Night Scene

[NOOXY]

hey guys need your help here.I got an offer to do a set of renderings and one of them includes a night scene..

I've never did a night scene so i just wanted uall imput on some tips and techniques on lighting..i use cinema4d but i guess i just want an overall technique of where to start.

 

some of the features the client is looking for are..

 

1. The name of the development on a wall illuminated by placing a backlight behind it.

 

2. Lights projecting up into the main entrance trees.

 

I'm however trying to accomplish along with the above

 

1. lights on 1 or 2 vehicles in the parking lot

2. to show that some patio lights are on

3. what lights do i add as luminated materials and what lights do i actually have to use without illuminating the entire scene...

 

i have at least 2 weeks to start preparing prelimanary images but want some advice before i start...thanks in advance..

[bokkins]

render a simple night scene, then render a day scene. a little cut and paste and a lot of photoshop. I think that's the fastest way. good luck!

[JamesTaylor]

what render will you be using? it may help people give a little more specific amswers?

 

although i've also never done a night scene, i'd have thought that using a HDRI map as the base would be quite useful, a night version and a midday version should give you the basic ambiance required for each. After that i would be looking at using a combination of vray light material (Vray my renderer of choice) to achieve the glow of the light source such as headlights and targeted spot lights, placed infront of the headlight with vray shadows, to illuminate the ground in front of the car etc. and then they same for entrance. The illuminated sign my just require a vray light map.

 

obviously my ideas are aimed towards vray, so it may vary depending on what you plan to use.

[NOOXY]

thanks for the info so far guys..i will be using cinema4d however..i've being experimenting a bit and realise that i have to enable volumetric light to get some nice night time effects...i'll post uall on my update..but more info is always welcomed..

[DA_hook]

R U trying all this with FR or the default render?

[NOOXY]

well i don't have final render the plugin so it's the default GI and HDRI light system i'm using

[Frosty]

Suggestions

1) Dont base your lighting solution on reality...use Cinema to create the illusion. Sounds silly I know, but what I mean is dont place lights at every single instance of a light emitting object in you scene.

2) Use Luminance and glow in your materials.

3) Focus on the colour of the lights that you do use. Night scenes are not dark, but they are coloured - generally to the purple/navy blue. Incadescent lights are very yellow/orange.

 

There are some beautiful panoramas of Paris at night online somewhere...they've been posted here on the past. Study those.

[NOOXY]

thanks guys ...frosty i'll take advantage of those comments and hope to post my first night scene soon..

[edub]

There are some beautiful panoramas of Paris at night online somewhere...they've been posted here on the past. Study those.

 

you wouldn't happen to have a link, would you? I'd be interested in checking those out myself.

 

*e

[Frosty]

Man I LOVE google. Didnt think I'd find this again.

http://www.arnaudfrichphoto.com/photo-de-paris-pl1.htm

[edub]

cool, I'll check out that site. I found this site when I googled Paris Panorama:

 

http://www.panoramas.dk/fullscreen/fullscreen32.html

 

check to the top-right pull-down menu for many more full-screen panoramas.