Lightning
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Lightning is a Generate effect.
What it does
Section titled “What it does”Draws a bolt of lightning which can be animated, and allows for customisation around forking and turbulence.
Parameters
Section titled “Parameters”| Parameter | Control | Range | Default | Unit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Origin x | Slider | 0 to 3840; any value by typing | 300 | Pixels at composition size |
| Origin y | Slider | 0 to 2160; any value by typing | 900 | Pixels at composition size |
| Direction x | Slider | 0 to 3840; any value by typing | 1620 | Pixels at composition size |
| Direction y | Slider | 0 to 2160; any value by typing | 200 | Pixels at composition size |
| Type | Dropdown | Direction · Strike · Omni · Two-way strike | Direction | - |
| Conductivity state | Slider | 0 to 100; any value by typing | 0 | - |
| Seed | Seed | Any whole number | A fresh random seed per instance | - |
| Amplitude | Slider | 0 to 100 | 12 | Per cent |
| Forking | Slider | 0 to 100 | 45 | Per cent |
| Decay | Slider | 0 to 100 | 30 | Per cent |
| Core radius | Slider | 0 to 40; higher | 3 | Pixels at composition size |
| Core colour | Colour | Each channel 0 to 4, scene-linear | 1, 1, 1, 1 | - |
| Glow radius | Slider | 0 to 200; higher | 22 | Pixels at composition size |
| Glow colour | Colour | Each channel 0 to 4, scene-linear | 0.25, 0.45, 1, 1 | - |
| Glow opacity | Slider | 0 to 100 | 70 | Per cent |
| Composite on original | Checkbox | On or off | On | - |
| Mix | Slider | 0 to 100 | 100 | Per cent |
| Blend | Dropdown | Normal · Darken · Multiply · Colour burn · Linear burn · Darker colour · Add · Lighten · Screen · Colour dodge · Lighter colour · Overlay · Soft light · Hard light · Linear light · Vivid light · Pin light · Hard mix · Difference · Exclusion · Subtract · Divide · Hue · Saturation · Colour · Luminosity | Normal | - |
| Matte | Layer | Any layer in the composition | None | - |
| Invert | Checkbox | On or off | Off | - |
| Channel | Dropdown | Luminance · Alpha · Red · Green · Blue | Luminance | - |
In the Effect Controls panel:
- Matte scales the bolt’s opacity per pixel: white draws the core and glow in full, grey faintly, black nothing at all. Invert reads that matte inverted.
What each control does
Section titled “What each control does”- Origin x and Origin y: start position.
- Direction x and Direction y: end position.
- Type: Direction lets the far end wander. Strike pins both ends. Omni sends five bolts out in all directions from the origin. Two-way strike sends one from each point, meeting in the middle.
- Conductivity state: changes the bolt’s shape, similar to evolution in other effects.
- Seed: randomises the bolt generated.
- Amplitude: how far the bolt wanders off a straight line.
- Forking: how many branches leave the main bolt.
- Decay: how much dimmer the far end is than the root.
- Core radius: how thick the centre filament is.
- Core colour: the filament’s colour.
- Glow radius: how far the halo reaches.
- Glow colour: the halo’s colour.
- Glow opacity: how strong the halo is.
- Composite on original: on, the layer Lightning is applied to appears under the bolt.
- Mix: how much of the result replaces the original.
- Matte and Invert drive the strength of the effect from another layer’s brightness; see Effects.