Getting Started

Getting Started

Glitch art is the practice of intentionally breaking or misusing digital media to create unexpected visual results. At its core, it is about embracing errors, randomness, and process instead of perfection.

Glitch Art Example

Below is a concise beginner-friendly guide to get you started.

1. First Steps: Mindset & Setup

Before tools and techniques, adopt the right mindset:

  • Experiment over control – glitches are partly unpredictable. Treat them like collaboration with your tools, not a precise filter.
  • Work on copies – always duplicate your files before you “break” them.
  • Iterate in small steps – apply one change, save a version, then continue. Many great pieces come from happy accidents.

Basic setup:

  • A computer (Windows, macOS, or Linux)
  • Any image editor (GIMP, Photoshop, Photopea, Krita, etc.)
  • A folder structure like:
    source/, experiments/, exports/ to keep things organized.

2. Beginner-Friendly Tools To Try

You do not need to code or buy expensive software to start glitching. Try one tool from each category.

Desktop software

  • GIMP or Photoshop Great for RGB-shift, slice, layering, noise, and combining results from data bending.
  • Audacity (free audio editor) Surprisingly powerful for databending: open image files as raw audio, apply sound effects, and re-import them as images.
  • Processing A creative coding environment that lets you write simple scripts to shuffle pixels and generate algorithmic glitches like pixel sorting.

Mobile apps

Check out our glitch apps guide for a complete list. Popular choices:

  • Glitch Lab (Android) - 100+ effects with layering
  • Glitché (iOS) - Premium effects and 3D transforms
  • Decim8 - RGB shifts, scanlines, pixel sort-style effects

Web-based tools

See our free glitch tools page for more options:

Upload an image or webcam feed, apply multiple glitch effects, tweak sliders, then download. Great for learning “what’s possible” without installing anything.

Pick one platform (desktop, mobile, or web) and stick with it for a few sessions so you can learn how its glitches behave.

3. Core Techniques For Beginners

Start with these foundational glitch techniques. Each can stand alone or be combined. For more techniques, explore our complete techniques collection.

3.1 RGB Channel Shift

Classic “digital glitch” look: colors misaligned, 3D-like fringes.

Basic process (in GIMP/Photoshop-style editors):

  1. Duplicate your base layer 2 times (you now have 3 layers).
  2. On each layer, isolate one channel (Red, Green, Blue) by turning the others off.
  3. Set blending modes (often Screen/Lighten) and slightly move one or two layers horizontally or vertically.
  4. Crop or mask any unwanted edges.

This teaches you how color channels work and gives instant glitch aesthetics.

3.2 Databending With Audacity

Databending means editing a file with software not designed for it.

Basic workflow:

  1. Export an image as a RAW or BMP file from your editor.
  2. Open that raw file in Audacity as “Raw Data” (use the same resolution/bit depth settings when you re-import later).
  3. Select part of the waveform and apply effects like Wah-Wah, Phaser, Echo, or Reverse.
  4. Save/export the altered raw file.
  5. Import it back in your image editor as a raw image, entering the original width/height.

You will get streaks, blocks, and color smears that are very hard to fake with filters.

3.3 Rectangular Slices & Displacement

Simulate video glitches and signal errors:

  1. In your image editor, duplicate the base layer.
  2. Use a rectangular marquee tool to select horizontal or vertical strips.
  3. Move these strips slightly left/right/up/down.
  4. Add noise or blur to specific strips.
  5. Optionally mask different sections and apply color shifts only inside them.

This technique is simple but effective and gives you fine control over composition.

3.4 App & Web Filter Stacking

If you are using mobile or web tools:

  1. Start with a clean photo or graphic.
  2. Apply a single glitch effect moderately (not at 100%).
  3. Export, then re-import that glitched image.
  4. Layer another effect (e.g., RGB shift → databending-style filter → pixel sorting).
  5. Repeat until the image feels rich but still readable.

This “stacking” approach helps you move beyond the “preset filter” look.

4. Practical Tips For Better Results

  • Always work non-destructively
    Use layers, keep the original safe, and save multiple versions (v1, v2, v3…).

  • Zoom in and out often
    Glitches can look great up close but chaotic at a distance, or vice versa. Evaluate both.

  • Start with high-resolution images
    Glitches generally look better when you have more pixels to break.

  • Limit your palette at first
    Try working in mostly two or three colors to keep the image from becoming visual noise.

  • Use text and typography
    Applying glitches to bold text or logos makes the “error” instantly legible and graphic.

  • Study other glitch artists
    Pause when you see work you like and ask:

    • Is this RGB shift, data bending, compression errors, analog feedback, or something else?
    • Where are the glitches concentrated (edges, faces, background)?

  • Embrace failure
    Many attempts will be unusable. Keep a “scraps” folder; those failed fragments often become great textures for future collages.

5. A Simple 10-Minute Starter Exercise

  1. Choose a portrait or cityscape photo.
  2. Do an RGB channel shift in your editor.
  3. Export that result.
  4. Run it through a web glitch tool (e.g., add datamosh / pixel sort / wave distortion).
  5. Bring the output back into your editor and add a few sliced strips or noise overlays.
  6. Save both the intermediate and final versions to see how the image evolved.

Repeat this exercise with different source images and slightly different settings. Within a few sessions, you will start to recognize which “breaks” you like - and that is the beginning of your own glitch vocabulary.

Next Steps

Once you are comfortable with the basics, explore these resources:

Learn More