2012

Table Of Contents
Distant Lights in Photometric Workflow
Distant lights are not physically accurate. It is recommended that you do not
use them in a photometric workflow.
Assigning a Shape to a Light
Assigning a shape to a light modifies the illumination of a scene.
Area and Linear Lights
The Area parameter on the light is a property of a light. Just as a light can have
a color, it can also be assigned a shape. For example, you can shape it like a
rectangle so that it acts like panel lighting in a ceiling. Or you can shape it
like a line, so it acts like a narrow fluorescent light tube. The area light is a
way to assign a shape to the light. The shape affects the rendering and shadows
in the same way that a panel light casts different light than a tube light in the
real world.
The Shape Property
The Shape property is available in the Properties Inspector. Under
ShadowDetail, there is a Type property. Whether the Shape property is
displayed depends on the Type property that is selected.
The following types are available: Soft (shadow) map, Sharp (default), Soft
(sampled). By selecting the Soft (sampled) option, the Shape property becomes
available.
The available shapes depend on the type of light. You can select the Type
property for the light distribution under the General panel in the Lighting
category. If Spotlight and Soft (sampled) are selected, then the Shape types
available are Rectangular and Disk. If Point and Soft (sampled) are selected,
then the following shapes are available: Linear, Rectangular, Disk, Cylinder,
and Sphere. If Web and Soft (sampled) are selected, then the following shapes
are available: Linear, Rectangular, Disk, Cylinder, and Sphere. You can use the
samples property on the area light to control the trade-off between rendering
time and shadow accuracy.
The Visible in Render option is also displayed under ShadowDetail and controls
the visibility of the shape when the scene is rendered.
Add Lighting to Your Model | 795