What It Does
Deep Glow generates cinematic glow effects that handle HDR values properly, something After Effects’ built-in glow struggles with. Instead of clipping bright values and producing flat, washed-out halos, it applies tonemapping algorithms to ease super-bright light sources into smooth, realistic falloff. You also get independent RGB channel control, lens dirt texturing, and multicolor tinting for stylized results.
The plugin is GPU-accelerated and supports multiple glow modes including exponential and iris.
Key Features
Four tonemapping algorithms. Reinhard, Reinhard 2, ACES Filmic, and Clamp each handle the transition of values above 1 differently. ACES Filmic is the most commonly used for naturalistic results; the others give you options when matching specific reference material.
RGB Radius Multipliers. Control glow spread per color channel independently. Useful for chromatic aberration-style glows, or when matching reference footage where a specific color channel naturally diffuses more than others.
Lens Dirt Texturing. Adds realistic imperfections to how light spreads across the lens, simulating the scatter pattern of a dirty or coated lens surface.
Image Based Glow. Generates glow coloring based on the source image rather than a flat tint, so the halo picks up the actual colors of your light source.
Input masking and gamma correction. Lets you isolate which parts of the image generate glow, and adjust gamma to control the rolloff.
Who It’s For
VFX artists working with HDR sources, light emitters, or practical effects get the most from the tonemapping controls. Motion designers doing title sequences, logo reveals, or broadcast graphics will appreciate the RGB multipliers and tinting options for stylized looks that go beyond a basic white glow.
If the native After Effects glow keeps clipping your bright values or you need chromatic control, this is the direct replacement.
Pricing
$99.95 as a one-time purchase. Upgrade pricing available for version 1 owners when logged in. No subscription, no free tier. Works with After Effects CS6 through 2026.