A thermal transfer donor element is provided which includes a support, light-to-heat conversion layer, interlayer, and thermal transfer layer. When the donor element is brought into contact with a receptor and imagewise irradiated, a portion of the transfer layer is transferred to the receptor. The relative surface texture of the layers can be at least partially controlled, prior to imaging of the donor element, for desired effects in the resulting receptor device. The construction and process of the donor element is useful in making colored images including applications such as color proofs, color filter elements, and organic light emitting displays.