Glow
Glow turns the active parts of a Ditheron result into light. Use it after the pattern, palette, and placement already read. A small glow can hold a contour against a dark shot; a stronger one can turn the effect into the edit's light source.
Choose a glow mode
Glow Mode offers four choices.
| Mode | Choose it when |
|---|---|
| Simple | The whole treatment needs an even bloom. |
| Per-Color | Palette colors should keep their own luminous identity. |
| Directional | The glow glistens with a clear beam across the frame. Use Angle to set that direction. |
| Density | Dense active regions should emit more strongly than sparse ones. |
Turn on Enable Glow, then set Intensity and Radius first. Intensity runs from 0-2 and sets the visible light level. Radius runs from 1-100 pixels and sets how far that light spreads. Raise Threshold from 0-1 to exclude dim parts of the feed. Tint colors the result. Saturation runs from 0-15; higher values isolate the emitter hue without subtracting color from the image. Softness controls the falloff from 0-1, where higher values spread a more diffuse edge.
The remaining controls decide how the emission behaves. Organic separates glow energy by source brightness and local dominance. Raise it to give emitting regions more variation. Voltage boosts source brightness before glow, so it can bring an emitter forward without widening it. Noise adds subtle texture to smooth banding. Use a small value when a broad gradient looks too clean.
Decide what emits
Glow Feed answers which layer can create light.
☼ Final Effect lets the completed Ditheron treatment feed glow.
☼ Element Only limits glow to the active graphic element.
☼ Base Only uses the processed base image without the isolated element.
This is separate from Glow Blend, which decides how the light joins the frame. Add + Roll-off is the natural starting point for an emissive look that keeps a controlled highlight shoulder. Screen lightens with a softer image relationship. Soft Light gives the glow a gentler contrast interaction. Multiply darkens through the glow color. Color Dodge pushes intense highlights. Linear Add is a direct additive lift. Subtract removes light through the glow layer. Difference creates a color-separated inversion effect.
Choose the feed before the blend. If a GUI or trace treatment needs its graphic marks to emit while the base stays quiet, use Element Only. If the entire processed picture should bloom, begin with Final Effect. Switch blend modes after the feed is right, because a blend change cannot repair the wrong emitting layer.
Try this: a neon contour
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Create a Traceweaver or Loscillator line treatment and choose a deliberate Line Color or Beam Color.
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Turn on Enable Glow and select Per-Color.
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Set Glow Feed: Element Only so light comes from the drawn element.
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Start with Glow Blend: Add + Roll-off, a small Radius, and enough Threshold to keep background texture from emitting.
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Raise Voltage before expanding radius when the line needs more authority.
Try this: a blurred broadcast wash
Use Scannar or Signal on a dark scene, select Directional, and set Angle along the desired screen movement. Choose Final Effect with Screen for a lifted wash, then raise Softness and Organic gradually. Add a small amount of Noise only after the broad glow shape is established.
When glow hides the image
Lower Intensity or raise Threshold before reducing the pattern's own controls. If the light spreads too far, lower Radius or Softness. When the wrong part of the image emits, change Glow Feed rather than trying to solve the selection with blend mode. Glow works best when it follows a decision the pattern already made.