9.5.2

336 • CHAPTER 7
OBJECTS MENU • LIGHTING • 337
Types of visible light
This section describes the different types of visible lights you can select for the Visible Light option on
the General page. The Visibility page itself is described later in this chapter.
Visible. Volumetric. Inverse Volumetric.
In nature, a light beam becomes visible when small particles such as dust, insects, smoke or fog
are present in the air. For example, if a car headlight shines in fog, you’ll see its cone of light quite
distinctly. In CINEMA 4D, all light sources and/or the light cone emitted can be made visible. This type
of effect can be seen in a smoky room. This effect is comparable to fog, which does not diminish
light, but rather adds to its brightness. With Visible Light, you can produce stunning effects including
headlights, shimmering lights, laser beams and a host of atmospheric effects.
Visible
If Visible Light is set to Visible on the General page, the light source will produce visible light that
passes through all objects. For example, a visible light could be placed in the center of a planet’s
sphere to simulate an atmosphere.
The Visible option is of special importance to the particle system. Visible lights (with No Light Radiation
enabled) lend themselves to a huge range of effects, such as nebula clouds, smoke, comet tails, re
and ames.
Volumetric
A visible light does not affect objects that lie in its cone of light — the light rays penetrate objects
unhindered, casting no shadow in the visible light’s beam. In order for a shadow to be cast by a visible
light, volumetric lighting must be used. The parameters for the visible Volumetric light are taken from
the light source’s shadow map values: Resolution X, Resolution Y, Sample Radius and Parallel Width.