Image

The Image component provides access to the external image which is currently loaded into Filter Forge. When Filter Forge is running as a plugin, Image provides the picture currently opened in the host application (such as Adobe Photoshop, Corel PhotoPaint etc.). When Filter Forge is running in the standalone mode, Image provides either the default image (the life buoy), the image opened via File > Open Image, or the image created via File > New Image. To view the currently loaded image, use the Show Original command. Image is a map component, it can be located in the External category on the Components Bar. This component can output HDR colors.

A filter can have multiple Image components, but all of them will output the same image. Any filter that includes the Image component is automatically classed as an Effect Filter. For more information, see Filter Classes.

The presence of the Image component in a filter influences the way the final image rendered by the filter is combined with the original image loaded into Filter Forge. For more information, see Blending of Result with Original Image.

Mode

Specifies one of the two image scaling modes: Background or Particle.

The Backround mode outputs the image as is, without scaling. This mode is turned on by default. In this mode, the Image component is not affected by the global parameter Size in Filter Controls. However, when the Image component in this mode is used in the subtree of the Height input of the Result component, the value of the Size slider still affects the direction of the resulting surface normals, which in turn affects the lighting and the perceived height of the rendered surface. You should keep this in mind when designing filters that use the Image component in the height map.

The Particle mode was introduced to eliminate problems that arise when an Image component is connected to a Particle subtree of a Bomber or Bomber (HDR) component. This mode causes the image to be scaled according to the value of the global Size slider, which is done to prevent unwanted particle clipping that arises whe the default Background scaling mode is used. Additionally, in the Particle mode, all pixels of the Image are marked for anti-aliasing. This is done to eliminate aliasing artifacts that occur when a particle is downscaled by a Bomber or Bomber (HDR) component.