Environment

Sets up atmospheric and background effects.

You can use the environment functions to:

• Set and animate the background color.
• Use an image in the background of the rendered scene (screen environment) or use texture maps as spherical, cylindrical, or shrinkwrap environments.
• Set and animate the ambient light.
• Use atmospheric plug-ins, such as volumetric light, in the scene.

Atmospheres

Atmospheres are plug-in components that create light effects such as fog, combustion, and so on.

Combustion

Fog

Volume Fog

Volume Light

Reference

The Environment dialog includes the following options:

Commmon Parameters

Background

Color: Sets the color for the scene background. Click the color swatch, then select the color you want in the Color Selector dialog. You can animate the color effect by changing the background color at a non-zero frame with the Animate button on.

Environment Map: The large Environment Map button displays the name of the map, or None if none has been assigned. The map must use Environmental mapping coordinates (spherical, cylindrical, shrink-wrap, and screen).

To assign an environment map you can drag a map from a sample window or map button in the material editor (or anywhere else in 3D Studio MAX; for example, a projector map button) and drop it on the Environment Map button. A dialog asks if you want the environment map to be a copy (independent) or an instance of the source map.

Clicking Environment Map displays the Material/Map Browser, where you can choose a map type from the list.

To adjust the environment map’s parameters, for example to assign a bitmap or change the coordinate settings, display the Material Editor and then drag the Environment Map button and drop it over an unused sample window.

Use Map: Uses a map for the background rather than the background color.

Global Lighting

Tint: If this color is anything other than white, it tints all lights in the scene (except for ambient light). Click the color swatch to display the Color Selector dialog, where you can choose the tint color. You can animate the tint color by changing it at a non-zero frame with the Animate button on.

Level: The Level is a multiplier for all lights in the scene. A Level of 1.0 preserves the original, individual light settings. Increasing the Level raises the lighting for the overall scene, and decreasing the Level lowers the overall lighting. This parameter is animatable. Default = 1.0.

Ambient: Sets the color for the ambient light. Click the color swatch, then select the color you want in the Color Selector dialog. You can animate the light effect by changing the ambient light color at a non-zero frame with the Animate button on.

Atmosphere

Effects: Shows the queue of effects that get evaluated in linear order within the scene during rendering.

Name: This editable field lets you give a custom name to effects in the list.

For example, you might have different custom settings for different kinds of combustion, which you could name then Spark and Fireball.

Add: Displays the Add Atmospheric Effect dialog (all currently-installed atmosphere effects). Double or single-click and click OK to assign an effect to the list.

Delete: Deletes a selected atmospheric effect from the list.

Active: Sets the on/off state for the individual effects in the list. This is a convenient way of isolating effects within a list of complicated atmospheric functions.

Move Up / Move Down: Moves the selected item in the list up or down to change the order in which the atmospheric effects are applied.

Merge: Lets you merge effects from other 3D Studio MAX scene files.

When you click Merge, a file dialog appears. Select a 3D Studio MAX scene, and click Open. A Merge Atmospheric Effects dialog appears. This dialog lists the effects in the scene you specified. Select one or more of the effects, and click OK to merge them into the scene.

The list shows the names of the atmospheric effects only, but when you merge an effect, the lights or gizmos bound to that effect are merged as well. If one of these objects to merge has the same name as one already in the scene, an alert appears giving you the following choices:

• You can rename the incoming object by changing its name in the editable field.
• You can Merge the incoming object, resulting in two objects in the scene with the same name.
• You can delete the existing object in the scene by selecting the Delete Old button.
• You can select Apply to All Duplicates, which performs the same action to all subsequent matching objects.

How To

To set the background color:

1. Choose Rendering/Environment.

The Environment dialog appears.

2. In the Background area, click the color swatch.

A Color Selector dialog appears.

3. Use the Color Selector to change the background color.

The Renderer now uses this color as a background.

To choose an environment map:

1. Display the Material Editor.

The Material Editor is where you adjust the map's parameters.

2. Choose Rendering/Environment.
3. In the Background area of the Environment dialog, do one of the following:
• Drag a map to the Environment Map button. You can do this from a map displayed in one of the Material Editor’s sample windows, or from any map button that has been assigned, either in the Material Editor or from a projection light, and so on.
• Click the Environment Map button. The Material/Map Browser appears. Choose a map type from the list.

In the Environment dialog, the name of the Environment Map button changes to show the type of map you chose, and Use Map turns on.

After you have set up the map, you can later clear Use Map to test rendering the scene without the mapped background.

You have set up the environment map, but to assign a bitmap or adjust map parameters, you need to use the Material Editor.

You can also create a standalone map in the Material Editor first, and then choose it with the Browser after you click Assign.

To put the map in the Material Editor:

• Drag the Environment Map button to an unused sample window.

The map is now in the Material Editor, where you can adjust it by changing its parameters.

To change the color of ambient light:

1. Choose Rendering/Environment.
2. Click the color swatch labeled Ambient Light.

A Color Selector dialog appears.

3. Use the color selector to set ambient light color.

Shaded viewports update to show ambient light changes.

4. Dismiss the Environment dialog.

3D Studio MAX also uses the new ambient light color when you render the scene.

The color of ambient light tints the scene. For most renderings, the color of ambient light should be the complement of the color of the principal light source for the scene.

To change the intensity of ambient light:

1. Choose Rendering/Environment.
2. Click the color swatch labeled Ambient Light.

A Color Selector dialog appears.

3. Change the Value setting (the V component of ambient light's HSV description) to increase or decrease intensity.

Shaded viewports update to show changes in the ambient light intensity.

4. Click Close to dismiss the Color Selector.

The intensity of ambient light affects contrast as well as overall illumination (the higher the intensity of ambient light, the lower the contrast). This is because ambient light is completely diffuse, so the angle of incidence is equal for all faces. Ambient light alone cannot show depth.

Note: 3D Studio MAX has a default ambient light setting. You can change the default by using the Rendering panel of the Preference Settings dialog.

To add an atmosphere:

1. Choose Rendering/Environment.

The Environment dialog appears.

2. In the Atmosphere area of the Environment dialog, click Add.

The Add Atmospheric Effect dialog appears.

3. Choose the kind of atmosphere you want to use, and then click OK.