2026-01-15//7 min

Combining Effects: Advanced Workflows

#tutorial#advanced#workflow

Stacking Effects

Each effect works alone. Combined, they do more. Here's what works and in what order.

Order Matters

Structural effects first, posterizing effects last, optical effects on top.

  • Block Jitter (structural)

  • Pixel Sort (structural)

  • Vertical Melt (structural)

  • Luma Stretch (motion)

  • RGB Shift (channel)

  • ASCII Art / 1-Bit Dither (posterize — destroys color depth, so run late)

  • CRT (optical — simulates a screen, so run last)

    • Structural effects move pixels. Color effects separate channels. Posterizing effects collapse the palette. Optical effects sit on top like a lens. If you ASCII first then RGB shift, the characters get split into RGB — usually a mess. If you CRT first then pixel sort, you sort the scanlines too.

    Combinations That Work

    Vaporwave

  • Pixel Sort (vertical, medium)

  • RGB Shift (horizontal, subtle)

  • Dreamy, melting, color-fringed

    • Broadcast Error

  • Block Jitter (medium blocks, low probability)

  • RGB Shift (aggressive horizontal)

  • CRT (medium scanline, low bloom)

  • Broken TV from childhood

    • Speed Demon

  • Luma Stretch (horizontal, high)

  • RGB Shift (same direction, subtle)

  • Subject breaking the sound barrier

    • Digital Decay

  • Block Jitter (small blocks, high probability)

  • Pixel Sort (same direction)

  • Luma Stretch (subtle)

  • Image decomposing

    • Subtle Corruption

  • Block Jitter (tiny, low probability)

  • RGB Shift (minimal)

  • Looks almost normal. Almost.

    • 1987 Late Night

  • Vertical Melt (high threshold, only highlights drip)

  • CRT (high scanline, high bloom)

  • Public-access TV at 2 AM

    • Hacker Movie

  • ASCII Art (block 8, color off, green terminal preset)

  • CRT (low bloom, medium scanline)

  • The shot where they zoom in on the laptop screen

    • Terminal Glitch

  • ASCII Art (block 6, color off)

  • Block Jitter (small blocks, low probability)

  • RGB Shift (minimal)

  • Corrupted teletext

    • Risograph Print

  • 1-Bit Dither (Floyd–Steinberg, threshold ~140)

  • RGB Shift (tiny offset for that mis-registered print look)

  • The zine you'd actually buy

    • Rainy Window

  • Vertical Melt (threshold ~150)

  • RGB Shift (subtle)

  • Sky bleeding into the photo, with chromatic fringe

    • Intensity Rules

    More effects = lower individual intensity.

  • One effect: 70-100%

  • Two effects: 50-70% each

  • Three: 30-50% each

  • Four+: 20-40% each

    • Stacking everything at 100% makes mud.

    CRT and ASCII are exceptions — they don't really have a "subtle" mode. Either you want the look or you don't. But the other effects in the stack should still come down to compensate.

    By Subject

    Portraits: Light pixel sort on hair/background. Subtle RGB shift. Skip or minimize block jitter on faces.

    Landscapes: Horizontal pixel sort (sky melts well). Luma stretch on highlights. Light RGB shift.

    Text/Logos: Block jitter for corruption. Heavy RGB shift. Skip pixel sort (kills readability).

    Going Abstract: Max everything. Subject disappears. Pure texture remains.

    Exploration Method

  • One effect, medium intensity

  • Add second effect, low intensity

  • Adjust until balanced

  • Add more if needed

  • Save when you find something

    • Or Just Randomize

    Random parameters. Look at result. Keep or reroll. Sometimes that's all you need.