Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
Step 15:
Add a filler Sun. In the Hierarchy panel, select Sun and duplicate
it (Edit>Duplicate). Rename it to SunFiller. Select it and open the
Lightmapping window (Window>Lightmapping). Change the Baked
Shadows setting to Off.
Why?
A filler sun will provide some added illumination that can help diffuse the
shadows cast by the Sun directional light.
Step 16:
Adjust the intensity settings of the two Suns. For a first pass
change both's intensity to
0.2
.
Why?
Now that there are two lights, the combined effect would likely be way
too bright. We will be taking a few test renders to find out if the intensity
here is a good choice or not. We will dial down the render settings to
allow for quicker renders but this is where you get your money's worth
out of bigger processors and more RAM.
Step 17:
Further soften Sun's shadows. Select Sun and open the
Lightmapping window. In the Object setting, increase the Shadow
Samples to 100 and change the Shadow Angle to 45.
Why?
Both of these are baked-only settings, and both help the baked shadow
render with softer edges. On a sunny day, this would not be preferable
because outside shadows are often crisp; but on a cloudy or foggy day
getting a really mushy shadow is the goal.
Step 18:
Bake with faster preview options. Open the Lightmapping
window and select the Bake Button/Tab. Change the Mode to Single
Lightmaps, (if using Pro) make sure the Bounces is at 1 and change the
Final Gather Rays to
200
. press Bake.
Why?
Finding the right lighting is a process of baking and then rebaking (like
rendering and then tweaking and rerendering back in Maya). Taking
some time to get the baked lighting just right always pays dividends in
the final game play. However, with high-quality settings, the test bakes
can simply take too long to get through. While the values for lights
are being tweaked, baking a single lightmap with a single bounce and
fewer Final Gather Rays will yield faster results that will inform future
decisions.
Warnings and Pitfalls
Remember that the
quality settings have
been turned down.
Eventually it will be
important to get those
back up for a final bake.
