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A different kind of video wall


Downtown

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Hi Guys,

I'm using VW 12.5 and I am having trouble achieving a particular effect that I"ve been trying to accomplish. I am rendering a theatrical set that has video walls as the background. This version of a video wall is a grid system of plasmas arranged that would project behind the performers. I currently have the video wall constructed as one large polygon with smaller polygons layered on top to imply the screen "breaks" in the wall. I would like to give the illusion of the wall "glowing" much like an area light or an actual TV.

How would you achieve this while retaining the image texture applied to the polygons?

I have included an image for reference:

Thanks!

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Build a shallow box with opaque walls behind each vid screen. The box will be hidden backstage in your set, and will prevent light scattering all over the place. Put a light object in each box pointed at the screen. I used a Spot with 180 spread, cast shadows enabled. Assign Image Transparency to the texture(s) you apply to each screen(s). Use the copy/edit option so you don't mess up your orig texture(s).

The light object does not show in my wireframe viewport. Don't know why.

-B

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  • Vectorworks, Inc Employee

Hello Downtown:

You might put spot lights behind the screens as Benson says, using an image transparency shader will project the image on the screen, like a slide projector. You might also use colored spot lights with smooth or sharp distance falloffs, with cast shadows turned off, so that the light goes unimpeded through the screens and lights up the floor etc. Or set the screen textures to not cast shadows. You might get a lot of stripey shadows rather than a smooth glow if the screen is set to cast shadows.

BTW, the translucency reflectivity shader will get brighter if a light is shining behind it, you might try that shader too. It requires shadows to be cast though.

I have been trying a combination of image color, translucent reflectivity, and color filter transparency to accomplish something like lit window curtains, you might also try that combination. The color filter transparency color usually has to be desaturated to work well. Cast shadows has to be on for this to work too.

HTH,

Edited by Dave Donley
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Thanks for the replies guys. Just to be clear, the only way to keep texture and glow effect together is to separate the effect by making a transparent texture and an area light?

There is no way to produce a "glow" effect on the object itself that would be found in a program like "maya?"

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  • 2 weeks later...

Well you can do it the hard way as demonstrated above or just turn up the contrast of the image in photoshop, use constant reflectivity and turn off cast/receive shadows in the texture dialog. It will do the trick without making renderings heavy and it allows you to place lighting objects behind the screen without effecting the screen image.

Edited by Kaare Baekgaard
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