Generate color composites
A color composite maps bands into red, green, and blue display channels, or shows one band in grayscale. Use it to explore an image without changing its spectral values.
The consolidated RGB Explorer workflow is part of the 0.100 release candidate. Earlier environments may open a generation dialog instead. See release availability.
Open RGB Explorer
You need an imported image with a compatible data layer. Wait for import to finish before opening the editor.
- Open the image in Spectral Explorer and select Explore.
- Right-click its source row and select Explore RGB. Alternatively, expand Analysis layers, select the Generate analysis layers plus button, choose Run analysis…, then Color composite > Open RGB Explorer.
- The right panel becomes RGB Explorer and an RGB Draft appears in the source tree. Expand Input to confirm or change the data layer.
- Choose a preset or edit Composition. Inspect the preview on the canvas.
- Select Save RGB to generate a saved color-composite layer, or Cancel to discard the draft.
Preview ready · Unsaved means the draft can be inspected but has not been saved. Saving starts background generation; confirm that the saved layer finishes before treating it as a reusable result.
Choose channels by wavelength, then use the slider to tune the selected channel. Here, the red channel is band 13 at 0.66 µm; available bands depend on the input.
Choose bands and presets
Under Composition > Method, choose:
| Method | What to choose |
|---|---|
| Auto RGB | Let Clarity resolve the RGB bands; review the displayed summary. |
| RGB | Choose each red, green, and blue channel explicitly. |
| Grayscale | Choose one band to display as intensity. |
When wavelength metadata is present, selectors show wavelengths and band indices. Otherwise they use zero-based indices: band 0 is the first band. Read the unit shown by the control; 0.66 µm is 660 nm. In RGB mode, each channel has its own band selector. Select Red, Green, or Blue beside the band value to choose the channel tuned by the slider below. The slider provides quick tuning while the selector provides an exact choice.
Natural color, Color infrared, and SWIR false color resolve their requested wavelengths to compatible source bands. A preset is unavailable when the source lacks the required coverage; its card explains why. A sensor default can select a reviewed sensor-specific approach. See Sensors and RGB defaults.
Changing from Auto RGB to RGB in Explorer starts with the resolved channels, so you can refine the current composition.
Adjust processing and display
Expand Processing to choose Standard color or Percentile stretch. Percentile stretch starts with lower and upper percentiles of 2 and 98. The lower value must be smaller than the upper value.
- Global uses a shared percentile range; Bandwise computes channel ranges separately.
- Linear stretch expands the clipped range for display. None omits that additional stretch.
- The generation dialog also offers Histogram equalization. That option is unavailable in the Explorer preview editor.
Expand Display for visibility and opacity. Stretching and channel selection change the visualization; they do not calibrate radiance, create reflectance, or replace the data layer used for analysis.
Generate from Files or for several images
Select compatible images in Files, choose Run analysis, and select Color composite. Review the input layer, presets, Composition, and Processing, then select Run color composite (or Run color composite on N layers for a batch). Files and batch workflows use the same RGB controls in a dialog rather than opening a workspace draft.
For batch generation, review compatibility for every target. Wavelength selections can resolve to different indices on different images; numeric indices must be available on each input. Use Auto RGB or a shared range when a target does not support your selection.
The image details Color composites > Run analysis action edits or regenerates the primary composite. Check whether you are updating that composite or creating a separate workspace result before submitting.
Preview and generation time
Preview updates resolve a composition and render visible tiles. Saving creates the full RGB output in a background job. Scene size, storage access, statistics availability, and the queue affect elapsed time, so preview responsiveness is not a full-image generation estimate.
If Updating preview… persists, check for an error and confirm the input layer is ready. If a saved layer remains pending or fails, inspect Jobs before submitting another copy. A disabled SWIR preset usually means missing wavelength coverage, not a processing failure.
For an eligible source with Alpha access, Prepare current view can prepare a bounded local preview. Saving still uses the server generation workflow.