Importance of 3D Lighting in Visualization for Realistic Renders

Lighting and 3D rendering go hand in hand. If you rendered a 3D scene, object, or animation without lighting, it would be like taking photos or videos without any light (natural or not), like below.

When done correctly, lighting can make a 3D environment look natural and realistic. However, if improperly done, the three-D visuals end up looking unnatural. To get the right outcome, you need to first understand why lighting is important in 3D visualization.

Let’s begin with the very basic understanding of what 3D lighting is.

What is 3D lighting?

In 3D visualization, lighting is a technique used to recreate effects - like reflections, refractions, shadows, etc. on a computer-generated object or scene. 3D artists choose from different light sources, tools, effects, and techniques to add lights and shadows and simulate how they work. As 3D artists, we mainly go through this whole process to reproduce reality or stylize a computer-generated environment. It’s not only to make the scene visible.

Now that we have the basics down, let’s look at why it is important to go through the lighting process before rendering computer-generated imagery.

Why is lighting important to the 3D visualization process?

You need lighting whether you’re working on a product rendering, architectural visualization, character design, or animation. The lights do more than just make a digital model or virtual environment more visible.

1. Makes for realistic and immersive visuals

   The whole point is to make the digital objects and environments look as close to reality as possible. Only when there are reflections, shadows, refractions, etc., can a CGI look like a digital replica of the real thing. You have to consider light intensity, color temperature, and light behavior, depending on the materials and geometry.

   Making light behave realistically makes the digital object and scene look natural, making the viewer feel more immersed in what they are seeing.

2. Enhances the emotional impact and storytelling

   

   If you’ve seen photographers and videographers work, you have noticed how they position lights, increase/decrease the intensity, etc., to create certain looks and moods for the best shots. If the weather is just right enough, some of these professionals will even risk using natural light. Well, lighting works pretty much the same way in 3D visualization.

   Going beyond adding realism, 3D lighting increases a 3D scene’s emotional impact and storytelling ability. Depending on the lighting, the scene can appear warm and inviting, cold and harsh, or dramatic and intense. Control the light’s direction, intensity, and color to change a viewer’s emotions and moods. You can even draw their attention to particular details in a scene to convey a narrative. The effects are felt even more so in 3D animations, which is why the 3D animation industry always needs the best lighting specialists for their projects.

3. Improving the visual appeal

   If you have a compelling story, product, concept, or game, it may not garner much attention if it doesn’t look appealing. For most people, good visuals equal higher quality and value. Seeing is believing, and visual appeal is everything. So, better-looking 3D renders of your product, real estate property, prototype, etc., will assure the viewer that the actual thing will be as good as it looks.

   With the right rendering techniques, you can highlight a product's or property’s best features, textures, contours, etc. Thus, the viewer can grasp the exact design and details.

4. Creating an illusion of dimension and depth

   

   A natural result of adding lights is the creation of shadows, depending on the shape, opacity, and other details of the object/scene. When the viewer sees these shadows, they get the feeling that the digital object actually has depth and dimension. This is precisely how you add dimension and depth to 2D images and animations to make them look three-dimensional and realistic.

   Such dimensions are pretty useful for making others perceive depth and dimensions in CGI. They’re especially handy in interior design, as they give the impression that there is more space in a room. When applied to the real world, the installation of different light sources in certain ways makes a room appear broader, taller, spacious, or cozy. It all has to do with eliminating and creating shadows.

5. Setting a mood/creating an atmosphere

   

   Lights are used to create a mood/atmosphere in more places than you think. You’d find this to be true if you’ve eaten at a restaurant, shopped in a store, or danced at a club. You can apply the same principles when adding light to a 3D scene. Depending on the atmosphere you’re trying to set, you can dim the lights, brighten them all the way up, or use them like spotlights.

   Clever positioning and manipulation of lights in an environment can make it cozy, lively, inviting, or unpleasant. It really all depends on the story/message you are trying to convey.

6. Highlighting product features/details

   

   One cannot overstate the importance of lighting in marketing and product design. As it stands, its storytelling abilities are convincing enough. However, a skilled 3D artist can also use it to point out all the best features of your product and pique the interest of potential buyers.

   Now that we have established why lighting is important in 3D visualization, we should look at tips that will help you get the most realistic visuals.

Tips for using lighting to create realistic renders

• Study how lights (natural and artificial) work in the real world. Although lighting is an art, you must also understand the science of realistically depicting effects like reflection. Move the light around and see how the atmosphere it creates changes. Remember that the eye is excellent at noticing oddities. Unrealistic visuals really stick out to the eye and take the viewer out of the experience.

• KEEP. IT. SIMPLE. Regardless of the project you're working on, this is a useful guideline to adhere to. Decide on what kind of light source you want to simulate. If you are simulating sunlight for an outdoor scene, a sky dome will suffice. You don’t need to use every other type of light source (point, spot, etc.) to get the effect of natural light.

• Experiment with different light sources. Only by experimenting can you figure out what lighting styles you prefer (if you’re looking to make a signature look/theme) or what suits your project.

• Watch plenty of movies and theatre plays. Cinematographers and theatre directors are some of the most skilled when it comes to using lights to aid their stories. You can learn a lot about how to set the mood/atmosphere with lights.

• Use realistic materials on your 3D models for more natural outcomes. Make sure to set the materials accurately so they react to the light with the right amount of refraction, reflection, etc.

Use correct lighting to enhance your 3D visualization

Lighting is a technique used by 3D artists to level up a 3D model to make it look as natural as possible. It is a very crucial element in the 3D visualization process that helps you generate believable renders. It not only adds lights, highlights, and shadows to your scene/model but also helps set the atmosphere, aids storytelling, and produces visuals that are natural to the human eye. For us 3D artists, 3D lighting plays a crucial role in giving life to a virtual world.

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