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Pop Art Effect

Rebuilds any picture as torn sheets of colored card, each printed with its own halftone screen of dots or lines.

The leaping figure rebuilt as torn paper layers: a halftone black figure over yellow, tan and striped magenta sheets on a lined blue ground.
A man in a dark cap, jacket, cargo trousers and boots leaps sideways in midair against a plain off-white background.
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Made with a Nexus Community filter

Works in

The pop art effect cuts your picture into torn paper, each piece printed with its own halftone screen. Layers mode stacks shifted, turned sheets around your subject; Grid mode tears the whole frame into scraps. The look starts in blue, magenta and yellow, and every color, edge and screen can change.

Same effect, different settings

12 photos, each with its own settings. Try it on yours

  • Pop Art Effect on a photo of a woman with a red bob
  • Pop Art Effect on a photo of a woman in black sunglasses
  • Pop Art Effect on a photo of a woman in blue glasses
  • Pop Art Effect on a photo of a young man in black
  • Pop Art Effect on a photo of a chrome blob
  • Pop Art Effect on a photo of a woman in white cat-eye sunglasses
  • Pop Art Effect on a photo of a black horse
  • Pop Art Effect on a photo of a man with slicked blond hair and sunglasses
  • Pop Art Effect on a photo of a man in gray standing on a mirror puddle
  • Pop Art Effect on a photo of a man in white sunglasses
  • Pop Art Effect on a photo of a woman with a silver earring and winged liner
  • Pop Art Effect on a photo of a man in red sitting on a white sphere

Use Pop Art Effect in Photoshop, After Effects, Illustrator, Affinity or Figma

The plugins are free with an account. Paid plans add bigger renders and your own filters. See pricing

Settings worth touching

Mode
Layers builds torn sheets from your subject's shape. Grid tears the whole frame into scraps, each carrying its own halftone screen.
Screen
Sets how fine the halftone is. Low values give large dots and thick lines; high values give a fine, dense print.
Sheets
How many torn layers stack around the subject. The look starts at five; more sheets build a thicker, wider collage.

Frequently asked questions

How do I add the pop art effect in Photoshop?

Install Nexus for Photoshop, pick the look in the panel and apply it to a Smart Object as a Smart Filter, or render it as a new layer. Double-⁠click the filter to change it later.

Can I use the pop art effect in Illustrator?

Yes. Nexus for Illustrator runs the look on a selection and places the result back as an embedded image. This effect makes pixels only, so it does not return vector paths.

Does the pop art effect use halftone dots?

Yes. Every sheet or scrap is printed with its own halftone screen, dots or lines. Screen sets how fine it is, Angle turns it, and Mixed styles varies the process between sheets.

Can I make a pop art collage effect from a whole photo?

Yes. Switch Mode to Grid and the effect tears the whole frame into scraps and pastes them back down. Columns and Rows set how many pieces, and Rotation turns them.

Is the pop art effect free to use?

You can open the look in the Nexus web editor and try it on your own image for free, without an account. Exporting a result needs a free account, and so does using it in the plugins.

Related effects

Try Pop Art Effect in your browser

Free to try. Exporting needs a free account.

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