… for Visual Effects

Tip #594: What Is Feathering?

Larry Jordan – LarryJordan.com

Feathering softens edges in images, shapes or masks.

Feathering softens edges. When you soften (feather) an edge, the softening has to go somewhere. This means that you can feather OUT from the edge (top of screen shot) or IN from the edge.

Think of feathering as “blurring the edges.” It affects the edge, but not the rest of the image. Feathering has three components:

• The direction of the feather
• The amount of the feather
• The shape of the ramp from the edge to the surface

Each NLE has options which allow you to adjust each of these parameters.

However, feathering will not allow you to extend an image beyond its original borders.