The Artfkt collection library
Light
Make highlights carry the composition
Light gives bright regions a larger role in a composition. Spread them into bloom, extend them into rays or streaks, repeat them as lens ghosts, or shape attention with a spotlight and vignette.
Use the collection to support the light already suggested by a photograph or to create a deliberately graphic treatment in Artfkt.
Included in Artfkt for Mac. All collections, one desktop studio.
Choose what should become luminous
Bloom spreads selected bright regions into a soft halo. Its threshold determines which parts contribute, so choose those highlights before increasing spread. Soft Glow diffuses the image into a broader luminous veil and can affect the overall atmosphere more evenly.
A source with a few strong highlights gives bloom a clear subject. If almost everything is bright, a larger glow may remove contrast without establishing a useful accent. Preserve some darker space so the light has a boundary the viewer can read.
Make light travel somewhere deliberate
Light Rays extends sampled highlights toward an authored origin. Streak Flare stretches them along a straight axis with tapered ends and a chosen tint. Lens Ghosts repeats bright regions as separated colored reflections. They produce different paths through the picture, so set origin, direction, or spacing before increasing intensity.
These are image treatments rather than evidence of a particular physical lens. Use them in relation to the source’s lighting and geometry: a streak can reinforce a horizontal layout, while a misplaced ray origin may distract from a carefully framed subject.
Balance illumination with quiet edges
Spotlight places a broad elliptical light while leaving the image outside its boundary unchanged. Vignette darkens the edges around a movable clear center. These offer direct ways to emphasize an area when the original highlights alone do not provide the needed hierarchy.
Keep the full composition visible while adjusting. A luminous effect that looks attractive in isolation can overwhelm a nearby title or wash out a face. Make one region lead, then compare the result with the untreated source to see whether the change adds direction.
Effects in Light
7 effects to explore and combine.
Bloom
Spread bright regions into a soft halo.
Soft Glow
Diffuse the image into a luminous veil.
Vignette
Darken the image edges around a movable center.
Light Rays
Extend highlights toward a chosen origin, balancing reach and falloff against the original image.
Streak Flare
Stretch bright regions along a straight axis, with tapered ends and a chosen tint.
Spotlight
Position a broad elliptical light while leaving the image outside its boundary unchanged.
Lens Ghosts
Repeat bright image regions as separated colored lens reflections.
Creative applications
- Emphasize a few photographic highlights for a luminous cover image.
- Create directional light accents behind a clean title or graphic mark.
- Shape a quieter edge around a focal subject without changing the whole palette.
Starting workflow
- For a luminous still-life cover, choose an image with a clear bright reflection and a darker surrounding area.
- Apply Bloom and raise its threshold until the chosen bright region contributes more than incidental detail.
- Increase spread while checking that the subject’s brightest core and surrounding edges remain distinguishable.
- If the composition needs stronger direction, compare a restrained Streak Flare aligned with the layout.
- Review beside the title at final size. Reduce light spread or strength if the image loses the contrast that makes the subject readable.
Make it part of your next composition.
Combine Light with other collections, images, and editable text in Artfkt for Mac.