Scan Lines In Adobe Photoshop Gradients

[Nox]

Dear Photoshop Gurus,

I do not know what you'd call it and or define it as. But, when I use a gradient on a layer for some odd reason the Gradient looks blocky. It looks as if it is not fading into other colors rather than blocking the colors little by little. Which is where I come to the term "Scan Lines".

I do have the document set at RGB Color - 16-Bit. Dimensions include 1600x900px.

If anyone could please help me, this would be awesome.

Thank you,
Aaron

[SeniorS]

Avoid using gradient with transparancy. There is some mathematic or something (i'm not theoretic but practic). So don't know why excatly - it just do. And have noticed sometimes that efect too. It reveal more if some curves/level etc adjusment are made.
So advice try use solid to solid color. Usually there is posibility to find right colors. If don't then use blur on gradient.

[SeniorS]

So if i get your problem right there is similiar problem with example too color banding issue

[Nox]

SeniorS,

Thank you for the amazing support. I use solid to solid color and cannot figure out how to get rid of them still. I also read your last post and tried during Filter -> Blur -> Blur quite a bit and still no progress. I did see you mention something about adjusting the colors, levels, etc. but I do not know how to do that. Anymore ideas?

Thank you very much SeniorS,
I hope to hear from you soon,
Aaron

[SeniorS]

Hmm...if You use solid color all should look more or less normal. I mention adjustments only because they make lines more visible. Maybe something wrong with your gradient tools, bad things happens sometimes to photoshop. Post your file (or example of taht problem) here, better with gradient layer intact as layer. Or try reset PS preferences - How to reset Photoshop preferences (In Windows and Mac).

[Nox]

Okay, here is an example of what I mean, also try to save it and you will see the same results.

Thank you so much SeniorS.

[SeniorS]

Yes, i have same lines. After some thinking i come to the conclusion that it is how it is and anything can be done about it.
If understand right then it just pure mathematic problem. Your gradient is RGB(55,55,55) to RGB(39,39,39). So there should be like 16 lines.
My english isn't so great so i'm in trouble make it clear. But try.
Gradient goes slowly from one color to another by smolest step possible and it is 1 of course. But there is only 16 colors between "start" color till "end". And needed lenght is bigger than 16 pixels, so each color fill 1/16 of needed lenght segment. And there cames those lines-segment.
From that technical point i don't see any way to work it out. Blur really didn't help. I noticed that it just make all worst by substracting posible color values. After several times maximal blur there would be just 1 solid color (maybe (47,47,47)).

Of course, there is chance that some superguru knew some trick but i don't see it.

[SeniorS]

After some "meditation" came up with this solution.
I didn't want throw away bluring but it had problem with those "plain" color segment/lines so idea come up to "mess" that gradient result and then blur.
After some experiment:
1. Make that gradient (in actual layer not effects)
2. Use filter Noise/Add Noise - 15%, Uniform.
3. Use filter Blur/Gaussian Blur (my favorite ) - 15.0
or try find your settings, that result i liked:

Half are just gradient other half noise/gradient.
For better view download it (or made yourself).

[chrisatlemon]

That looks great senior!

I have the same problem driving me nuts the other day and after some googling I found the following:

How To Correct Banding In Your Gradients Using Photoshop

That worked pretty well for me.

I think what throws most of us off is that this is a problem at all ... I couldn't believe it when I found out that there is no way around colour banding in CS five, I would have thought that this may have been a problem in the late 80s ;)

Cheers

Chris

[SeniorS]

Hmm...that is more advanced but pretty close to my solution (and mine's pluss is that it can be made to "Actions")
Hurrah! for me! I feel kinda good about it (my damn pride)

And as i wrote above its mathematical problem CS5 or 80's doesn't matter. They (PS author) maybe can add some additional parametrs that allow gradient "mess" with given colors (made it not so "straight") because by default gradient do excatly what it told to do steping from one color to another.