TABLE OF CONTENTS Up until now, you've been concentrating on methods of constructing forms in VIZ. In this chapter, you'll learn some of the ways you can control the appearance of the objects you build by manipulating light and shadow.
Three main elements affect the look of your model: materials, cameras, and lighting. This chapter will introduce you to the influence of lighting.
Lighting is one of the more interesting subjects in VIZ. You can use lighting to create effects, emphasize parts of your model, or simply set up a daytime scene. Through lighting, you can control shadows, manipulate reflective color, calculate the bending of light passing though a transparent material, and simulate lighting fixtures, based on specifications from a lighting manufacturer. It's best to think of lighting in VIZ as a kind of paint tool to add emphasis, color, or a sense of realism to your model.
Lighting is one of the most important tools at your disposal. Whether you are able to render your model successfully will depend largely on your ability to control and manipulate lighting in your model. There's a lot to cover in this topic, so let's start with an overview of the different types of lights available in VIZ.
So far, you've been depending on the default lighting in VIZ. In a Perspective viewport with Smooth + Highlights turned on, the light source is from the viewer...
