Glared2 Documentation

Glared2 is a real-time light-effects add-on for Blender. It generates lens-based effects directly inside Blender's Realtime Compositor, allowing you to enhance 3D renders, animations, still images and video footage without building complex compositor setups manually.

Compatibility

• Blender: 4.1 – 5.2
• Render Engines: Eevee and Cycles
• Extension compatible: Yes

Glared2 works inside Blender's compositor, so the effects can be used withboth Eevee and Cycles renders.

Installation

Blender 5.2 and newer

1. Download the Glared2 ZIP file from Superhive.
2. Open Blender.
3. Go to Edit → Preferences → Get Extensions.
4. Open the menu in the upper-right corner and choose Install from Disk.
5. Select the downloaded Glared2 ZIP file.
6. Enable Glared2 if it is not enabled automatically.

Blender 4.1

1. Download the Glared2 ZIP file from Superhive.
2. Open Blender.
3. Go to Edit → Preferences → Add-ons.
4. Click Install and select the downloaded ZIP file.
5. Enable Glared2.

Do not manually extract or modify the add-on files before installation unless specifically required by your Blender setup.

Quick Start

1. Open your Blender project.
2. Make sure the Compositor is available for your scene.
3. Open the Glared2 interface.
4. Enable the effects you want to use.
5. Adjust their parameters while viewing the result in real time.

Glared2 automatically manages its compositor node group, so you do not need to manually create or connect a complex compositor node setup.The main controls are available directly from the add-on interface.

Available Effects

Glared2 includes a collection of real-time lens and light effects, including:

• Glow and Bloom
• Streaks
• Anamorphic Streaks
• Ghosts and multi-reflection artifacts
• Light deformation and diffusion
• Chromatic Aberration
• Lens Dirt
• Vignette
• Unsharp Mask / contrast shaping

The effects are generated in screen space and react to the luminance of therender. Bright areas of the image therefore drive the generation and intensityof the light effects automatically.

Realtime Workflow

Glared2 is designed for interactive look development. Changes to lights, objects, camera framing and effect parameters can beevaluated directly while working on the scene.

This makes it possible to art-direct the final appearance of the effectswithout repeatedly creating and adjusting traditional compositor node chains.

Animation and Keyframes

Glared2 controls can be keyframed, allowing effect parameters to changeduring an animation.

This can be used, for example, to animate the intensity, appearance or behavior of an effect during a shot.

Using Glared2 with Images and Video

Glared2 is not limited to rendered 3D scenes.Because the effects are generated in the compositor, Glared2 can also be usedwith content that Blender can load into the compositing pipeline, including:

• Still images
• Image sequences
• Video footage
• VFX plates
• Rendered animations

EXR Effect Passes

Glared2 Version 2 can export the generated light effects as separate renderpasses.

Effects can be saved either inside a multi-layer EXR or as separate files, allowing further control during external post-production.

These passes can then be used in applications such as:

• DaVinci Resolve
• After Effects
• Fusion
• Nuke
• Other EXR-compatible compositing applications

This workflow allows the strength and appearance of individual Glared2 effects to be adjusted later without having to re-render the complete 3D scene.

Eevee and Cycles

Glared2 can be used with both Eevee andCycles.

The light effects are generated from the compositor result rather than being dependent on a specific render engine.

Typical Uses

Glared2 can be used for many types of Blender projects, including:

• Motion graphics
• Cinematics
• VFX
• Product visualization
• Stylized rendering
• Animation
• Image and video post-production

Support

If you encounter a problem, please include as much information as possible when contacting support:

• Your Blender version
• Your operating system
• The render engine being used
• A description of the problem
• Screenshots or a sample Blender file when useful

Support is available through the creator contact system on Superhive.

Glared2
Real-time light and bloom effects for Blender.
Created by Blender Lens Flare.