(Looking for the LATEST DAZ Studio Solutions Workshop? Click HERE)

When we experience lighting in the “real world” it tends to just well—happen! Without much effort from us, the sun rises, we flick a switch, or we open the curtains and there we have it, light! We may put some thought into where we place a lamp, how we angle the blinds, or where we aim a torch, but much of the time our experience with light is generally a passive experience. Things are different in the 3D graphics world, where we’re wanting to maximize a scene that we have carefully set up and make the lighting look realistic . There’s a desire to optimise the elements of mood, a character’s expression, the textures and objects or certain areas in the scene. This is a community workshop where DAZ Studio artists are invited to share their tips on lighting and rendering with Iray. If you have a useful tip to share, even if it’s just for a few minutes then get in touch! I’d like to pack the session with as many high value tips as possible, such as…

• Scene types : Indoor and Outdoor
• Environment mode combinations : Dome, Scene, Sun and Sky
• Considering HDRI
• Intensity settings
• Shadow settings
• Positioning of the sun or other light sources
• Light types : Spot, distant and point
• Other light sources : mesh light and sky dome
• Render settings : camera, quality settings and environment controls
• Scenarios : Studio setup, outdoor/indoor scenes and dark (night) scenes.
• Portrait lighting
• Iray light path expressions

“Self Reflection” by Joe Pingleton