Alpha Compositing
Long-tail route · graphics
Use this when blending math needs to become visible.
Pixel-accurate explanation of alpha blending and compositing math, from opacity/coverage to premultiplied alpha and filtering artifacts.
At a glance
Live interactive
The maintained version lives at the route linked here, with this garden note keeping the embed and editorial framing.
Best companion
Pair it with [[Color-Spaces]] for color-model intuition or [[Lights-and-Shadows]] for another rendering-heavy route.
Time and level
About 10 to 15 minutes. Beginner friendly. It works well if you already grasp layers and opacity at a basic level.
Reading path
- Open the live interactive: https://kohnnn.github.io/interactive-explanation/alpha-compositing/
- Continue through Color-Spaces or Lights-and-Shadows when you want neighboring image and rendering routes
- Move through the local archive via Interactive or Visual Notes