)
- [Denoising Diffusion Probabilistic Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2006.11239/) (2020)
- [High-Resolution Image Synthesis with Latent Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2112.10752/) (2021)
- [Exploring the Limits of Transfer Learning with a Unified Text-to-Text Transformer](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1910.10683/) (2019)
- [Denoising Diffusion Implicit Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2010.02502/) (2020)
- [Segment Anything](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2304.02643/) (2023)
- [Hierarchical Text-Conditional Image Generation with CLIP Latents](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2204.06125/) (2022)
- [Photorealistic Text-to-Image Diffusion Models with Deep Language Understanding](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2205.11487/) (2022)
- [Zero-Shot Text-to-Image Generation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2102.12092/) (2021)
- [LAION-5B: An open large-scale dataset for training next generation image-text models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2210.08402/) (2022)
- [Generative Modeling by Estimating Gradients of the Data Distribution](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1907.05600/) (2019)
- [GLIDE: Towards Photorealistic Image Generation and Editing with Text-Guided Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2112.10741/) (2021)
- [DreamBooth: Fine Tuning Text-to-Image Diffusion Models for Subject-Driven Generation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2208.12242/) (2022)
- [Prompt-to-Prompt Image Editing with Cross Attention Control](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2208.01626/) (2022)
- [CLIPScore: A Reference-free Evaluation Metric for Image Captioning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2104.08718/) (2021)
- [An Image is Worth One Word: Personalizing Text-to-Image Generation using Textual Inversion](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2208.01618/) (2022)
- [Palette: Image-to-Image Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2111.05826/) (2021)
- [Imagic: Text-Based Real Image Editing with Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2210.09276/) (2022)
- [StyleCLIP: Text-Driven Manipulation of StyleGAN Imagery](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2103.17249/) (2021)
- [Denoising Diffusion Restoration Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2201.11793/) (2022)
- [Plug-and-Play Diffusion Features for Text-Driven Image-to-Image Translation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2211.12572/) (2022)
- [Attend-and-Excite: Attention-Based Semantic Guidance for Text-to-Image Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2301.13826/) (2023)
- [Interpreting the Latent Space of GANs for Semantic Face Editing](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1907.10786/) (2019)
- [DiffEdit: Diffusion-based semantic image editing with mask guidance](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2210.11427/) (2022)
- [DiffusionCLIP: Text-Guided Diffusion Models for Robust Image Manipulation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2110.02711/) (2021)
- [Score-based Generative Modeling in Latent Space](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2106.05931/) (2021)
- [GANSpace: Discovering Interpretable GAN Controls](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2004.02546/) (2020)
- [MultiDiffusion: Fusing Diffusion Paths for Controlled Image Generation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2302.08113/) (2023)
- [StyleFlow: Attribute-conditioned Exploration of StyleGAN-Generated Images using Conditional Continuous Normalizing Flows](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2008.02401/) (2020)

## Built on by (most cited first, 30 of 40)

- [Diffusion Model-Based Image Editing: A Survey](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2402.17525/) (2024)
- [Transparent Image Layer Diffusion using Latent Transparency](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2402.17113/) (2024)
- [Improving Tuning-Free Real Image Editing with Proximal Guidance](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2306.05414/) (2023)
- [ACE: All-round Creator and Editor Following Instructions via Diffusion Transformer](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2410.00086/) (2024)
- [Stable-Makeup: When Real-World Makeup Transfer Meets Diffusion Model](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2403.07764/) (2024)
- [MULAN: A Multi Layer Annotated Dataset for Controllable Text-to-Image Generation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2404.02790/) (2024)
- [Stable-Hair: Real-World Hair Transfer via Diffusion Model](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2407.14078/) (2024)
- [Conditional Image Synthesis with Diffusion Models: A Survey](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2409.19365/) (2024)
- [Tuning-Free Image Customization with Image and Text Guidance](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2403.12658/) (2024)
- [IMPUS: Image Morphing with Perceptually-Uniform Sampling Using Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2311.06792/) (2023)
- [ByteMorph: Benchmarking Instruction-Guided Image Editing with Non-Rigid Motions](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2506.03107/) (2025)
- [Pruning then Reweighting: Towards Data-Efficient Training of Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2409.19128/) (2024)
- [Instruction-based Image Manipulation by Watching How Things Move](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2412.12087/) (2024)
- [ForgetMe: Evaluating Selective Forgetting in Generative Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2504.12574/) (2025)
- [ART3D: 3D Gaussian Splatting for Text-Guided Artistic Scenes Generation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2405.10508/) (2024)
- [TALE: Training-free Cross-domain Image Composition via Adaptive Latent Manipulation and Energy-guided Optimization](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2408.03637/) (2024)
- [LayerEdit: Disentangled Multi-Object Editing via Conflict-Aware Multi-Layer Learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2511.08251/) (2025)
- [Sketch-to-Architecture: Generative AI-aided Architectural Design](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2403.20186/) (2024)
- [ColorEdit: Training-free Image-Guided Color editing with diffusion model](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2411.10232/) (2024)
- [MDE-Edit: Masked Dual-Editing for Multi-Object Image Editing via Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2505.05101/) (2025)
- [AIComposer: Any Style and Content Image Composition via Feature Integration](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2507.20721/) (2025)
- [LDGen: Enhancing Text-to-Image Synthesis via Large Language Model-Driven Language Representation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2502.18302/) (2025)
- [Zero-Shot Subject-Centric Generation for Creative Application Using Entropy Fusion](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2503.10697/) (2025)
- [CanvasComposer: Personalized Group Photo Generation via a Multi-Reference Canvas](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2510.20820/) (2025)
- [Generating Daylight-driven Architectural Design via Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2404.13353/) (2024)
- [InstructAttribute: Fine-grained Object Attributes editing with Instruction](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2505.00751/) (2025)
- [Stable-Hair v2: Real-World Hair Transfer via Multiple-View Diffusion Model](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2507.07591/) (2025)
- [Latent Inversion with Timestep-aware Sampling for Training-free Non-rigid Editing](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2402.08601/) (2024)
- [GLoD: Composing Global Contexts and Local Details in Image Generation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2404.15447/) (2024)
- [Challenges and Opportunities in 3D Content Generation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2405.15335/) (2024)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Text-guided image editing has recently experienced rapid development. However, simultaneously performing multiple editing actions on a single image, such as background replacement and specific subject attribute changes, while maintaining consistency between the subject and the background remains challenging. In this paper, we propose LayerDiffusion, a semantic-based layered controlled image editing method. Our method enables non-rigid editing and attribute modification of specific subjects while preserving their unique characteristics and seamlessly integrating them into new backgrounds. We leverage a large-scale text-to-image model and employ a layered controlled optimization strategy combined with layered diffusion training. During the diffusion process, an iterative guidance strategy is used to generate a final image that aligns with the textual description. Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of our method in generating highly coherent images that closely align with the given textual description. The edited images maintain a high similarity to the features of the input image and surpass the performance of current leading image editing methods. LayerDiffusion opens up new possibilities for controllable image editing.