The Directional Blur operator gives a layer the illusion of motion in a given direction. The blur can be applied horizontally, vertically, or in both directions simultaneously.
The filter works by averaging pixels along the specified direction within a defined radius. This creates a streaking effect that simulates motion blur from camera movement or fast-moving subjects.
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Location: Blur and Sharpen
When to Use
Simulate motion blur — Create the appearance of movement or speed
Add directional softness — Soften an image along a specific axis
Create speed lines — Horizontal blur suggests fast lateral movement
Vertical rain/falling effects — Vertical blur enhances downward motion
Background separation — Blur backgrounds to draw focus to sharp foreground elements
Properties
Blur Settings
Property | Range | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Blur direction | Horizontal and vertical / Horizontal / Vertical | Horizontal and vertical | Direction in which the blur is applied (see below). |
Blur radius | 0 - 200 | 0 | Strength of the blur effect. Higher values create longer blur streaks. A value of 0 bypasses the effect entirely. |
Edge Handling
Property | Options | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Edge sample mode | Border / Wrap | Border | How pixels are sampled when the blur extends beyond the image boundary (see below). |
Channel Selection
Property | Options | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Channels | All channels / RGB / Alpha | All channels | Which color channels the blur is applied to (see below). |
Blur Direction Modes
Horizontal
Applies blur only along the horizontal axis. Pixels are averaged left-to-right, creating horizontal streaking. Useful for simulating fast lateral movement.
Vertical
Applies blur only along the vertical axis. Pixels are averaged top-to-bottom, creating vertical streaking. Useful for rain effects, falling motion, or vertical camera shake.
Horizontal and vertical
Applies blur in both directions sequentially — first horizontal, then vertical on the result. This creates a soft, uniform blur similar to a box blur but with directional characteristics preserved.
When to use each:
Horizontal — Racing footage, side-scrolling motion, horizontal pans
Vertical — Rain, waterfalls, falling objects, vertical tilts
Horizontal and vertical — General softening, glow preparation, uniform motion blur
Edge Sample Modes
Border
Pixels outside the image boundary are treated as transparent/black. This is the standard behavior and works well for most footage where edges aren't critical.
Wrap
Pixels wrap around to the opposite edge of the image. This creates seamless tiling behavior, useful for:
Textures that need to tile seamlessly
Looping backgrounds
Avoiding dark edges on content that wraps
Channel Options
All channels
Blur is applied to all channels including alpha. Use this for most standard blur operations.
RGB
Blur is applied only to the color channels; the alpha channel remains sharp. Useful when you want to blur the image content but keep crisp transparency edges.
Alpha
Blur is applied only to the alpha channel; RGB remains unchanged. Useful for:
Softening mask edges
Creating feathered transparency
Anti-aliasing alpha mattes
Usage Examples
Motion Blur (Horizontal Speed)
For simulating fast lateral movement:
Blur direction: Horizontal
Blur radius: 20-50
Channels: All channels
Vertical Rain/Falling Effect
For enhancing rain or downward motion:
Blur direction: Vertical
Blur radius: 30-80
Channels: RGB
Soft Background
For creating a soft, out-of-focus look:
Blur direction: Horizontal and vertical
Blur radius: 10-30
Channels: All channels
Alpha Edge Softening
For feathering hard mask edges:
Blur direction: Horizontal and vertical
Blur radius: 5-15
Channels: Alpha
Seamless Texture Blur
For blurring tileable textures without edge artifacts:
Blur direction: Horizontal and vertical
Blur radius: 10-20
Edge sample mode: Wrap
Channels: RGB
Tips
Use Blur radius 0 to bypass. When the radius is set to 0, the operator returns the original image without any processing, saving GPU resources.
Start with lower radius values. Directional blur can quickly become extreme. Start around 10-20 and increase as needed.
Consider channel selection for compositing. If you're blurring a layer with transparency, using RGB-only mode preserves sharp alpha edges for cleaner composites.
Wrap mode for seamless textures. If you're working with tiling textures or looping content, Wrap mode prevents dark edges from appearing at the boundaries.
Combine with masking. Apply directional blur to a duplicate layer with a gradient mask for selective motion blur that fades across the image.
Horizontal and vertical ≠radial blur. The "Horizontal and vertical" option applies horizontal then vertical blur sequentially, which creates a box-like blur pattern, not a true omnidirectional or radial blur.