Qualities of Light in 3D Animation

Distribution and Intensity

This is one of the prime factors in determining the location of the lighting instruments for a production. Modelling of actors and settings is principally a function of the direction and intensity of the light that strikes them. For these reasons it is essential that you be able to determine the direction and relative intensities of the key and fill lights that are illuminating your image of light if you hope to re-create that image in the scene.

Color

As a visual clue to the type of light source or the time, season and weather being represented outside of a scene, color is incredibly important. The designer needs to pay close attention to the indications of color in his or her image of light. The similarities and differences of lighting colors within a scene will help determine its mood, with more neutral colors giving a more somber tone. It is also a key element in creating psychological atmosphere. Colors have emotional properties. Generally speaking:

Yellow	stimulating, cheerful, exciting, joyful, serene, hostile, unpleasant, aggressive
Orange	warm, happy, merry, exciting, stimulating, hot, disturbed, distressed, unpleasant
Red	happy, affectionate, loving, exciting, striking, active, intense, defiant, powerful, masterful, strong, aggressive, hostile
Green	youthful, fresh, leisurely, secure, calm, peaceful, emotionally controlled, ill
Blue	pleasant, cool, secure, comfortable, tender, soothing, social, dignified, sad, strong, full, great
Violet	dignified, stately, vigorous, disagreeable, sad, despondent, melancholy, unhappy, depressing
Black	sad, melancholy, vague, unhappy, dignified, stately, strong, powerful, hostile, distressed, fearful, old
White	pure, tender, soothing, solemn, empty
Brown	secure, comfortable, full, sad, disagreeable

Of course the meanings of color are constantly changing. Color meanings are influenced by many factors: cultural background, personality, adjoining colors, and individual mood.

Shadow

Shadows play a massive role in describing a light, and this is an area that we will go into in much greater depth in a couple of charters’ time. Shadows add to a scene’s realism, consistency, relationships and composition. It is also very useful for hiding imperfections. So designing shadows is as significant a task as designing the illumination in a scene.

Motivation

Lights can be categorized by how they operate in the scene in terms of their motivation. Lights will sometimes be referred to as logical. Logical lights can represent an actual source such as a table lamp, or they can represent the illumination from outside a window.

The placement of lights can also be motivated by purely aesthetic reasons. The pictorial lights introduce the drama and creates the emotional link with the audience. This is one of the keys to good lighting.

Reference:

Gillette, J. M. (1989). Designing with Light. The United States: Mayfield Publishing Company.