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vectormg
Participant
January 4, 2018
Answered

How to achieve a "halo" free light on the background

  • January 4, 2018
  • 3 replies
  • 2118 views

Hi! I'm new here and I'll appreciate if somebody can help me please.

I have a gray background and I want to apply a "light" to it that I can move around freely, so, I create a white circle and apply some Gaussian blur and set the transparency to 10 or 20% but that left some "halo" effects on it. Is there a way to "smooth" that light? I played with the "Blur" filters without any luck

So, if someone is willing to share some wisdom I'll really appreciate it.

    This topic has been closed for replies.
    Correct answer Chuck Uebele

    Make sure you use a 16 bit file rather than an 8 bit file.

    3 replies

    Trevor.Dennis
    Community Expert
    Trevor.DennisCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    January 4, 2018

    Here's an idea.

    1. Fill your background with 50% grey or whatever.
    2. Add a new layer and fill it with white.
    3. Use the Elliptical Marquee tool to drag a round selection in the centre (hold down the shift key to force a perfect circle).
    4. Add a layer mask.  The mask will automatically make the unselected area black which will conceal it.

    Now for the clever bit.

    5. Click on the layer mask, which should cause the Mask Properties panel to show.  (If not turn it on from the Window menu)

    6. Adjust the Feather slider to give the required degree of blur, and use the move tool to (you'll never guess the next bit) move it.

    In the example below I have used a feather value of 60.  If you go too far, you are likely to see a soft white edge after moving the layer.

    You can reduce layer opacity to suite.

    Note: Chuck's warning to set the image to 16bit.  This will avoid banding like below

      V
      vectormgAuthor
      Participant
      January 4, 2018

      Thank you so much Trevor! that technique is easier and faster than the Gaussian blur one I used. You have more control over the "feather" effect and you can modify it at will, that's great! and in combination with the 16/32 bit document, voilá!

      I really appreciate your help and your time & effort to prepare the mini-tutorial. Thank you!

      Chuck Uebele
      Community Expert
      Chuck UebeleCommunity ExpertCorrect answer
      Community Expert
      January 4, 2018

      Make sure you use a 16 bit file rather than an 8 bit file.

      V
      vectormgAuthor
      Participant
      January 4, 2018

      Thank you Chuck! it worked, and on a 32 bit file looks even better!

      Peru Bob
      Community Expert
      Peru BobCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      January 4, 2018

      Play with multiple layers and blend modes?

      V
      vectormgAuthor
      Participant
      January 4, 2018

      Thank you Peru Bob! I tried but no luck

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