3d max vray exterior lighting tutorials pdf

Select spherical environment as your map type for our equirectangular environment maps from www. Set up reflections and background Drag it onto the environment map slot in the environment and effects window of 3D Studio Max. Select instance.

It is responsible for the shadows and caustics. For background we will use our high resolution HDRI, so we put it into the background slot. We also override the reflections and refractions with this HDRI. We could also put a backplate from our ScenePacks, for example into the background slot! This image does not have to be in high Environment settings dynamic range, it can be a normal jpg, tga, png, tiff For film gate you can choose 36mm for a full sensor camera.

Focal length is your choice. In this example, the HDRI testscene, we set f-number to 2,8 to get those nice bokeh effects and nice depth of field. Setup shutter speed like you would do it in a real world environment, matching the light situation of the chosen HDRI file. Activate the blades checkbox and set the number to 5 or 6.

You may need to register to do so. The floor is covered by dark floorboards, the outer walls are exposed brickwork, and the internal walls are painted white. The large industrial windows let a lot of light into the room.

First we need to create a preset for linking the AutoCAD file. FIG 2. Enter the name acad. This increases the accuracy when reading the AutoCAD geometry, which affects above all curves. You want only the geometry to be included. This specifies that the layer structure of the AutoCAD file is adopted and the objects are arranged according to this hierarchy.

The great advantage is that you can assign materials and modifiers to a whole layer. To save the preset, click on SAVE. Link to the file ch02 From the subdirectory merge, choose the file ch02 mg. The visible image section is now marked with a yellow rectangle. This gives you the option of using exposure parameters, such as exposure time or aperture, as analogs of photography. This enlarges the displayed image selection, which is often useful for indoor renderings, where the camera is usually positioned very close to the objects to be depicted, but at the same time you want to show a lot of the room.

Shift the camera left, below the rug. Adapt the height of camera and target as well. Set the camera to a height of about 80 cm and move that target so that a little bit of floor remains visible in front of the rug in the lower part of the picture; see Figure 2. To finish, apply the camera correction to remove perspective distortion.

If you change the camera position, you need to apply the correction again. Basic Settings for Texturing Before we can texture the scene, we need to make some preparations in order to reduce rendering time, to check geometry for errors, and to enable us to check the textures in neutral light.

To save time in the following section, switch the layer 01 glass to not visible HIDE. The calculation of glass is very complicated; therefore, we will activate it only when we are ready for fine tuning. Now all objects in the scene have a uniform material. This way, it is easier to assess newly created materials. Also, it prevents unwanted color bleeding and reflections. This replaces the default 3ds Max Frame Buffer. We will get back to this later. The default light is used only if no Global Illumination is used.

Leave all other settings at the default. In the next step, we will determine the settings for indirect illumination, that is, the light calculation itself.

First we need to activate it. Choose both. We want to reduce the accuracy even more. Reduce the HSPH. This enables you to stop the rendering any time if an error occurs. VRayLight Setup To illuminate the scene evenly, it is a good idea to choose a light source that emits only diffuse light.

Now the light source is not visible in the rendering and the light color is determined only by the COLOR value. Now render an image. This takes us back to the linear workflow.

V-Ray now applies gamma correction and the image appears lighter. The Viewport is now evenly lit again. We work exclusively with the V-Ray materials to achieve the best possible results. Little tricks help us represent the result even more realistically. Choose an empty slot for each new texture and assign it a name. The building is a former factory; therefore, the outside walls are exposed brickwork. This is the standard V-Ray material.

This corresponds to a neutral white, as mentioned previously for the test material. This is a grayscale image, and bump-mapping makes lighter colors appear raised. This is generally recommended for any newly created material, as it lets you check the mapping.

If you have many materials in one scene, you may need to deactivate the display again. All objects within the layer are now selected. The material is now projected three-dimensionally onto the object. If you look at our picture of the bump texture, you will notice that it is very large.

You can estimate the dimensions of the texture in the scene from looking at the brick size. You also need to take into account the picture's aspect ratio, to make sure that the texture does not get distorted. Render the picture to test the material. Brick, Exposed Brickwork The material of the exposed brickwork is the same as the one used before.

The image has of course the same size as the bump texture. The image will be blurred and details will be lost. This is recommended for almost any texture based on image material. As the images used have the same size, the values are again identical. Floor, Parquet We will cover the floor with dark, solid parquet flooring.

Now reflection comes into play and the time required for rendering the image increases noticeably. Name it floor parquet. This is a very dark image, so we will lighten it a little bit.

You can vary this setting later if the result is too light or too dark. Consequently, we do not use a fixed gray value for the reflection FIG 2. We provide the file wood s. As with the bump map, the same advice applies in this case: the lighter the gray value, the bigger the effect in this case, the reflection. Enter a value of 0. Go back to the top layer of the material.

Reduce the value REFL. The softer the reflection, the higher the values need to be in order to avoid unwanted grain in the picture. You do need to think carefully about the value you decide to set, however, as this affects the required rendering time greatly. A value of 16 should be okay for now. Use the file wood b. Picture Now we turn our attention to the nondescript rectangle above the couch. We want to turn it into a work of art that makes the large white wall look less austere.

We will base it on an abstract photograph by artist Anna- Dorothee Arnold. The main focus is on assigning the material. First press the Z key to center the picture in every viewport. Apply it to the object. If you expand the modifier, it offers you five different options for altering the object. First, select all areas. As you can see, there is a list of ten currently unassigned materials. Name it picture painting.

This enables overriding properties such as global illumination GI color or reflection color with new materials. We aim to achieve two things with this material. The picture is displayed on only the front of the picture frame, so the sides and back are white. But these white areas bleed black during the calculation of the indirect illumination. This darkens the wall area around the picture and the picture frame stands out more. That seems like a lot of effort for such a small effect, but it is these sorts of details that make a good rendering.

White Material, Matte Now we will do something less spectacular, just for a change. There are some objects in our scene, such as window frames and skirting boards, to which we will assign a simple white material. These do not need any reflection. This object is actually a group containing several objects with different materials.

We want to assign the current material to the lampshade. Select the lampshade and assign the material. Close the group again to avoid accidentally changing other objects in it. White Material, Reflecting For other objects, we also need white material, but this time we want it to reflect—for example, shiny plastic surfaces or varnished wood. But we want the effect to be a little more realistic. Next time you get the chance, have closer look at a cue ball or a white porcelain cup.

The reflection on the curved surface increases towards the edges, whereas a small area in focus has almost no reflection. This is particularly relevant for the two end tables. It enables falloff, in this case of the reflection, via a black- and-white gradient. The horizontal axis indicates the gradient from black to white; the vertical axis, the white content.

At the moment, the gradient is linear, defined by two points at bottom left and top right. Right-click on the bottom-left point FIG 2. Now drag the new control point to the bottom-right corner. The black content—that is, the areas without reflection—are now bigger, and the material reflects only on the edges, just as we wanted. Select the two sockets to the left of the couch in any Viewport and also the two tables.

Assign the material to these objects as well. Chrome We also have some pretty chrome objects in our scene. These reflect their surroundings almost entirely and create impressive light reflections. Drag the left point upwards, to a value of about 0. Compare your settings to those in Figure 2. Change the color in the Diffuse swatch to black. Assign the material to all objects except for the lampshade.

Using the icons in the main menu bar, you can limit the selection of displayed objects. In the selection list, activate the group table. Now you can add your objects to the group table. Highlight the object table top and assign the material chrome. Now you can close the group. Do the same with the group table Leather The couch should have a black leather covering. Once the sunlight is shining onto the couch, we want to achieve a nice soft sheen.

Just as with white materials, we do not set black surfaces to pure black. Assign a Gray value of 8 to the amount of the reflection. Reduce the value for REFL. Now we want to add a slightly harder, more precise highlight. Ceiling, Textured Plaster The ceiling has a textured plaster finish.

We will create a white material, again with a bump map. Choose the file ceiling b. Choose BOX as the mapping method. A large flokati rug perfects the room composition and creates a cozy atmosphere. First, we will use a bump map to make the rug look more 3D, and then we will apply the displacement modifier.

The Fresnel reflection is relevant for glass. The default setting of 1. You can adjust this setting to achieve different reflections. But that is not necessary in our case. Select the layer and assign the material.

Light Setup Now that we have assigned a material to every object in the scene, we can get into the light setup. We are going to use only the V-Ray sunlight.

A texture for the surrounding area—the sky, so to speak—is created automatically. You can change settings such as tint or atmospheric pollution. Place the target on the rug and drag the light source to the bottom right. Adjust the direction of the light so that the sunlight falls into the room diagonally from the right. There should be direct sunlight on the rug, about a third of the couch and the wall.

Compare your scene to that in Figure 2. V-Ray Rendering Settings We have nearly achieved our aim. Next, we will work our way step by step through the crucial V-Ray settings. Now our materials will really come into their own. But we also have to strike a careful balance between rendering time and quality of the final result.

If you use a dual-core computer, the required time will double. Keep an eye on the required rendering time. You may need to lower the settings a bit.

Fine-Tuning We hope that you are already convinced by the result. Now we will refine the effect of the rug and the natural stone wall. Rug, Displacement The rug does not look like a proper flokati yet. We will fix this. Just as with the bump mapping, we need to assign a map to govern the displacement.

It is the same picture as in the bump map. That is sort of the length of our flokati strands. That should be enough. The rendering time increases noticeably again, as displacement is always very computationally intensive. To that purpose, we have already separated the visible wall surfaces in the AutoCAD file and placed it into the layer 01 wall brick displacement.

Generally, you should apply the displacement modifier only to objects visible in the picture, in order to keep calculation time and memory space as low as possible.

The wall is a three-dimensional object, and we want the displacement to run around the edges of the wall as well. The bathtub spans the width of the room and is immersed in light from the ceiling and at the head end. The camera perspective does not give view to the outside of the room, conveying a cave-like atmosphere. This impression is underlined by the use of natural stone on walls and floor. This increases the realism of the scene, as there are no exact edges in reality, either.

Reflections on these gentle curves create contrasts in the scene, which is otherwise lit only diffusely. In this case, we will use a different UVW mapping method. Open File Open the file ch 03 Use the scene for orientation. You can see the openings at the top and to the left of the bathtub. A further opening is located behind the camera; this could be the door.

FIG 3. Select the object wall. These are not visible right now. We decided to use a square picture format once more. In x-direction, center the camera in the room. Change the camera lens to 28 mm. Now shift the camera in the z-direction so that the bottom edge of the washbasin is just about still in the picture. Compare your image with Figure 3. Render the scene to get a first impression. We will use V-Ray plane lights to create this effect; that is, rectangular planes emitting diffuse light in one direction.

They are in front of the openings and are always slightly larger than these in order to create even illumination. The ceiling light is to be the strongest light source. The side light is also very intense. The back light behind the camera adds a bit of extra light to the room, but is not directly noticeable.

Name it ceiling light. Position the light in the center of the opening in the ceiling. They designate half the distance from the center. Settings of cm and 25 cm are recommended; in any case, the light should overlap the opening by a FIG 3. Center it in front of the opening above the bathtub. Before rendering the scene, you still need to input the parameters for light intensity and color.

Ceiling light and side light should simulate daylight. So assign a light-blue color to emulate the skylight color —for example, RGB values , , You will need to fine-tune these settings after texturing the scene; for the next few steps, setting suggestions are just basic guidelines to start with.

RATE to 2. PHASE checkbox. The result should look similar to Figure 3. We want to create contrast with the soft natural stone on walls and floor by adding highlights to the interior design objects. The natural stone on the floor is distinguished by a different scale from the stone used for walls and the side of the bathtub. Natural Stone, Floor The floor is the first object where we will use the natural stone.

This achieves a soft gradient of Ambient Occlusion. Open the image stone d. In this hands-on, project-based course, instructor George Maestri shows how to best approach lighting, rendering, and compositing exteriors scenes and environments for residential and commercial building design, animation, and gaming.

Lighting Tutorials The tutorials in this section show you how to set the mood and create dramatic lighting effects for scenes built in 3ds Max Design. Make your projects even more impressive by learning how to create high-quality, photorealistic renders with V-Ray for 3ds Max.

Using Vray for Residential Exterior. This movie is locked and only viewable to logged-in members. But in the end I found a way - this is not the world championship, but I have enough for now.

V-Ray Next for 3ds Max — Introduction. Scene setup, modeling, texturing, lighting, and rendering for realistic output will all be discussed, so there is literally something in here for everyone! This will play an important role in achieving a good render. Also, as you can see the scene is quite simple just a small lobby mostly modeled with boxes. Ross, and I'm excited to share this course on 3ds Max: Advanced Lighting.

Realistic lighting is easier, faster, and better than ever. Whether you're visualizing an architectural interior, or designing a background for animation, 3ds Max lighting tools give you the power to achieve your production goals and create a convincing illusion. In this course, we'll start with a conceptual overview of advanced lighting and rendering.

Our 3ds Max projects include exterior daylight, image-based lighting, interior daylight, practical artificial lighting, studio techniques, and special effects. Let's shed some light on the subject of light. Welcome to this course on 3ds Max: Advanced Lighting.