Light Trails
Light Trails is a procedural ShaderWeave generator: describe the look in JSON, choose a seed, and render png, webp, gif, mp4. It runs in the browser editor and through the rendering API, so a recipe you tune by hand can be reused in a build step or by a coding agent.
Light Trails preview
What it gives you.
- Deterministic output — the same recipe, seed and engine version produce byte-identical frames.
- Exports png, webp, gif, mp4 from one recipe.
- Available in the editor, the REST API, the MCP server and the CLI.
- Tune colors, ribbons, strands, sweep, spread, glow and more with schema-driven controls.
Parameters.
Light Trails exposes these parameters. Every value is validated against the generator’s published JSON schema before a render starts.
- colors
- ribbons
- strands
- sweep
- spread
- glow
- angle
- speed
- loopSeconds
Formats and credit cost.
- png
- webp
- gif
- mp4
Still images cost one credit per output megapixel. Animation costs ten credits per megapixel per second. SVG and CSS output costs one credit.
| Example output | Credits |
|---|---|
| Full HD image · PNG | 3 |
| Full HD loop · MP4 · 6 seconds | 125 |
Call it from an API.
curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $SHADERWEAVE_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"seed":42,"format":"mp4","size":{"width":1920,"height":1080},"params":{"loopSeconds":6}}' \
https://shaderweave.com/v1/generate/light-trails -o light-trails.mp4The same recipe works through the MCP server and the CLI on paid plans.
Where it works.
Editorial and album artwork
Organic fields read as photography-adjacent texture, so they work behind type without competing with it.
Product and packaging mockups
Export the same field at print and screen sizes, keeping the look consistent across surfaces.
Generative collections
Vary the seed to produce a family of related pieces for a gallery, series or drop.
Questions.
- How many credits does a Light Trails render cost?
- Stills cost one credit per output megapixel and animations cost ten credits per megapixel per second. Full HD image · PNG is 3 credits; Full HD loop · MP4 · 6 seconds is 125 credits.
- Can I use Light Trails output commercially?
- Yes, on a paid plan. Free-plan exports are for evaluation and non-commercial use, and the free plan does not include API access.
- Can I call Light Trails from an API or a coding agent?
- Yes. POST /v1/generate/light-trails with a bearer API key renders synchronously, POST /v1/jobs queues an animation, and the MCP server exposes the same generator to coding agents. API access requires a paid plan.
- Is Light Trails output reproducible?
- Yes. A render is a pure function of the generator, its parameters, the seed and the engine version, so re-running the same recipe returns the same frames later.