Acid Blur effect

Melts art into a spectral riso bloom: dark core, hot rim, and a printed screen over the top.

Made with the Acid Blur filterWorks in

Acid blur effect on a portrait of a man with silver hair and red sunglasses, made with the Acid Blur filter in Filter Archive (Thermal preset)

BeforeAfter

Acid Blur melts your subject into a glowing blob of colour, with a dark core, a hot rim and the spectrum drifting across it, then prints a screen over the top so it reads as a riso print rather than a digital glow. Great for posters and backgrounds.

3presets
24settings
3apps

Same effect, different presets.

8 photos, each with its own preset. Try it on yours

Acid blur effect on a portrait of a man in sunglasses on a red background, made with the Acid Blur filter in Filter Archive (Riso Acid preset) — Riso Acid

Acid blur effect on a portrait of a woman in white sunglasses with a lollipop, made with the Acid Blur filter in Filter Archive (Thermal preset) — Thermal

Acid blur effect on a portrait of a woman in white sunglasses with a lollipop, made with the Acid Blur filter in Filter Archive (Riso Acid preset) — Riso Acid

Acid blur effect on a wide-angle portrait of a woman looking up at the camera, made with the Acid Blur filter in Filter Archive (Thermal preset) — Thermal

Acid blur effect on a portrait of a woman in headphones holding a CD, made with the Acid Blur filter in Filter Archive (Riso Acid preset) — Riso Acid

Acid blur effect on a portrait of a person with goggles looking up, made with the Acid Blur filter in Filter Archive (Thermal preset) — Thermal

Acid blur effect on a portrait of a woman in sunglasses against a blue sky, made with the Acid Blur filter in Filter Archive (Riso Acid preset) — Riso Acid

Use the acid blur effect in Photoshop, Affinity or Figma.

One licence covers all three: $9.99 a month or $59.99 once. See pricing

Photoshop

Open Filter Archive from the Plugins menu, pick Acid Blur and press Apply. The result lands on a new layer above your original.

Mac & Windows · Photoshop 2024+

Affinity

Choose Filters, Plugins, Filter Archive on a pixel layer, pick Acid Blur and apply it to that layer.

Mac & Windows · Affinity 3

Figma

Select an image, frame or shape, run Filter Archive and apply Acid Blur as a new layer or in place.

Figma Community

Settings worth touching.

MeltSource: How far the form dissolves. This is the whole effect.
Hue DriftSpectrum: Rotates the spectrum across the form so each part takes a different colour.
Screen StrengthPrint: The printed screen over the gradient. Without it the glow bands and reads digital.

Plus 21 more in the panel, all editable after you pick a preset.

Acid Blur Effect questions.

What is an acid blur effect?

An acid blur effect dissolves an image into a soft, glowing gradient in bright, clashing colours, a look from Y2K and acid graphics, often with a print texture over it.

How do I make an acid blur effect in Photoshop?

Open Filter Archive from the Plugins menu and choose Acid Blur. Start from a preset such as Riso Acid or Thermal, adjust the settings while the preview updates, then press Apply. The result goes on a new layer and your original stays untouched.

Can I use it in Affinity or Figma?

Yes. The same Acid Blur filter runs in Affinity 3 on Mac and Windows, from Filters, then Plugins, then Filter Archive on a pixel layer, and in Figma on an image, frame or shape. One licence covers Photoshop, Affinity and Figma.