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Reeded Glass Effect

Slices any picture into glass ribs that bend, blur and split light, like looking through a fluted window.

The same portrait seen through vertical glass ribs, split into blurred strips with shifted edges and faint rainbow fringes.
Portrait of a woman with dark tousled hair and an orange turtleneck, looking over her shoulder against a soft orange background.
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Made with a featured Nexus filter

Works in

The reeded glass effect runs your picture through a sheet of ribbed glass. Each reed bends the image beneath it, smears it along the flute and adds a thin color fringe at the edges. The look starts with straight vertical lines, and you can change reed size, angle, pattern, blur and dispersion.

Same effect, different settings

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

  • Reeded Glass Effect on a photo of a woman in blue glasses
  • Reeded Glass Effect on a photo of a woman with a black bob and red earrings
  • Reeded Glass Effect on a photo of a woman in orange glasses and a knit collar
  • Reeded Glass Effect on a photo of a man with pink hair and black sunglasses
  • Reeded Glass Effect on a photo of a black horse
  • Reeded Glass Effect on a photo of a basketball player mid-jump
  • Reeded Glass Effect on a photo of a woman in white cat-eye sunglasses
  • Reeded Glass Effect on a photo of a man with slicked blond hair and sunglasses
  • Reeded Glass Effect on a photo of a young man in black
  • Reeded Glass Effect on a photo of two runners on a track
  • Reeded Glass Effect on a photo of two pears on linen
  • Reeded Glass Effect on a photo of blue cornflowers

Use Reeded Glass 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

Reed Size
Sets how wide each rib is. Small values give fine, dense fluting. Large values give broad bands that shift the picture further.
Reed Pattern
Switches the rib layout between Lines, Grid, Concentric and Chevron, from classic straight flutes to rings or zigzags.
Light Dispersion
Controls the red, green and blue fringe along each reed. Raise it for a prism split, lower it for clean glass.

Frequently asked questions

How do I add the reeded glass effect in Photoshop?

Install Nexus for Photoshop, apply the look as a Smart Filter on a Smart Object, then double-click it later to change the settings. You can also render the result as a new layer.

Can I make the reeded glass effect in Figma?

Yes. With Nexus for Figma, select a frame or image, run the look and the result drops back into your file. It comes back as an image, not vector paths.

Is the fluted glass effect the same as reeded glass?

Yes, the two names describe the same ribbed glass. Choose Lines in Reed Pattern for classic flutes, or switch to Grid, Concentric or Chevron for other layouts.

Does the reeded glass effect in Illustrator give vector output?

No. The look works from pixels only. Nexus for Illustrator uses your selection as the source and places the result back as an embedded image, never as vector paths.

Can I try the reeded glass look without paying?

Yes. Open the look in the Nexus web editor and try it on your own image without an account. Exporting needs a free account, which exports images up to 720px and video up to 720px with the Nexus mark.

Related effects

Try Reeded Glass Effect in your browser

Free to try. Exporting needs a free account.

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