How do you create glitch art in Photoshop?

Photoshop offers several methods for creating glitch effects, from simple filters to more advanced techniques mimicking authentic data corruption.

For RGB channel separation, duplicate your layer three times. On each layer, go to Image > Adjustments > Levels and set two of the three color channels to zero output. Offset each layer slightly and set blend modes to Screen.

Create scan lines by making a new document 1px tall and 2px wide, filling alternate pixels with black and transparent. Define as pattern and apply as an overlay at reduced opacity.

For displacement effects, select horizontal strips using the Rectangular Marquee tool (hold Shift for multiple selections) and nudge them left or right with the arrow keys. Add noise and posterization for additional digital degradation.

The Wave filter (Filter > Distort > Wave) produces convincing glitch displacement when set to square waves with short wavelengths. Combine with the Displace filter for more complex distortions. See our complete Photoshop glitch tutorial for detailed walkthroughs.