The LenzFX preferences control which parts of a lens flare are active and how they effect the overall image.
You can control whether or not specific parts of the lens flare, such as the rays or the star, are rendered. You can also control the axial transparency of the lens flare.
Affect Alpha: Specifies whether or not the lens flare affects the alpha channel of an image, when the image is rendered in a 32-bit file format. The alpha channel is an extra 8 bits of color (256 colors) that indicate transparency in an image. Alpha channels are used to composite one image seamlessly over the top of another. If you want to composite a lens flare, or an image that contains a lens flare, over the top of another image, enable this option. If you are not rendering to a 32-bit file, do not enable this option.
Affect Z Buffer: The Z Buffer stores an object’s distance from the camera. The Z Buffer is useful for optical effects such as fog. When this option is enabled, the linear distance of the lens flare is recorded, and can be used in special effects that make use of the Z buffer, for example, the ZFocus effect. To use Z Focus with a lens flare, enable this option.
Motion Blur: Determines whether or not an animated lens flare can be rendered using Motion Blur. Motion Blur renders multiple copies in short increments to the same frame, which gives the illusion of a blurred object in motion. When an object is moving rapidly across the screen, it animates more smoothly if motion blur is turned on. Using motion blur can add rendering time.
Occlusion Radius: A radius around the center of the flare that determines when the lens flare effect will begin to fade as it passes behind another object. This radius is measured in pixels.
When the lens flare or scene is animated and the source of the lens flare goes behind another object, if occlusion is enabled, the flare dies down and disappears until the source object reappears on the other side of the hiding object. The radius makes the flare gently fade when it is occluded, instead of blinking out.
Axial Transparency: A standard transparency gradient that affects the transparency of the lens flare along its main axis.
Render: Specifies whether or not each part of the lens flare is rendered in the final image. Use this set of check boxes to turn parts of the lens flare on and off.
Note: Effects such as secondary flares are available in sets. The Render button and Off Scene determine whether the secondary flares are present in the scene. The individual secondary flare sets are controlled on their respective pages.
Off Scene: Specifies whether or not lens flares that have their sources outside the scene will affect the image. For example, if a lens flare source is just off the edge of a frame, the secondary flares, and possibly the star or ring, could still be showing on the screen. Without Off Scene, the lens flare does not appear at all. You can turn this option on or off for each part of the flare.
Squeeze: Specifies whether the Squeeze setting affects a particular part of the lens flare. This setting depends on the Squeeze setting in the lens flare properties.
Occlusion: Defines the percentage of the flare part that appears when it is occluded by another object. A value of 100 indicates that the whole object will disappear. Lower settings cause the lens flare to wrap around the occluding object, making it bleed out. For example, if you look at a cylinder with a bright light behind it, the light makes the cylinder appear thinner at the brightest areas.
Inferno: Defines whether the inferno settings are active for this portion of the lens flare.