How to create a blurred border in Photoshop

Vignette is a classic and timeless effect that darkens the edges of a photo to focus and draw attention to the subject. Vignettes can also give a photo a vintage or nostalgic look, or add a sense of mystery or drama.

And with Live Gradients in Photoshop 2023, creating vignette effects has never been easier. The term Live Gradient means that all properties of the gradient, including color, size, and position, remain editable after the gradient is drawn.

By combining the flexibility of Live Gradients with Photoshop's classic Foreground to Transparent gradient, we can add a vignette effect with complete control over the look of that effect.

Step 1: Reduce the image

First, zoom out to add some space around the image. We will need the space when drawing the gradient.

To zoom out, go to the View menu in the Menu bar and select the Zoom Out command .

You will see some grey cardboard areas around the photo.

Step 2: Select Gradient Tool

Next, select the Gradient Tool on the toolbar.

Step 3: Set Foreground color to black

Still in the toolbar, make sure your Foreground color is set to black.

If not, press D on your keyboard to reset the Foreground and Background colors to default (black for Foreground and white for Background).

Step 4: Set Tool Mode to Gradient

Then, in the Options Bar, make sure that the Tool Mode (new as of Photoshop 2023) is set to Gradient, which is the default.

Gradient is the setting we need to draw live gradients. The other option, Classic gradient, forces the Gradient Tool to behave like it did in earlier versions of Photoshop, which won't work for our vignette effect.

Step 5: Select Foreground to Transparent gradient

To create the vignette effect, we need Photoshop's Foreground to Transparent gradient.

So click on the gradient swatch to open the Gradient Preset picker.

Rotate to open the Basic folder and select the Foreground to Transparent gradient (thumbnail in the middle).

Then press Enter on a Windows PC or Return on a Mac to close the preset picker.

Step 6: Set Gradient Style to Linear

Next to the gradient preview bar are the Gradient Style icons.

For this vignette effect, choose the Radial style (second icon from the left), which will draw the gradient outward from its center.

Step 7: Turn on Reverse option

Also in the Options Bar, enable the Reverse option by clicking its checkbox.

If you skip this step, the vignette effect will not work.

Leave Dither turned on and Method set to Perceptual. Both are default settings. And now we're ready to draw the gradient.

Step 8: Draw a radial gradient to add the initial vignette effect

Click and hold on the image where you want the center of the vignette to appear. Don't worry about getting it exactly right, because with live gradients we can reposition the gradient after we draw it.

Then, holding down the mouse button, drag away from that position to extend the gradient outward.

The center of the gradient is transparent, allowing the image underneath to show through as the gradient fades to black at the outer edge.

If you see black in the middle and transparency around the edges, it is because you forgot to enable the Reverse option in the previous step. So enable this option.

Then continue drawing the gradient outwards. You usually want to extend the gradient out to the edges of the image so the corners don't appear too dark (that's why you scaled the image down in step 1).

In the Layers panel, the gradient appears on its own Gradient Fill layer. This keeps the gradient and image separate so we can edit the gradient next.

Step 9: Reposition the vignette effect around the subject

Now that you've drawn your gradient, you can reposition it by dragging the circular color stop in the middle. This makes it easy to center the vignette around your subject or place it wherever you want. For example, I'll drag the center of the gradient a little to the right.

After moving the gradient, you may need to resize it by dragging the color stop on the outer edge. For example, I'll drag it out a bit more.

Step 10: Expand the transparent area in the middle

If the vignette effect makes your subject too dark, you can extend the transparent area in the middle of the gradient.

Go to the Properties panel and scroll down to Opacity Controls . You may need to rotate to open them.

Then click on the white transparency stop on the right and start dragging to the left, but keep an eye on the image.

The further you drag, the further the transparency will be pushed away from the center, forcing the dark areas closer to the edges and restoring the original brightness of the object.

Step 11: Change the color of the vignette effect

Using black for the vignette effect color can make the effect look dull. To select a different color, double-click the color stop at the outer edge of the gradient.

Then, select a new color from the Color Picker or click an area of ​​the image to sample the color.

Then, since the example is using this color to create a darkening effect, it will select a much darker and more saturated version in the Color Picker.

Click OK to close the Color Picker when you are finished.

With the gradient now turning dark brown instead of black, the vignette effect looks a bit more subtle and natural.

The new color chosen is still too dark for the author's taste, but it will make it easier to see the next step as the article shows you how to hide the vignette effect in the light section.

Step 12: Restore brightness in highlights

One problem with the vignette effect is that it darkens the bright parts. In the example image, this is very noticeable in the sky.

To reduce the vignette effect in the bright areas, click the fx icon at the bottom of the Layers panel.

Then select Blending Options from the top of the list.

At the bottom of the Layer Style dialog box , look for the Underlying Layer slider (the bottom of the two bars).

Below right of the bar is a white highlight slider.

Hold down the Alt key on a Windows PC or the Option key on a Mac. Then, hold down the down arrow key and click and drag to the right.

Pay attention to the image as you continue to drag to the left. The further you drag, the more highlights will be restored, so adjust the slider as needed.

Click OK to close the Layer Style dialog box when you're done.

And now the vignette is barely visible on the sky (bright spots) while still darkening the edges and corners in the lower half of the image.

Step 13: Change blend mode to Soft Light

Another way to make the vignette look more natural is to change the blend mode in the Layers panel.

With the Gradient Fill layer active, change the blend mode from Normal to Soft Light .

While the Normal blend mode (default) just darkens the image, Soft Light is more like a lighting effect, blending the blur and image better.

Step 14: Adjust the size or position of the effect if needed

Make any final adjustments to the size or position of the transition effect by dragging the color stops.

Step 15: Blur the vignette effect by reducing the Opacity

Finally, if the vignette effect looks too strong, you can soften the blur by reducing the Opacity of the Gradient Fill layer in the Layers panel.

For example, reduce the Opacity to 80%.

How to hide live gradient controls

To hide the gradient controls and get a better view of the vignette effect, select the Background layer in the Layers panel to deselect the Gradient Fill layer.

Hide the gradient controls by selecting another layer.

And here is the final vignette effect.

Vignette effect added to photo using Photoshop.

See also:

• How to create rounded corner images in Photoshop
• How to create photo frame effects on Photoshop