Use the Blur Gallery

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Each blur tool provides intuitive on-image controls to apply and control the blur effect. With the blur adjustments complete, use the Bokeh controls to style the overall blur effect. Photoshop provides a full-size, live preview when you work with the Blur Gallery effects.

Choose Filter > Blur Gallery and then select the desired effect.

For information on other blur effects, see Adjust image sharpness and blur.

Blur effects

You can enhance the overall image, by controlling the appearance of out-of-focus or blurred parts. Specify the bokeh parameters to ensure an overall pleasing effect.

In the Blur Effects panel, specify a value for the following:

Brightens the out-of-focus, or blurred areas in the picture.

Adds more vivid color to lightened areas that are not blown out to white.

Determines the range of tones the settings affect.

Live Gaussian Blur filter (Beta)

Introduced in the October 2022 release of Photoshop 24.0, the Live Gaussian Blur filter is a modernized approach to the Gaussian Blur filter.  Use it to improve focus on a specific part of the image.

Use the Live Gaussian Blur filter to add improved artistic blur effects to your image or depth by blurring the background. 

Add or subtract blur in your image, adjust the Blur Amount and Fade Opacity, and get the output on the Current Layer or a New Layer. 

Work interactively on the canvas with brushes using the Live Gaussian Blur filter. Use the dialog box and brush tools to brush the filter on canvas and add or remove blurred regions. At the same time, interact with the layers panel visibility, blend modes, and opacity while fine-tuning the blur. 

To learn more about the keyboard shortcuts to use this filter, check out the default keyboard shortcuts in the Filter Gallery keyboard shortcuts section. 

Prevent color bleeding checkbox

For single selections, the Prevent color bleeding checkbox appears in the Live Gaussian Blur dialog, which prevents the color from bleeding across selection boundaries.

Test this by taking a photo with a colorful subject, like a flower, against a different color background. Invert the selection and apply a lot of blur.

You'll see the non-selected flower colors bleed into the background if you deselect the Prevent color bleed checkbox. When selected (default setting), the background will be purer without the mix of flower colors bleeding and blending in.

The Fade Opacity slider changes the overall opacity of the resulting blurred image. This is equivalent to using the Edit > Fade command after filters or adjustments. 

The Preview checkbox enables previewing before and after the blur. 

Follow these steps to apply the Live Gaussian Blur filter: 

Restore noise in blurred areas

Sometimes, after applying a Blur Gallery effect, you may notice that the blurred area of the image looks synthetic or unnatural. You can restore noise/grain to such a blurred image area to give it a more realistic appearance.

After using blur controls to achieve the initial effect, follow these steps to restore noise:

1. In the Blur Effects panel, on the Noise tab, ensure that the checkbox in the top-right corner is selected. You may deselect this checkbox at any time to revert any noise previously added to the blurred image area.
2. Select the type of noise that you want to apply to the blurred area:
   • Uniform: Same as the noise added through the Filter > Noise > Add Noise > Uniform option.
   • Gaussian: Same as the noise added through the Filter > Noise > Add Noise > Gaussian option.
   • Grain: Same as the noise added through the Add Grain option in Camera Raw.
3. Specify the following settings:
   • Amount: Matches the amount of noise with the noise in the not-blurred areas of the image. Adjust the slider between 0-100%.
   • Size: (Only for Grain-type noise) Controls the particle size for the noise
   • Roughness: (Only available for Grain-type noise) Controls the regularity of the grain. Drag to the left (below 50%) to make the grain more uniform. Drag to the right (above 50%) to make the grain less even.
   • Color: Graduated slider controlling the degree to which the noise is colored. To make the noise monochromatic, similar to the effect achieved by enabling the Monochromatic option on the Add Noise dialog (Filter > Noise > Add Noise), drag the slider to 0%.
   • Highlight: For better shadow/highlight matching, reduces noise in the highlighted areas of the image. Adjust the slider between 0-100%.
     

To learn more, check out Make quick selections.

Applying Blur Gallery effects as Smart Filters

The blur effects in the Blur Gallery now support Smart Objects and can be applied non-destructively as Smart Filters. This feature also supports Smart Object video layers. To apply a Blur Gallery effect as a Smart Filter:

For more information about Smart Filters, see Apply Smart Filters.

Use Field Blur to build a gradient of blurs, by defining multiple blur points with different amounts of blur. Add multiple pins to the image and specify a blur amount for each pin.

The final result is combined effect of all blur pins on the image. You can even add a pin outside the image, to apply the blur at corners.

Iris blur

Use the Iris blur to simulate a shallow depth-of-field effect to your picture, irrespective of the camera or lens used. You can also define multiple focus points, an effect almost impossible to achieve using traditional camera techniques.

Tilt-Shift

Use the Tilt-Shift effect to simulate an image taken with a tilt-shift lens. This special effect blur defines area of sharpness, and then fades to a blur at the edges. The Tilt-Shift effect can be used to simulate photos of miniature objects.

Path blur

Using the Path Blur effects, you can create motion blurs along paths. You can also control the shape and amount of blurring. Photoshop automatically composites the effects of multiple path blurs applied to an image.

Follow the steps below:

1. Choose Filter > Blur Gallery > Path Blur.
2. In the Blur Tools panel, under the Path Blur section, specify whether you want to apply a Basic Blur or a Rear Sync Flash blur. A Rear Sync Flash blur simulates the effect of a flash fired at the end of an exposure.

3. Use the on-image controls in conjunction with steps 4-8 of this procedure.
   
4. Specify the following settings:

Adjust the Speed slider to specify the amount of path blur you want to apply to the image. The Speed setting is applied to all plath blurs in the image.

Adjust the slider to specify a taper value. A higher taper value lets the blur trail off gradually.

5. If necessary, deselect Centered Blur. You may want to deselect this option if you want to apply a more directed motion blur.
   
   The Centered Blur option helps create stable blurs by centering the blur shape for any pixel on that pixel.

6. In the Motion Blur Effects tab, specify the following settings:
   

Set the number of exposures of the virtual strobe flash light.

Determine how much blurring is displayed between strobe flash exposures. Strobe Strength controls the balance between ambient light and the virtual strobe flash light.

No strobe effect is displayed if you set Strobe Strength to 0%; only continuous blur is shown. On the other hand, when you set Strobe Strength to 100%, the strobe flashes are produced in full strength but no continuous blur is displayed between flash exposures. Intermediate Strobe Strength values produce a mixture of individual strobe flashes along with continuous blur.

7. If necessary, adjust the blur amounts at the endpoints.
8. Optionally, adjust the blur shape guides. Select Edit Blur Shapes to view the guides.
9. In the blur tool Options bar, click OK to commit the Path Blur effect.

Bring your photos to life with the Path Blur filter in Photoshop

Tips for working with the on-image controls

You can use the overlay controls to conveniently create path blurs.

Using the controls, you first define a path for the blur (blue). You can then define a curve for the path, thereby creating new curve points in the path. Once the path has been defined, you can define blur shape guides (red).

This image is a derivative of the public domain work "Deer Running in the Snow" by Gustave Courbet (1819-1877).

Manipulate blur paths and blur shape guides

• Click an endpoint to select it.
  
• Double-click an endpoint to view the red blur shape guides. Alternatively, select Edit Blur Shapes in the Blur Tools panel to view the guides.
• Drag endpoints to lengthen the blur path.
• Cmd/Ctrl-click an endpoint to reduce its blur shape guide to zero.
  
• Hover the mouse pointer near a selected endpoint to view the blur amount wheel control.
• Opt/Alt-click a curve point along the blur path to convert it into a corner point. Opt/Alt-click a corner point to convert it back to a curve point.
• Shift-drag the red blur shape to move both blur shapes for the path together.
  
• Use the Cmd/Ctrl+drag combination to move a path blur.
• Use the Opt/Alt+Cmd/Ctrl+drag combination to duplicate a path blur.
• To delete a path blur, with an endpoint selected, press the Delete key.
  

Spin blur

Using the Spin Blur effect, you can rotate and blur the image around one or more points. The spin blur is a radial blur measured in degrees. Photoshop lets you work with center points, blur size and shape, and other settings, all while viewing a live preview of the changes.

Follow these steps:

1. Choose Filter > Blur Gallery > Spin Blur.
2. In the Blur Tools panel, under the Spin Blur section, use the Blur Angle control to vary the amount of blurring. You can either specify an angular value (0-360°) or adjust the slider. Alternatively, you can also adjust the blur amount using overlay controls.
   

3. In the Blur Effects panel, on the Motion Blur Effects tab, specify the following settings:
   

Set the number of exposures of the virtual strobe flash light

Determine how much blurring is displayed between strobe flash exposures. Strobe Strength controls the balance between ambient light and the virtual strobe flash light.

No strobe effect is displayed if you set Strobe Strength to 0%; only continuous blur is shown. On the other hand, when you set Strobe Strength to 100%, the strobe flashes are produced in full strength but no continuous blur is displayed between flash exposures. Intermediate Strobe Strength values produce a mixture of individual strobe flashes along with continuous blur.

Lets you specify, in degrees, the length of a strobe flash exposure. Strobe Flash Duration controls the length of the blur for each flash exposure in terms of angular distance along the circumference.

4. In the blur tool Options bar, click OK to commit the Spin Blur effect.
   

Tips for working with the overlay controls

Overlay controls depicted in the illustration below are available for the Spin Blur effect.

• To add a new spin blur, click a desired location in the image.
• To duplicate a spin blur, use the following keyboard combinations:
  (Windows) Alt+Ctrl+drag
  (Mac) Opt+Cmd+drag
• To resize the ellipse uniformly, drag an ellipse boundary.
• To delete a spin blur, press the Delete key while the spin blur is selected.
• To move a rotation point off-center, use the following keyboard combination:
  (Windows) Alt+drag
  (Mac) Opt+drag
  
  Repositioning the rotation point is helpful while working with objects viewed at an angle.
• Hold down the H key to temporarily hide the overlay controls.

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