gmm suggested i post this here. the situation is that if you're using the color control component to load either external or preview images, those act like a foreground and if you use file--> open, that one tends to act like a background or canvas.
what happens is that if the external file--> open image is loaded and is larger than the color component image(s), it will show up behind the color component one(s) EVEN if there is no image component within the filter. this makes no sense. it forces an image i may not want into my filter makeup. even if it's transparent, i may not want a transparency showing through but i have no way of eliminating it except to do a file--> new and load a small image size that will not show up behind a color component loaded image.
the solution here is to simply turn off any default images and keep any from being loaded when a color component with images enabled is active within the filter makeup. optionally, i could see still being able to manually load a "New" or "Open" image even without an image component within the filter makeup, but it shldnt be automatic that a default image is loaded or stays loaded when a color component within the filter makeup has loading images enabled.
thanks.
If wishes were horses... there'd be a whole lot of horse crap to clean up!
Craig