Whats up, I'm sure this question has been asked before but I was hoping that someone could help me out a little and explain a good lighting setup for showcasing your models. I typically use 3 omni lights...much appreicated...
Read that fully and make sure you understand it. There's no use in just getting someone else to say "this is the best lighting setup" - you need to understand the principles of how and why a particular lighting setup could look good, and implement them yourself.
I avoid Omnis in general because the rays all come from a point, so if the light is close to the subject the lighting is uneven and unnatural and so are the shadows.
Also renders slower because Omnis generate something like four shadow maps, out in all directions, whereas a Directional is just one shadow map. Faster and also more shadow detail (if using shadow maps) and also more uniform light.
MoP, thats a great read thanks for posting it and great suggestions also.
There are a bunch of different ways to light a scene using just the default lights, not to mention the daylight system, and the other rendering engines that come with max MentalRay and VUE. Each of those have their own ways of handling light and you could spend weeks learning them.
To answer the original post, I use the default lighting tools in max. I recently started rendering with a 4 light set up but after reading most of the link that MoP posted I might be changing it a bit.
Here is my 4 light set up... Ambient or fill light:
I use an very light blue omni with the shadows turned off or the shadow map size set really small. OR I use a light cage. Normally placed above the character/object and the settings are very subtle.
Main Light(s):
- One light set to a light yellow positioned slightly above and to the right or left to mimic sunlight. The more sunny the scene the more yellow I use. I normally reserve pure white lights to mimic harsh indoor florescent lighting. The shadow color is set to a almost black Blue purple or orange (helps bring out the flesh tones. If you casually looked at the shadow color you would think it black. A pure black shadow tends to give the ladies a 5 O'Clock shadow or harshly shadow the nose. It also helps fake a TINY amount of sub surface scattering.
- Sometimes the model calls for more of these lights, sometimes not...
Rim Light:
bluish-white Spot or directional with shadows turned on and the intensity set to 25%-50% also turn on light effects shadow color option ON. This light is a back light and faces almost 180 degrees from the main light(s). The purpose of this light is to NOT have the edge of the model fade into blackness. It helps define the silhouette of the model and provides a contrasting color from the main light.
Ground Light:
No Shadow, slightly brown or grey-ish yellow light, aimed up at the character to help mimic light bouncing off the ground.
Sometimes a rough example works better than words so I put together a simple example scene.
That is just one approach, take it for what it is and you would be doing yourself a great disservice if you didn't take the time to set up a simple scene and learn a bunch of different lighting techniques. Good Luck!!
Replies
I mean, if I say "I use 2 omni lights and one spotlight", does that really help you much?
What if all your lights are lime green and purple? That's probably not a very good way of showcasing models...
It's probably a good idea to do a little research into key lights, fill lights and rim lights.
http://www.itchy-animation.co.uk/light.htm
Read that fully and make sure you understand it. There's no use in just getting someone else to say "this is the best lighting setup" - you need to understand the principles of how and why a particular lighting setup could look good, and implement them yourself.
Hope that helps.
I avoid Omnis in general because the rays all come from a point, so if the light is close to the subject the lighting is uneven and unnatural and so are the shadows.
Also renders slower because Omnis generate something like four shadow maps, out in all directions, whereas a Directional is just one shadow map. Faster and also more shadow detail (if using shadow maps) and also more uniform light.
There are a bunch of different ways to light a scene using just the default lights, not to mention the daylight system, and the other rendering engines that come with max MentalRay and VUE. Each of those have their own ways of handling light and you could spend weeks learning them.
To answer the original post, I use the default lighting tools in max. I recently started rendering with a 4 light set up but after reading most of the link that MoP posted I might be changing it a bit.
Here is my 4 light set up...
Ambient or fill light:
I use an very light blue omni with the shadows turned off or the shadow map size set really small. OR I use a light cage. Normally placed above the character/object and the settings are very subtle.
Main Light(s):
- One light set to a light yellow positioned slightly above and to the right or left to mimic sunlight. The more sunny the scene the more yellow I use. I normally reserve pure white lights to mimic harsh indoor florescent lighting. The shadow color is set to a almost black Blue purple or orange (helps bring out the flesh tones. If you casually looked at the shadow color you would think it black. A pure black shadow tends to give the ladies a 5 O'Clock shadow or harshly shadow the nose. It also helps fake a TINY amount of sub surface scattering.
- Sometimes the model calls for more of these lights, sometimes not...
Rim Light:
bluish-white Spot or directional with shadows turned on and the intensity set to 25%-50% also turn on light effects shadow color option ON. This light is a back light and faces almost 180 degrees from the main light(s). The purpose of this light is to NOT have the edge of the model fade into blackness. It helps define the silhouette of the model and provides a contrasting color from the main light.
Ground Light:
No Shadow, slightly brown or grey-ish yellow light, aimed up at the character to help mimic light bouncing off the ground.
Sometimes a rough example works better than words so I put together a simple example scene.
That is just one approach, take it for what it is and you would be doing yourself a great disservice if you didn't take the time to set up a simple scene and learn a bunch of different lighting techniques. Good Luck!!
http://www.amazon.co.uk/digital-Lighting...7158&sr=1-2