Scene lighting on DTS objects?
by Mitovo · in Torque Game Engine · 03/30/2004 (6:32 pm) · 11 replies
Hello..
Well, I scoured the forums for an answer to this, but the most common question/answer was referring to DTS objects casting shadows...
Here's my question..
I have a DTS object imported into Torque. It's a "cliff section" that I made quick just to get the hang of the whole DTS pipeline.. I got everything converted and imported fine, textured, collision-detection and all..
The only thing it's *missing* is that the scene lighting doesn't seem to affect it. I've tried rotating it in different angles more or less facing the sun and there is just no differences in light playing across its surface. It's all one consistent lighting level, and it shouldn't be since the cliff surface is *far* from even.
So, is there a specific setting you need to set to get a DTS to properly accept scene lighting? I notice the trees and such in the demo do, so there is a way.. It's just a step I missed...
For reference I'm using Lightwave and exporting with the gnometech exporter.
Thanks!
Mike
Well, I scoured the forums for an answer to this, but the most common question/answer was referring to DTS objects casting shadows...
Here's my question..
I have a DTS object imported into Torque. It's a "cliff section" that I made quick just to get the hang of the whole DTS pipeline.. I got everything converted and imported fine, textured, collision-detection and all..
The only thing it's *missing* is that the scene lighting doesn't seem to affect it. I've tried rotating it in different angles more or less facing the sun and there is just no differences in light playing across its surface. It's all one consistent lighting level, and it shouldn't be since the cliff surface is *far* from even.
So, is there a specific setting you need to set to get a DTS to properly accept scene lighting? I notice the trees and such in the demo do, so there is a way.. It's just a step I missed...
For reference I'm using Lightwave and exporting with the gnometech exporter.
Thanks!
Mike
About the author
#2
You can try lowering the ambient lighting to see if you get more of that lighting effect from the Sun's directional light, but I'm not sure it'll really work, as iirc the sun is not a proper light : its position is only used for shadow placement, the lighting itself coming from the ambient setting.
Again iirc :)
03/31/2004 (10:44 am)
By default, .DTS don't cast shadows :)You can try lowering the ambient lighting to see if you get more of that lighting effect from the Sun's directional light, but I'm not sure it'll really work, as iirc the sun is not a proper light : its position is only used for shadow placement, the lighting itself coming from the ambient setting.
Again iirc :)
#3
Hmm.. pardon my ignorance.. but what does iirc stand for?
So, you have to bake a light-map into the texture mapping to fake the lighting, then?
Hmm.. I'm sure there's gotta be some way to handle it a bit more realistically than that. Anyone know of a source modification that can do this?
I don't mean casting shadows on the ground; I've seen a few threads where people provide source for that already. I mean having parts of a DTS facing the sun be bright and those facing away be darker. Perhaps some kind of a quasi-dynamic sunlight implementation or the like?
Actually, now that I'm thinking about it.. is there any kind of dynamic lighting in Torque by default or is everything either unlit, or light-mapped?
Thanks...
03/31/2004 (12:58 pm)
Hello there..Hmm.. pardon my ignorance.. but what does iirc stand for?
So, you have to bake a light-map into the texture mapping to fake the lighting, then?
Hmm.. I'm sure there's gotta be some way to handle it a bit more realistically than that. Anyone know of a source modification that can do this?
I don't mean casting shadows on the ground; I've seen a few threads where people provide source for that already. I mean having parts of a DTS facing the sun be bright and those facing away be darker. Perhaps some kind of a quasi-dynamic sunlight implementation or the like?
Actually, now that I'm thinking about it.. is there any kind of dynamic lighting in Torque by default or is everything either unlit, or light-mapped?
Thanks...
#4
IIRC
Searchable jargon file : www.tf.hut.fi/cgi-bin/jargon
03/31/2004 (2:06 pm)
Iirc == If I Remember CorrectlyIIRC
Searchable jargon file : www.tf.hut.fi/cgi-bin/jargon
#5
1) without the lighting pack, it seems there's no shading at all. The whole house looks the same, no shades. Polygons facing 'the sun' are not brighter.
2) with the new lighting pack, using the demo, I find that the house is shaded... but always the left side of what you are looking at!! So, if you stand in front of a corner (seen from the outside of the house), the left wall is brighter than the right wall. And it's the same wherever you stand (front door, back door, sides...)
Well, I still have to try it on different cards, but it's quite a problem, this lighting thing! :m
05/13/2004 (12:03 am)
I'm experiencing dts shading problems too. Did you find why was it happening, Michael? I think we are talking about the same thing: I have a house on a .dts file. When I place it in my scene, it is shaded wrongly. There are two possibilities: 1) without the lighting pack, it seems there's no shading at all. The whole house looks the same, no shades. Polygons facing 'the sun' are not brighter.
2) with the new lighting pack, using the demo, I find that the house is shaded... but always the left side of what you are looking at!! So, if you stand in front of a corner (seen from the outside of the house), the left wall is brighter than the right wall. And it's the same wherever you stand (front door, back door, sides...)
Well, I still have to try it on different cards, but it's quite a problem, this lighting thing! :m
#6
see the following screenshot,we use DTS buildings,hope the effect is what you want:
http://www.mageface.com/album/data/page.htm?4,0
http://www.mageface.com/album/data/page.htm?10,0
05/13/2004 (1:24 am)
Try to make the pivot point of the bonding box under the terrain.see the following screenshot,we use DTS buildings,hope the effect is what you want:
http://www.mageface.com/album/data/page.htm?4,0
http://www.mageface.com/album/data/page.htm?10,0
#7
There's a Lighting Pack update coming up to enhance sunlight support on DTS objects. I'll post a news item when the release is out and the new demos are available. In the meantime here's a screen shot of the changes in action (using the TGE 1.2 demo):
Lighting Pack enhanced sunlight
-John
05/13/2004 (4:13 am)
Hi Luis,There's a Lighting Pack update coming up to enhance sunlight support on DTS objects. I'll post a news item when the release is out and the new demos are available. In the meantime here's a screen shot of the changes in action (using the TGE 1.2 demo):
Lighting Pack enhanced sunlight
-John
#8
Bob, I had almost finished buying the lighting pack when I found the thing I commented. If the new lighting pack solves it, I'll buy it, because it's not only light... texture contrast is also much better with the pack!
05/13/2004 (6:33 am)
Wu Men, those screenshots are impressive. If that's the illumination you get just doing that pivot thing... I'm impressed :) I'll try it and inform here ;)Bob, I had almost finished buying the lighting pack when I found the thing I commented. If the new lighting pack solves it, I'll buy it, because it's not only light... texture contrast is also much better with the pack!
#10
That's the Torque 1.2 demo right out of the box. I only toggled a new lighting option on the trees that allows the Lighting Pack to adapt the self-illumination - better matching the trees to the environment (this method can also be applied to many different static objects other than trees). I'm very excited by these changes, they've made a significant improvement in outdoor scenes.
-John
05/13/2004 (4:36 pm)
Hi Joseph,That's the Torque 1.2 demo right out of the box. I only toggled a new lighting option on the trees that allows the Lighting Pack to adapt the self-illumination - better matching the trees to the environment (this method can also be applied to many different static objects other than trees). I'm very excited by these changes, they've made a significant improvement in outdoor scenes.
-John
Associate Kyle Carter
Though you should get something. Maybe you don't have normals or somesuch???