Horizon Line

[3dj]

Hi, try using a plane or a disc with your alpha. The floor is infinite.

-Jim

[BUZZFX]

Hi, Jim. Yup that worked thanks, but my mistake. I think I need a different solution.

I thought I wanted to use an alpha so you wouldn't see the edges of the plane, but this still doesn't look right because the sky is still visible along the horizon which appears too dark.

How do people blend their sky and "Floor" Object so the horizon is a soft edge or so the sky and ground blend together visually? I can use a gradient effectively on the sky to achieve this fading but I can't seem to get it to work using an "Floor" Object which is infinite. I need to use an infinite plane ("Floor" Object) I think because if I use a "plane" object it never reaches far enough into the distance.

How would I blend the horizon with the sky using a "Floor" Object?

[3dj]

I used to think i had to use a floor object to, but I don't most of the time. I 'll use a soft alpha and it fades nicely. Anyway, another trick, is to use some fog with the environment object.

You'll have to play with the settings a bit.

-Jim

[wesware]

Yep, haven't used a floor object in years.
My default plane is 400x400 - 1x1 subdivision... usually ends up being a floor object. :)

[BUZZFX]

I used to think i had to use a floor object to, but I don't most of the time. I 'll use a soft alpha and it fades nicely. Anyway, another trick, is to use some fog with the environment object. You'll have to play with the settings a bit. -Jim


Jim so do you use a plane object and add an soft alpha to it. What do you mean by soft alpha? I have used alphas and I can't get any good results. Could you tell me how you set this up.

[BUZZFX]

Yep, haven't used a floor object in years.
My default plane is 400x400 - 1x1 subdivision... usually ends up being a floor object. :)

Wesware, I still don't see how using a 400 x 400 plane object would work. I tried that and the horizon doesn't look flat but it comes to a v shape. Could you explain or upload a test file?

Thanks

[3dj]

Jim so do you use a plane object and add an soft alpha to it. What do you mean by soft alpha? I have used alphas and I can't get any good results. Could you tell me how you set this up.
Take a look at this file, maybe it will help.

-Jim

[wesware]

Sorry for the unexplained answer.... "just use a plane!!" that didn't help much did it.

I ran into issues using the floor object years ago in a similiar scenario.
I seem to have problems with using the sky object and the floor object because of their infinite nature. I still use sky for certain situations but mostly I use a plane and a sphere or cylinder or background object because I can control the environment better. I have also used the Pelham shaders and fog in a few jobs to get the look I want.

Now that I think about it, one reason I dumped the floor object was due to render times. Not sure how Cinema deals with it during the render but it really seemed to slow down at the horizon. Hence the 1X1 plane.

If you need to add deformation to areas of your "floor" that's another ball of wax.

What was the projection setting for your material on the floor? Just curious.
Also... just in case your settings are correct, is there a chance that the sky material you are using goes dark at the horizon (-Y)

[BUZZFX]

Jim That file really cleared it up for me. Thanks. I actually used the same method myself (using the gradient set to spherical) but I used it on a square plane and not a sphere plane which is much better.

[BUZZFX]

Wesware, no problem, I knew you'd get back to me sooner or later. I did check to see if the sky map was dark at the bottom and it wasn't. I think part of the problem was the fact that I was using a "Floor" Object and my light was not reaching the edge of the floor so it made the edges appear dark.

Lots to learn! LOL

[3dj]

Jim That file really cleared it up for me. Thanks. I actually used the same method myself (using the gradient set to spherical) but I used it on a square plane and not a sphere plane which is much better.
That's looking promising Paint Guy.

-Jim

[BUZZFX]

Thanks Jim. Here's another moon-like atmosphere. Just wish I could figure out how to make those C4D stars bigger! LOL

[3dj]

Thanks Jim. Here's another moon-like atmosphere. Just wish I could figure out how to make those C4D stars bigger! LOL
Thats looking cool. I would work on getting a little bounced light on the right side of the sphere. nice atmoshpere.

[BUZZFX]

Yes. Good Idea

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