Alpha Channel Definition - Creative Glossary

The place to find definitions and learn about creative terms.

Categories

Art
- Art Materials/Terms (120)
- Art Perspective (8)
- Art Styles/Movements (43)
- Artist Anatomy (72)
- Business Art (29)
- Calligraphy (72)
- Ceramic Art (45)
- Color (69)
- Computer Digital Art (29)
- Digital Fine Art Print Making (27)
- Drawing (2)
- Folk Art (0)
- Graphic Design (0)
- Illustration (0)
- Painting (31)
- Pen & Ink (0)
- Photography (0)
- Sculpture (0)
Craft
- Arts & Crafts (0)
- Bead Art (0)
- Carpets/Rugs (13)
- Crocheting (0)
- Embroidery (0)
- Jewelry (0)
- Knitting (0)
- Leather (15)
- Masonry (0)
- Needlepoint (0)
- Paper (9)
- Quilting (263)
- Sewing (0)
- Stained Glass (0)
- Textiles (26)
- Tile Work (0)
- Weaving (0)
Culinary/Gardening
- Cooking (78)
- Gardening (97)
Design
- Architecture (0)
- Interior Decorating (42)
Fashion
- Cosmetics (0)
- Fashion (25)
Performance Art
- Dance (1)
- Music (0)
Story Art
- Animation (33)
- Anime / Manga (56)
- Cartoons (0)
- Comics (0)
- Film (344)
Trade
- Carpentry (385)
- Welding (107)

A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z

Term Details
Term:	Alpha Channel
Subcategory:	Equipment
Definition:	An alpha channel is an image-editor channel; individuals use it to hold a mask, partial picture element or color. It determines the transparency of every color in an image. It originated in 1997 by Alvy Ray Smith and Ed Catmull at N.Y.I.T. The alpha channel would be the 4th channel in a 3-color image.