You can create an image containing a dazzling lightning effect by following the instructions in this tutorial. Use the result as a background for artwork you create from scratch, for wallpaper on your Windows desktop, or as a tiled background on the World Wide Web.

To begin, open the sample image below. The image contains a marble pattern with prominently colored veins that will be used as a guide for creating lightning streaks.

Click here to open a sample image.

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Trace the veins in the marble with the Paint tool to create the lightning streaks.

  1. Click the Paint tool from the Toolbox.
  2. Click the white color swatch from the on-screen Color Palette.
  3. On the Property Bar, type 4 in the Nib Size box.
  4. Paint along the veins of marble to create the streaks of lightning. For best results, make the lines slightly jagged, and draw plenty of branches off the main veins.

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Fill the areas around the lightning streaks with a black, uniform fill. Apply the Ripple filter to further enhance the lightning effect.

  1. Click the Fill tool from the Toolbox.
  2. Right-click the black color swatch from the on-screen Color Palette.
  3. On the Property Bar, type 60 in the Transparency box.
  4. Type 30 in the Color Similarity Or Hue Levels box.
  5. Click in the areas of the image around the lightning streaks until the areas are mostly black. For best results, leave some of the texture showing through the black fill.
  6. Click Effects menu, 2D Effects, Ripple.
  7. In the Ripple dialog box, click the Dual Wave 1:1 button.
  8. Type 9 in the Period box, 1 in the Amplitude box, and 90 in the Direction box.
  9. Click OK.

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Apply the Whirlpool filter, and then convert the image to 8-bit Paletted mode using the Black Body palette to give the image lightning-like colors.

  1. Click Effects menu, 2D Effects, Whirlpool.
  2. In the Whirlpool dialog box, type 35 in the Spacing box.
  3. Type 3 in the Smear Length box, 70 in the Twist box, 0 in the Streak Detail box, and click OK.
  4. Click Image menu, Convert To, Paletted (8-bit).
  5. In the Convert To Paletted dialog box, choose Black Body from the Palette list box.
  6. Choose None from the Dithering list box, and click OK.

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To finish the lightning effect, convert the image back to 24-bit RGB mode, and soften the streaks with the Gaussian Blur filter.

  1. Click Image menu, Convert To, RGB Color (24-bit).
  2. Click Effects menu, Blur, Gaussian Blur.
  3. In the Gaussian Blur dialog box, type 1 in the Radius box, and click OK.

Now you have learned how to create a dazzling, lightning effect. Here's an example of what your image might look like.


Click here for more cool effects.