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Shaders

Photon Shaders

A semi-realistic Java shader pack focused on richer skies, lighting, water, weather, and configurable visual effects for Iris and OptiFine.

By sixthsurge via Modrinth.

Photon Shaders custom settings scene with semi-realistic Minecraft lighting
Section
Shader
Platform
Java
Versions
v 1.16.5 / 1.17 / 1.17.1 / 1.18 / 1.18.1 / 1.18.2 / 1.19 / 1.19.1 / 1.19.2 / 1.19.3 / 1.19.4 / 1.20 / 1.20.1 / 1.20.2 / 1.20.3 / 1.20.4 / 1.20.5 / 1.20.6 / 1.21 / 1.21.1 / 1.21.2 / 1.21.3 / 1.21.4 / 1.21.5 / 1.21.6 / 1.21.7 / 1.21.8 / 1.21.9 / 1.21.10 / 1.21.11
Last checked
Updated
Photon Shaders scene without a resource pack showing natural lighting
Photon Shaders scene without a resource pack showing natural lighting
Photon Shaders rainbow scene from the version 1.2 gallery
Photon Shaders rainbow scene from the version 1.2 gallery
Photon Shaders scene with PBR resource pack lighting and reflections
Photon Shaders scene with PBR resource pack lighting and reflections
Photon Shaders medieval build scene with atmospheric lighting
Photon Shaders medieval build scene with atmospheric lighting

Photon Shaders is a Java Edition shader pack by sixthsurge with a semi-realistic look built for normal gameplay rather than only staged screenshots. It reshapes the sky, lighting, water, clouds, fog, weather, shadows, reflections, and camera effects while keeping the pack configurable through an extensive settings menu.

  • Current Modrinth release metadata lists Minecraft Java Edition versions from 1.16.5 through 1.21.11 after filtering out nonstandard labels.
  • Iris and OptiFine are the listed shader loaders, with Iris recommended by the project.
  • Voxel-based colored lighting is tied to the Ultra profile and requires Iris.
  • The project lists Nvidia, AMD, and Intel GPUs, and notes that Apple Metal is not compatible.
  • The source names Distant Horizons, Voxy, and Photonics under special mod support.

What Photon Changes

Photon's feature list is broad: layered clouds, immersive weather variation, screen-space reflections, volumetric fog, soft shadows, detailed ambient occlusion, bloom, depth of field, motion blur, TAA, FXAA, CAS, and labPBR resource pack support. The pack can be tuned, so the exact look depends on shader settings, resource packs, Minecraft version, and the loader you use.

Install Notes

Install Iris or OptiFine for the Minecraft version you plan to play, then download Photon from the Modrinth project page. Keep the downloaded ZIP intact and place it in the .minecraft/shaderpacks folder. In game, open the shader pack menu from video settings, select Photon, and adjust the profile or feature settings before adding resource packs or extra rendering mods.

For most players, the Modrinth versions page is the clean download path. The GitHub repository also exposes source and development files, but normal players should use the packaged Modrinth releases unless they intentionally want to inspect or test the project source.

Questions about this entry.

  • Does Photon Shaders work on Bedrock Edition?

    No. Photon is listed as a Java Edition shader pack for Java shader loaders such as Iris and OptiFine.

  • Should I use Iris or OptiFine for Photon?

    Use Iris when possible. Photon lists both Iris and OptiFine, but the source notes that colored lighting requires Iris and presents Iris as the recommended loader.

  • Do I need to unzip Photon Shaders?

    No. Keep the downloaded ZIP intact and place it in the shaderpacks folder for the Minecraft profile you are using.