Essential CG Lighting Techniques

Essential CG Lighting Techniques

by Darren Brooker
Released November 2012
Publisher(s): Focal Press
ISBN: 9781136134692

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Book description

Illustrated in color throughout, this comprehensive text not only looks at the technical and theoretical aspects of becoming skilled at using the light tools available in 3D software, but also provides invaluable tutorials so you can explore these techniques in-depth.

Lighting is a core CG skill that makes or breaks a 3D environment. Providing all you need to master this vital aspect of CG, this comprehensive guide looks at the key concepts that can be applied in any 3D package.





Every ounce of theory is backed up with practical tutorials, using the free demo version of 3ds max supplied on the accompanying CD-ROM. The tutorials deal with the fundamentals of lighting and as such are easily transferable to any other major 3D software package. The free CD also includes all the files needed to complete the tutorials step-by-step, as well as demo versions of Dark Tree Textures, Deep Paint 3D and Cinelook, acclaimed applications that every lighting artist should be aware of.

If you are new to CG lighting, are thinking of specializing in this area, or want to brush up on your existing lighting skills, then this book will provide you with a one-stop master class so you too can achieve professional looking results.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Halftitle
  3. Dedication
  4. Title
  5. Copyright
  6. Table of contents
  7. About the author
  8. Acknowledgments
  9. Chapter 1 Introduction
    1. Who this book is for
    2. How to use this book
    3. Tutorials
    4. Software requirements
  10. Part 1: Theory
    1. Chapter 2 A little light theory
      1. Real world lighting explained
      2. The visible spectrum
      3. Color mixing
      4. Our perception of light
      5. Color temperature
      6. Color balance
      7. The behavior of light
      8. Understanding the qualities of light
    2. Chapter 3 CG lights examined
      1. Lights in CG
      2. Point lights
      3. Spotlights
      4. Area lights
      5. Directional lights
      6. Ambient light
      7. The anatomy of a CG light
    3. Chapter 4 Understanding shadows
      1. The importance of shadows
      2. The technical side of shadows
      3. Faking it
      4. When to fake
      5. To use shadows or not?
      6. Shadow saturation
  11. Part 2: Techniques
    1. Chapter 5 Basic lighting techniques
      1. Learning to light
      2. Basic three-point lighting
      3. The three lights
      4. Key light
      5. Fill light
      6. Backlight
      7. Key-to-fill ratios
      8. Contrast
      9. Tutorial - three-point lighting
    2. Chapter 6 Further lighting techniques
      1. Making light work
      2. Other light types
      3. Area lights
      4. Tutorial - area lights
      5. Arrays
      6. Tutorial - light arrays
    3. Chapter 7 Indoor lighting techniques
      1. Indirect illumination
      2. Simulating global illumination
      3. Tutorial - simulating global illumination
      4. Tutorial - caustics
      5. Outdoor light indoors
      6. Tutorial - outdoor light indoors
      7. Artificial lighting
      8. Tutorial - artificial lighting
      9. Candlelight
      10. Tutorial - candlelight
    4. Chapter 8 Outdoor lighting techniques
      1. The great outdoors
      2. Sunlight
      3. Skylight
      4. Sunlight and skylight together
      5. Tutorial - sunlight and skylight together
      6. Cloud shadows
      7. Tutorial - cloud shadows
      8. Night time
      9. Moonlight
      10. Tutorial - moonlight
      11. Streetlighting
      12. Tutorial - outdoor lighting fixtures
      13. Tutorial - streetlighting
    5. Chapter 9 Special lighting techniques
      1. Specific lighting problems
      2. Tutorial - neon lighting
      3. Tutorial - underwater lighting
      4. Tutorial - fluorescence
    6. Chapter 10 Match lighting
      1. Background plates
      2. Lighting reference data
      3. HDRI
      4. Match lighting in practice
      5. Match lighting without reference
      6. Tutorial - match lighting without reference
    7. Chapter 11 The natural elements
      1. The forces of nature
      2. Fire
      3. Tutorial - fire
      4. Smoke
      5. Tutorial - smoke
      6. Fog
      7. Tutorial - fog
      8. Clouds
      9. Tutorial - raytrace fog
      10. Tutorial - clouds
      11. Rain
      12. Tutorial - rain
      13. Lightning
      14. Tutorial - lightning
    8. Chapter 12 Lighting and lens effects
      1. Visual hooks
      2. Inside the lens
      3. Glows
      4. Tutorial - glows
      5. Lens flares
      6. Tutorial - lens flares
      7. Highlights
      8. Tutorial - highlights
  12. Part 3: Tips and tricks
    1. Chapter 13 In production
      1. Working efficiently
      2. The first step
      3. The key
      4. Fills and backlights
      5. Rendering
      6. Revision
      7. Production pipelines
      8. Modeling issues
      9. Texturing issues
      10. More revision
      11. Preparation
      12. Pitching for business
      13. Experimentation
    2. Chapter 14 Tricks of the trade
      1. Tips and tricks
      2. Lighting
      3. Materials
      4. Rendering and cameras
  13. Part 4: Taking it further
    1. Chapter 15 Composition and drama
      1. Visual storytelling
      2. Composition
      3. Unity
      4. Emphasis
      5. Depth
      6. Mood and drama
    2. Chapter 16 Camerawork and technicalities
      1. The camera in 3D
      2. Technical aspects
      3. Antialiasing
    3. Chapter 17 Looking further
      1. Looking beyond lighting
      2. Compositing
      3. The appeal of film
      4. Software
      5. Plug-in away
      6. Magazines
      7. Websites
  14. Appendices
    1. Appendix A About the CD-ROM
      1. The companion CD-ROM
      2. Software requirements
      3. Tutorials
      4. Focalpress.com
      5. Calibrate
      6. Software
      7. Other menu items
    2. Appendix B Glossary
    3. Appendix C Bibliography
  15. Index

Product information

  • Title: Essential CG Lighting Techniques
  • Author(s): Darren Brooker
  • Release date: November 2012
  • Publisher(s): Focal Press
  • ISBN: 9781136134692