The Artfkt collection library
Waterlight
Light takes the shape of water.
Waterlight separates several ways water can change an image: moving illumination, continuous lensing, lit volume, and a transmitted opening surrounded by reflection.
Use it for aquatic image studies and luminous lettering in Artfkt. Decide whether the picture should stay in place under light or visibly bend through a surface.
Included in Artfkt for Mac. All collections, one desktop studio.
Separate caustic illumination from distortion
Caustic Lace concentrates light into shifting folds while keeping source shapes in place. Submerged Lens bends neighboring detail through continuous water-like lenses, with depth-related attenuation and restrained reflection. One changes the light over the image; the other changes the view through the surface.
Strong source contours make that distinction easy to judge. Use Caustic Lace when a graphic shape must stay readable and Submerged Lens when optical movement is part of the subject. Set wave size before increasing depth or intensity so the surface has an intentional scale.
Give the water a spatial role
Lightwell sends refracted sheets through a hazy water volume above the image, independently of source highlights. Snell Window creates a transmitted view within a wavering reflective surround. These treatments organize space rather than simply adding a watery texture.
Place the opening or illuminated region in relation to the important source detail. A reflected surround can become a frame for a subject, while a lit volume can create separation around it. Keep enough quiet space for that relationship to remain legible.
Protect the image beneath the surface
A broad gradient, a clear photograph, or large lettering gives the surface something to reveal. Very fine texture can turn into competing highlights and distortions. Begin with one water behavior, then add another only when its contribution remains distinct.
Compare the source with the treatment at final size and through playback. Mix can retain more of the input when the optical surface becomes too dominant. A still image needs a deliberate arrangement of bright folds and clear detail; motion alone is not the composition.
Effects in Waterlight
4 effects to explore and combine.
Caustic Lace
Concentrate light into shifting folds over the source image, keeping its shapes in place.
Submerged Lens
Continuous water lenses bend detail together, with depth-dependent attenuation and restrained surface reflection.
Lightwell
Refracted light sheets converge and separate within a hazy water volume above the image, independently of its highlights.
Snell Window
A transmitted view of the image opens within a wavering reflective surround, following the critical angle of water.
Creative applications
- Place shifting caustic light over large lettering without bending its silhouette.
- Develop an underwater-looking photographic study through continuous surface lensing.
- Use a reflective opening to frame a subject inside an abstract aquatic composition.
Starting workflow
- For luminous aquatic lettering, start with a large readable word or shape and enough dark space to reveal added light.
- Apply Caustic Lace and establish Wave size before increasing the illumination.
- Adjust the bright folds until they describe the surface without erasing the letter edges.
- Compare with Submerged Lens as an alternative if the design should bend rather than merely illuminate the source.
- Watch playback, then inspect a paused result at final size. Reduce Mix if too little of the original structure remains.
Make it part of your next composition.
Combine Waterlight with other collections, images, and editable text in Artfkt for Mac.