Procedural Noise
Use Noise for clouds, grain, stone-like patterns or a starting point for a height map. Add Noise through + → Noise at the bottom of Layers and adjust the settings while watching the image.
Start with the pattern
| Setting | What to try |
|---|---|
| Noise Type | OpenSimplex2 or Perlin for smooth variation; OpenSimplex2S for a smoother OpenSimplex2; Cellular for cells; Value for a simpler random pattern; ValueCubic for smoothed Value. |
| Seed | Change the pattern without changing its character. |
| Scale | Increase for finer detail, decrease for larger shapes. |
| Offset | Move the pattern. |
| Fractal | FBm adds detail; Ridged emphasizes ridges; PingPong creates repeated bands; None disables fractals. |
| Octaves | Add more levels of detail. |
| Domain Warp | Bend and distort the pattern; Warp Strength controls the amount. None disables distortion. |
For finer control, Lacunarity changes the spacing between detail scales and Gain changes how strongly the smaller details show. With Cellular, try Distance, Return and Jitter to change the shape and regularity of the cells.
White noise
Choose Noise Type → White Noise for random grain without smooth transitions. Color → Monochrome produces grayscale grain; Color → Color gives independent red, green and blue values. Grain Size (px) starts at one canvas pixel; increase it for larger square grains. Use Seed to get a different pattern and Offset to move it in pixels. Fractal and Domain Warp do not apply to White Noise; their settings are retained when switching types. White Noise also supports Dimensions → 1D for random bands; see Striped noise.
Blue noise
Choose Noise Type → Blue Noise for more evenly distributed grain with fewer random clumps. It is useful for dither masks and fine speckles. Monochrome / Color, Grain Size (px), Offset, Inverted and Output work as they do for White Noise; Dimensions → 1D creates bands. Choose Output → Linear Data for a dither mask, or Output → Color Values for a visible texture.
In canvas pixels, Blue Noise repeats every 128 × grain size on each axis, or 256 × grain size along the direction of variation in 1D. Large grains can make this repetition visible. Seed rearranges the pattern while preserving its distribution. Fractal and Domain Warp do not apply to Blue Noise.
Striped noise
Choose Dimensions → 1D to create straight noise stripes instead of a two-dimensional pattern. Direction (deg) rotates the direction of variation: 0 gives vertical stripes, 90 gives horizontal stripes. Direction is available for every noise type. Scale controls stripe width; White Noise and Blue Noise use Grain Size (px) instead. Offset X moves the pattern along the direction of variation; Offset Y has no effect. Fractal and Domain Warp remain available except for White Noise and Blue Noise. Warp changes the pattern but keeps the stripes straight. Switch back to 2D for the usual pattern without losing the direction setting.
Color texture or height map?
Choose Output → Color Values when using the noise as a visible image. Choose Output → Linear Data when using it as a height map or packing it into texture channels.
To create surface relief:
- Add Noise and choose Output → Linear Data.
- Choose Fractal → FBm, start with three octaves and adjust Scale.
- Add Normal Map above it and choose Generation → Height Map.
- In Normal Map’s Advanced settings, choose Input Space → Linear.
- Adjust Strength and Smoothing. Change Noise Seed to try another surface.
Tiled preview helps you inspect seams, but does not make Noise itself seamless. For the next step, see Normal Map.