lighting in renderworks

[tamarindi]

Hi,

I'm looking for instructions on how to make good lighting (mostly interior). It always takes me hours of trying and maybe there are some rules....

It's hard to control the beams...

Thanks,

Tami

[Kaare Baekgaard]

I usually use 'three point directional lighting' as basis, supplementet with a few point- and spotlights.

This is a rather primitive light setup, but you get OK results fast and with little effort. In three point lighting the three major lightsources are all set to cast no shadow.

Imagine the major lightsource to come in over your left shoulder. (Azim: -25, Elev: 35) This lightsource should be set to 75%, and the colour is white.

The second lightsource points upwards from your right side (Azim: 85, Elev: -30), and should be coloured (very) slightly red and set to 40% intensity.

The third lightsource comes from your front (Azim: -165, Elev: 10). It is couloured very slightly cyanblue and set to 50-60% intensity.

This light will give a good depth feeling to the scene, but if you change the direction of the viewpoint more than 15-30 degrees, the lights will have to be rotated as well.

On pointlights I use 'smooth' distance falloff, and I usually only cast shadows with spotlights.

This method is certainly not the most photrealistic, but it is fast and reliable.