Subject: Re: Lasers with Lens Flares
From: [email-masked] (Brenden Mecleary )
To: Multiple recipients of list <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 8 Dec 1995 02:14:06 -0500

Notice if you freeze-frame (which I tend to do a lot on b5 :-)) that there seems 
to be a "line" of light in the interior of the bolt.  To create a good-looking 
laser bolt, use a stretched diamond shape, so that it's long on one axis, with 
two points.  It's hard to describe, but lemme see:
         
    ---======---

Something like that, an elongated diamond shape.  Give it a luminosity of 100, 
diffuse of 0, and transparency of 0 (the motion blur will take care of that).  
Set the color to the color you want the laser to be.  Take that, and put a lens 
flare (same color) in the center of it.  Then, set the flare to the settings you 
want (fade in distance usually is a good option to have on), and render with 
motion blur.  The effect you get is a "glowing" laser blast.  I can send anyone a 
sample image and object/scene if you're interested.  It saves time from rendering 
a whole lot of lens flares with motion blur (you only need one per bolt), and I 
really like the effect it gives.  Good luck, and keep on rendering!

                                                              Brenden Mecleary
                                                              [email-masked]
                                        http://www.geopages.com/CapitolHill/1979/