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Image effects

God Rays Effect

Let light pour through your photo: rays from a light source you place, with strength, length, decay and color. Your picture stays on your device.

Open the generator

Runs right in your browser. Your graphics are made on your device.

Example motif made with the God Rays Effect

Start from a preset

Pick a preset and it opens right in the editor, ready to adjust.

What is it?

God rays, also called crepuscular rays or light shafts, are visible beams of light falling through gaps in clouds, trees or windows. This effect recreates them: the bright parts of your photo become the light, and every pixel gathers how much light reaches it along the line toward the light source. Dark shapes such as mountains, branches or window frames cast streaks of shadow. The result is a radial blur laid over the picture as rays.

What you can use it for

  • Atmospheric cover images

    Light rays give landscape and travel photos depth and warmth. They suit blog headers, hero sections and posters.

  • Stage and product

    A spotlight from above puts a product or a person in the limelight. With a darkened background it looks like a stage.

  • Social media posts

    A photo with bold rays stands out in the feed. With your brand color as the light, it stays on brand.

How it works

Upload a photo or try the presets on the sample picture. Place the light with Light horizontal and vertical, ideally on the sun, a lamp or a window; it may also lie outside the picture. The threshold decides which areas glow; strength, ray length and decay decide how far the rays reach. Choose a ray color and darken the picture if needed. Space rolls the light position and color. Export as PNG, JPG or WebP.

Try the God Rays Effect now

Tips

  • Put the light right on the brightest spot, such as the sun. The rays then look natural.
  • Rays need obstacles: photos with trees, clouds, windows or mountains against a bright sky give the best streaks.
  • If the whole picture gets too bright, raise the threshold so only the brightest lights glow.

FAQ

Is my photo uploaded?
No. The photo is processed in your browser only and never sent to a server. Share links leave the photo out; if you save the design, everything stays local in your browser.
Why do I hardly see any rays?
Rays appear only where bright and dark areas meet. Lower the threshold so more areas glow, raise the strength or ray length, and check that the light sits on a bright spot.
What is the difference between Add and Screen?
Add adds the light to the colors, so bright areas quickly turn white, which looks bold. Screen brightens more gently and hardly blows out, good for mist and pastel tones.
Does the export look like the preview?
Yes. Preview and export run through the same computation. At the same size they are identical pixel for pixel; at other sizes the rays look the same because the light position and lengths are relative to the picture.
Can I use my brand color as light?
Yes. Apply a brand palette from your Brand Kit: the lightest color becomes the ray color. You can also pick the color yourself.

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