ReferenceDraft

Distort effects

Chromatic aberration, Kaleidoscope, Mirror, Lens distortion, UV warp, Turbulent displace, Ripple shock, Heat mirage, Zigzag shear, Pixel stretch, Tile scroll, Isometric, Feedback tunnel, Cylinder wrap, Mouse field, Page curl, Perspective 3D, Wave warp.

The eighteen effects in the Distort group of the catalog, in the order the catalog lists them. Each entry gives the parameters as the card shows them, with their range and default; parameters behind ▸ Advanced are in a second table. Effects with a Speed row also have a clock — Timeline / Free run / Static — on The effect stack.

01Wave warp

Pushes the picture along a repeating wave. The wave can travel in a line or out from the center, and it has a clock.

Use it for: a flag, a liquid title, a pond, unwrapping a circle into a strip.

Presets: Ripple, Strong, Radial, Uncircle.

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Wave type	Sine / Square / Triangle / Sawtooth / Circle / Semicircle / Uncircle · Sine	The shape of the displacement
Propagation	Linear / Radial · Linear	Linear travels along Angle; Radial travels out from the center
Height	0 – 1000 · 120	How far the wave pushes, in pixels
Width	1 – 1000 · 200	Distance from crest to crest, in pixels
Angle	any angle · 90°	Direction the linear wave travels; hidden while Propagation is Radial
Speed	0 – 5 · 0.5	Cycles per second

Advanced

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Pinning	— / L / R / T / B / ⊞ · —	An edge that stays still while the rest waves
Wrap	None / Repeat / Mirror · Repeat	What happens at the edge of the layer
Antialias	Low / Med / High · Low	Sample quality of the warp
Phase	any angle · 0°	Where the wave starts; with Speed at 0, this picks the frame
Repeat edge pixels	on / off · on	Fills gaps at the edge with the last pixel instead of empty

Motion: Timeline / Free run / Static.

Before / after: Wave warp on the sample image

02Page curl

Peels a corner of the layer over itself, as if turning a page.

Use it for: a reveal, a book, a card that folds away.

Presets: Soft, Hard.

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Progress	0 – 1 · 0	How far the page has turned; 0 is flat, 1 is gone
Angle	any angle · 40°	Which corner peels, and in which direction
Curl radius	0.05 – 1 · 0.3	Tightness of the roll

Advanced

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Shadow	0 – 1 · 0.5	Darkness in the hollow of the curl

Before / after: Page curl on the sample image

03Mouse field

Warps the picture around the pointer — the one live distort with no clock. It redraws whenever the pointer moves.

Use it for: a magnetic hero, water under a cursor, pushing type out of the way.

Presets: Attract, Repel, Swirl, Push.

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Mode	Attract / Repel / Swirl / Push · Attract	How pixels move around the pointer
Strength	0 – 3 · 1	How hard the field pulls
Radius	0.08 – 1.5 · 0.5	Reach of the field, as a fraction of the layer

Advanced

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Mix	0 – 1 · 1	Blend between the original and the full effect

Before / after: Mouse field on the sample image

04Chromatic aberration

Splits the red and blue channels apart — the cheap lens look.

Use it for: a camera that isn't quite sharp, a glitch edge, making a title feel shot rather than drawn.

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Amount	0 – 0.2 · 0.01	How far the channels separate

Before / after: Chromatic aberration on the sample image

05Lens distortion

Bends the picture like a camera lens: barrel, pincushion, or a full fisheye, with an optional chromatic fringe.

Use it for: a security-cam frame, a wide-angle still, correcting a photo that already has a bend.

Presets: Barrel, Pincushion, Fisheye.

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Barrel	−1 – 1 · 0.2	Positive bulges the middle (barrel); negative pinches it (pincushion)
Zoom	0.2 – 3 · 1	Crops or expands after the bend, so the edges stay in frame
Chromatic	−0.5 – 0.5 · 0	Extra split of red and blue through the same bend

Advanced

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
K2	−1 – 1 · 0	A second, tighter bend near the edges
Center X	−0.5 – 0.5 · 0	Horizontal offset of the lens center
Center Y	−0.5 – 0.5 · 0	Vertical offset of the lens center

Before / after: Lens distortion on the sample image

06Kaleidoscope

Mirrors the picture around a center into a regular polygon of slices.

Use it for: a mandala, a logo lockup, a title that feels cut from glass.

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Sides	2 – 24 · 6	Number of mirrored slices
Angle	any angle · 0°	Rotation of the whole pattern

Advanced

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Center X	0 – 1 · 0.5	Horizontal position of the hub
Center Y	0 – 1 · 0.5	Vertical position of the hub (0 bottom, 1 top)

Before / after: Kaleidoscope on the sample image

07Mirror

Folds the picture across one axis, or both.

Use it for: a reflection, a Rorschach card, doubling a one-sided illustration.

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Axis	X / Y / XY · X	Which way the fold runs
Center	0 – 1 · 0.5	Where the fold sits across the layer
Invert	on / off · off	Swaps which side is the source

Before / after: Mirror on the sample image

08UV warp

A single-center warp with four modes: bulge, pinch, twirl, or shear. The card only shows the knobs that belong to the mode you picked.

Use it for: a magnifying glass, a drain, a swirl behind a logo, a slanted poster.

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Mode	Bulge / Pinch / Twirl / Shear · Bulge	Which warp
Strength	−2 – 2 · 0.4	How hard Bulge or Pinch pushes (shown in those modes)
Radius	0.05 – 1.5 · 0.5	Reach of the warp
Twirl	−3 – 3 · 1	Turns of the spiral (Twirl mode)
Shear X	−1 – 1 · 0.2	Horizontal slant (Shear mode)
Shear Y	−1 – 1 · 0	Vertical slant (Shear mode)

Advanced

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Center X	−0.5 – 0.5 · 0	Horizontal offset of the warp center
Center Y	−0.5 – 0.5 · 0	Vertical offset of the warp center

Before / after: UV warp on the sample image

09Turbulent displace

Pushes pixels around with a moving noise field. Has a clock.

Use it for: heat over a road, a flag in wind, a liquid logo.

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Amount	0 – 60 · 5	How far pixels wander, in pixels
Size	0.5 – 40 · 4	Scale of the noise; small is fine grain, large is big rolls
Speed	0 – 5 · 0.5	Cycles per second

Advanced

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Mix	0 – 1 · 1	Blend between the original and the full effect

Motion: Timeline / Free run / Static.

Before / after: Turbulent displace on the sample image

10Ripple shock

Rings spreading from a point, fading as they go. Has a clock.

Use it for: a drop in water, a click impact, a sonar ping.

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Amplitude	0 – 8 · 1	Height of each ring
Frequency	2 – 120 · 24	How many rings sit between the center and the edge
Decay	0 – 12 · 2.5	How fast the rings die as they travel out
Speed	0 – 5 · 0.5	Cycles per second

Advanced

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Center X	0 – 1 · 0.5	Horizontal position of the impact
Center Y	0 – 1 · 0.5	Vertical position of the impact
Mix	0 – 1 · 1	Blend between the original and the full effect

Motion: Timeline / Free run / Static.

Before / after: Ripple shock on the sample image

11Heat mirage

Horizontal shimmer, like air over hot ground. Has a clock.

Use it for: a desert plate, a grill, a title that won't sit still.

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Amount	0 – 6 · 1	How far the rows slide
Rows	4 – 200 · 40	How many horizontal bands make the shimmer
Speed	0 – 5 · 0.5	Cycles per second

Advanced

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Wave freq	1 – 60 · 14	How many wiggles sit across the layer
Vertical	0 – 3 · 0.4	Extra up-and-down wobble
Mix	0 – 1 · 1	Blend between the original and the full effect

Motion: Timeline / Free run / Static.

Before / after: Heat mirage on the sample image

12Zigzag shear

Cuts the picture into bands and slides every other band. Has a clock.

Use it for: a torn poster, a barcode wipe, a hard glitch that isn't noise.

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Bands	1 – 60 · 8	Number of slices
Depth	0 – 6 · 1	How far each band slides
Angle	any angle · 90°	Direction of the slices
Speed	0 – 5 · 0.5	Cycles per second

Advanced

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Mix	0 – 1 · 1	Blend between the original and the full effect

Motion: Timeline / Free run / Static.

Before / after: Zigzag shear on the sample image

13Pixel stretch

Repeats one row or one column across part of the picture — a smear from a single line of pixels.

Use it for: a speed streak, a marquee, a cinematic smear under a still.

Presets: Subtle, Cinematic, Marquee.

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Orientation	Vertical / Horizontal · Vertical	Which way the smear runs
Source	0 – 1 · 0.5	Which row or column is the source
Stretch	0 – 1 · 0.2	How much of the picture the smear covers

Before / after: Pixel stretch on the sample image

14Tile scroll

Tiles the picture and slides the tiles. Has a clock.

Use it for: a looping background, a conveyor, an infinite pattern under type.

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Scale X	0.05 – 8 · 1	Horizontal tile size; below 1 repeats more
Scale Y	0.05 – 8 · 1	Vertical tile size
Dir X	−1 – 1 · 1	Horizontal travel
Dir Y	−1 – 1 · 0	Vertical travel
Speed	0 – 5 · 0.5	Cycles per second

Advanced

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Mix	0 – 1 · 1	Blend between the original and the full effect

Motion: Timeline / Free run / Static.

Before / after: Tile scroll on the sample image

15Isometric

Tips the picture onto a fake ground plane.

Use it for: a city block, a card that sits on a desk, a 2D scene that needs a floor.

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Rotation	any angle · 45°	Yaw of the plane
Y scale	0.05 – 2 · 0.55	How flat the plane is; lower is more top-down
Zoom	0.1 – 4 · 1	Size after the tip

Advanced

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Offset X	−1 – 1 · 0	Horizontal slide of the plane
Offset Y	−1 – 1 · 0	Vertical slide of the plane
Clip outside	on / off · on	Hides pixels that fall off the plane

Before / after: Isometric on the sample image

16Feedback tunnel

Recursively insets the picture inside itself.

Use it for: a corridor, a screen-inside-a-screen, a hypnotic loop.

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Margin	0.02 – 0.45 · 0.12	How much each copy shrinks
Inward	on / off · on	Copies nest in (on) or grow out (off)

Advanced

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Mix	0 – 1 · 1	Blend between the original and the full effect

Before / after: Feedback tunnel on the sample image

17Cylinder wrap

Wraps the picture around a cylinder.

Use it for: a can, a column, a label that turns.

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Amount	0 – 1 · 1	How far around the cylinder the picture goes
Curve	0.1 – 3 · 1.5	Roundness of the barrel
Axis	Vertical / Horizontal · Vertical	Which way the cylinder stands
Scale	0.1 – 4 · 1	Size of the wrapped picture
Rotate	−2 – 2 · 0	Spin around the cylinder

Advanced

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Shading	0 – 1 · 0.5	Light falloff on the sides of the barrel

Before / after: Cylinder wrap on the sample image

18Perspective 3D

Tips the layer in 3D space — a card turning in front of you, not a 3D scene.

Use it for: a hero panel that tilts on scroll, a card flip start, a wall receding.

Parameter	Range · default	What it changes
Rotate X°	−180 – 180 · 0	Tilt toward or away from you
Rotate Y°	−180 – 180 · 35	Turn left or right
Rotate Z°	−180 – 180 · 0	Roll
Distance	1.05 – 12 · 2.4	How far the plane sits from the camera; closer is more extreme
Depth	−1.5 – 1.5 · 0	Extra push along the view
Zoom	0.2 – 3 · 1	Size after the turn
Backface	Hide / Show · Show	What you see if the card turns all the way around

Before / after: Perspective 3D on the sample image

Checked against the tool on 2026-09-30.