A method for redistributing intensity of a Gaussian beam of light having a Gaussian shaped intensity profile comprises the steps of exposing a photosensitive material to a scanning beam of a laser printing apparatus, writing a desired pattern onto the photosensitive material with the laser printing apparatus, and interposing the exposed photosensitive material in the Gaussian beam and flattening the Gaussian shaped intensity profile of the Gaussian beam. A beam shaper has a laser source for producing a beam of light, a collimating lens for receiving the beam of light from the laser source and producing a collimated beam of light, an apodizer for receiving the collimated beam of light and flattening a Gaussian intensity of the collimated beam in one dimension only, and shaping optics for receiving the beam from the apodizer and producing a beam that is large in a line scan direction.