How the Iris Blur filter works

You’ll find the Iris Blur filter in Photoshop by going to Filter > Blur Gallery > Iris Blur. The feature will launch into a new window. Hover your mouse over the circle or oval shape in the middle of your image to activate the controls.

The ring around the centre circle controls the amount of blur to add or decrease by clicking and dragging. You can reposition the blur effect by dragging it around the image. You’ll also notice four small white circles in the centre of the controls that can be moved in and out to alter the gradient of blur falling over the subject within the circle/oval shape. On the outside of the circle/oval shape are four small round toggles and one small square. The square control enables you to adjust the shape of the ring from a circle/oval blur shape to a square/rectangular blur shape . The other toggles adjust the size of the blur effect; just click and drag to change.

You can add multiple iris blur adjustments to an image. To do this, move the mouse off the circle controls and a pin cursor will appear. Click to add another blur oval, and adjust the settings accordingly. When you are happy with the effect, click OK in the top toolbar to apply.