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3D Studio Max
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"Strip Lights" by Carl
Ahearne
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| So
you thought area lights were not possible
in MAX without any 3rd – party plug-ins?
Well you would be wrong. It is possible
to create area lights such as strip lights
using the motion blur effects within video
post. The image below was created using
only 1 omni light, and no plug-ins, yet
it appears to have been created using
a volume light. The effect is achieved
by using video post to render the light
in different positions along the tube,
and use motion blur to blend the resulting
shadows together. |
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first task is to create a basic scene
with a few standard primitives, as in
the picture, including a ground plane
for receiving shadows. Apply a material
to all of the objects; I used a reflective
material, but you can use other materials
to reduce the rendering times. |
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next stage is to add the actual strip
light. Place a cylinder in the scene to
represent the light, and assign a self-illuminating
white material to it. Ensure that the
cylinder does not receive or cast shadows
by looking within the properties. Now
insert a helix, which is the same length
and diameter as the cylinder, and increase
the turns to 10. The helix will form the
path, which the light will follow. Now
place an omni light in the scene, with
a multiplier of 2. Set the shadows to
Ray Traced Shadows, and ensure the light
is casting shadows. Add a path constraint
to it. Use the helix as the path, and
scrub the timeline to see the light move
along the path. |
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the moment, the light takes 100 frames
to complete its motion. We want the light
to get from one end of the cylinder to
the other over just 1 frame, so drag its
last key from frame 100 to frame 1. Now
open track view, and navigate to the omni
light properties. Click on the ‘Param
Curve Out-Of-Range Types’ button
for the Percent and select loop for both
keys. |
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| Almost
there. The last thing to do is open up
Video Post. Click on ‘Add Scene Event’
and add your camera view, or perspective
depending on the view you wish to render.
Turn Scene Motion Blur on, and set this
to 1 frame. Set the Sub Divisions to 50
and the dither to 100% and that’s
it. Click OK, and hit the Execute Sequence
button. |
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This
technique takes a long time to render,
especially for large, complex scenes.
It is best used for still frames, but
it could be adapted to cover animations.
This technique could also be used for
other types of volume lights, providing
that a uniform path can be formed along
its surface; Ring lights are a good example
here.
Now go away and try it for yourself. If
you have any questions, please feel free
to email me, or post a topic in the forum.
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| This
tutorial was adapted from the Q and A
section of 3D world Magazine. Please show
your support by going out and buying a
copy, and visiting the website. [W] www.3dworldmag.com |
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