Path Blur in Photoshop is a filter that creates a sense of motion along a specific path you define, adding a directional blur effect to your image.
Essentially, instead of a simple radial or Gaussian blur, Path Blur simulates movement by blurring pixels along a drawn path. This allows you to create the illusion of speed or motion following a curve or any other shape you choose.
Here's a breakdown:
- Function: It creates a directional blur along a path you define.
- Purpose: To simulate movement and speed in your images.
- How it works: You draw a path, and the filter blurs the pixels along that path, creating a motion effect.
- Access: You can find it under
Filter > Blur Gallery > Path Blur. - Customization: You can adjust the length of the blur, the taper of the blur, and the end point speed. You can also create multiple paths within the same image.
Using Path Blur:
- Select the Path Blur filter: Go to
Filter > Blur Gallery > Path Blur. - Draw your path: Click and drag on your image to create a path. You can add multiple points to create curves.
- Adjust the blur: Use the controls in the Path Blur panel to adjust the length, taper, and other parameters of the blur.
- Add more paths (optional): You can click and drag in other areas of the image to create additional blur paths in different directions.
- Click OK: Apply the blur to your image.
Key parameters you can adjust:
- Speed: Controls the intensity or length of the blur along the path.
- Taper: Controls how the blur fades at the beginning and end of the path.
- End Point Speed: Adjusts the blur at the end of a Path Blur.
- Strobe: Can create the look of several paths.
Path blur is useful for a variety of effects, such as blurring the wheels of a car to show motion, or adding a sense of speed to a moving object.
