Highlight

Highlight creates star-shaped glints on metal edges, lamps, jewelry and graphics. Rays originate from bright areas in the input image. Unlike HotSpot, each glint is located by the source image rather than one chosen Center point.

Low and High define a luminance range: below Low no glint is generated, and above High the full effect applies. High does not discard overbright pixels. A range such as 0.9–1.0 is only a starting point for a particular image, not a universal rule for HDR, log or every color space.

Number of Points is the number of rays in the star. It does not control sample count, calculation quality or antialiasing. Compare 4 and 6 with the other settings fixed: the pattern changes, not processing precision.

Curve controls brightness falloff along a ray. A higher value concentrates the falloff near the center, while a lower value carries brightness farther outward. Length sets the extent and Angle rotates the star. Compare these three controls on a single compact source.

Highlight has three distinct inputs. Input receives the 2D image. Highlight Mask selects sources before rays are created and allows the rays to extend beyond the mask. Effect Mask acts after processing and limits the completed effect, so it can cut long rays short.

Color Scale changes the falloff color. RGB sliders independently reduce channel contributions; equal values preserve a neutral character. Alpha Scale makes the falloff more transparent. Inspect color and Alpha separately, especially when outputting an independent glint layer.

With Merge Over on, the output already includes the source. Merging it over the original again as though it contained only glints can unintentionally strengthen the image. For a separate branch, turn Merge Over off, process the rays with Glow or ColorCorrector, and wire the next Merge foreground and background explicitly.

On a logo, first isolate a bright edge with Highlight Mask and then shape the star. For HUD graphics, use a deliberate ray count and angle. For photography, begin with short rays and check that every small reflection has not turned into an identical star.

A threshold-driven effect reacts strongly to changing reflections. Review playback and adjacent frames to distinguish a genuine glint from noise flicker. Correct source noise and source selection before adding a broad Glow over the rays.