Learn how to create a noisy polaroid frame in this GIMP image editor tutorial using spread noise and median blur.

New image

Create a new image with a width and height of 512.

Make sure the current layer has a transparent background.

Rename the current layer to ‘frame’.

Grid

Go to ‘View’, then turn on ‘Show Grid’ and ‘Snap to Grid’.

Next go to ‘Image’, then ‘Configure Grid’.

Set the grid size to 32×32 pixels.

Polaroid frame

Set the first colour to white.

Select the ‘Rectangle Select’ tool, then select all the grid cells around the outside of the image. Then fill them in by going to ‘Edit’, then ‘Fill with FG Color’.

Spread noise

First turn off the grid, so it is no longer visible. This will help you see what is happening in the next step.

Next go to:

Filters –> Noise –> Spread

Set the horizontal and vertical values to whatever you want.

Median blur

Now go to:

Filters –> Blur –> Median Blur

Play around with ‘Radius’, ‘Percentile’ and ‘Alpha percentile’ until you get something you like. I’d advise keeping the radius low.

Image

Finally, all we need to do is put an image inside the polaroid frame.

Find an image you like, resize it, and put it on a layer below the polaroid frame layer.

Conclusion

Congratulations on completing this tutorial. You have learned how to create a noisy polaroid frame using spread and median blur. See you in the next tutorial!

See more pixel art posts here.