Tutorial Objective

In this tutorial we'll be going over using color gradients in Light Beams.

Selecting Your Effect

Select your first effect under the effects menu, we are going to be using Warm Sunlight (A). This effect simulates beams of light in the warm color tones.

Adjusting the T - Path

As with any of the Beam effects in Mystical Lighting and Ambiance the beam is controlled by a T - Path. To move the light beam around just click and drag on the T - Path (A).

You can rotate the beam by grabbing the end of the T - Path (A).

You can widen your T - Path by clicking and moving either end of the 'T' on the path (A).

The Color Gradient Menu

In the Effect Control Box there are a group of controls underneath the able Light Color (A). The current color of your beam is shown in the gradient bar (B). You can also Save (C) and Load (D) gradient presets or gradients you have saved out yourself.

Using the Gradient Slider

In your gradient bar there is a triangular tab which can be clicked ad dragged (A). This moves the color selected in the center of the gradient to one side or the other.

Changing the Gradient Color

We are going to change the color of our gradient by double clicking on our triangular tab (A). This will bring up our Color Picker menu (B).

The Color Picker Menu

The color slider (A) allows you to change the color viewed in the color box (B). You can see your old color in comparison to your new color (C). When you are done picking your color you can simply hit OK (D)

Adjusting the End Colors

To adjust the colors at the ends of the gradient bar just double click on the blue tab (A) to bring up the color picker menu (B).

Adjusting the Gradient Opacity

You can adjust the opacity of the color of your light beam. You can do this by using the Opacity slider (A) in the Color Picker menu. By lowering the opacity you can make your light beam appear to fade.

Saving Gradients

To save a gradient simply click on the Save button (A).

Loading a Color Gradient

To load a previously saved gradient you can click on the Load button (A). Then select your desired gradient from the menu (B).

Viewing Original

You can look to see what your image looked like before any time while using the software by simply clicking and holding down the Original button located at the top of the interface (A).

Final Image

Summary

In this tutorial you've learned how to apply effects and stack them together to enhance your photos. You've learned how to turn off effects and change the stacking order by moving them on the layer palette. In the next tutorial we'll learn about how to use Atmospheric Effects