Lighting an Interior Nighttime Scene Using IES Lights - Photographic Rendering with V-Ray for SketchUp - page 86

Note
The term motivation when applied to lighting setups, generally refers to the fact
that the light in the scene has an obvious source that it is coming from or is mo-
tivated by.
While in a domestic setting, rooms may often have a key or main light source, this
typically isn't the case with spaces such as the one we are working with here. In this
kind of environment, the idea is generally speaking to achieve the required level and
spread of illumination by means of lots of smaller, strategically placed light sources
rather than having just a few extremely bright ones.
To make the definition that we created a few moments ago work for us, we will prob-
ably want to forego a key light in this instance and work instead to create more con-
trast in the scene by using a number of low-level light sources. Now, I use the word
probably because as we are creating the lighting solution for any scene, we should
always be open to possibilities and be ready to try out new ideas as and when the
opportunity arises. If we suddenly see some where a key light could be used, maybe
to create a unique point of focus in the scene, then we should certainly be prepared
to test that out and evaluate the new idea's potential.
While having a blueprint to work with helps to keep us focused and organized, stick-
ing to it so rigidly that we lock ourselves out of any possible improvements to the
lighting of a scene would be a very bad mistake to make indeed.
Understanding the IES files
All of that having been said, I am thinking that for the most part, we can probably
stick to using V-Ray's IES light type here as this will both simplify the workflow for us
while at the same time enhancing the realism of the lighting setup we are creating.
Having chosen this as the approach we are going to take, it would probably be a
good idea to take a moment or two here to outline exactly what a V-Ray IES light
is, as well as pointing out why they make an excellent light choice given the type of
scenario we are working with here.