|
|
|
|
Working with the Moon
The moon is normally the most prominent object in the night sky. In a night scene it provides all the natural light in the environment. Like the sun, the moon's attributes can greatly affect the final look of your scene.
Its position in the sky affects all the angles and intensities of all the shadows in the scene.
The brightness is affected by the illumination reflected off the earth. The brighter the earthshine, the brighter the moon appears.
Unlike the sun, the moon has phases which simulate the effects of the moon's shadow becoming more or less prominent during a month.
The moon's position and phases can be animated using the Animation controls and the timeline. Refer to "Animating Sun or Moon Position" for more on animating the moon.
Positioning the Moon
The moon is positioned at the same time as the Sun. The two are always at opposite ends of the sky, so wherever the sun is positioned, the moon is directly opposite.
In the Sun/Moon control on the Sky & Fog palette, the moon's position is represented by the smaller highlight portion of the Sun Position trackball.
You can position the moon manually by using the Sun/Moon control, or numerically by specifying values in the Sky Lab. You can also position the moon exactly where you want it to appear in your scene.
To position the moon manually:
1 Display the Sky & Fog palette by clicking the Sky & Fog button at the top of the Bryce window.
2 Drag the smaller highlight area in the Sun/Moon Position control to the position where you want the light to originate.
You can position the sun, or the moon, on the horizon as you like by nudging the Sun/Moon control until the light is visible in your scene.
To position the moon numerically:
1 Display the Sky & Fog palette by clicking the Sky & Fog button at the top of the Bryce window.
2 Click the Sky Lab button. The Sky Lab palette appears.
3 Click the Day/Night toggle to display the moon icon.
5 In the Sun Controls area, type a value into the Azimuth field. The Azimuth field controls the east-to-west position of the sun/moon. The range is 0 to +360, and the default value is 60.
6 Enter a value into the Altitude field. The Altitude field controls the height of the sun/moon relative to your scene. The range is -99 to +99.
Positive values are below the horizon, negative values above.
To position the moon with precision:
1 Display the Sky & Fog palette by clicking the Sky & Fog button at the top of the Bryce window.
2 Click the Day/Night toggle to display the moon icon.
3 Hold down Control+Option/Ctrl+Alt, and double-click the Sun control.
4 Hold down Shift+Control+Option/Ctrl+Alt, and in the working window, click where you want to position the moon.
Moon Phases
The moon phases control simulates different aspects of the moon as it orbits the earth.
The moon phase is a visual clue to the time of the month. In an animation, you can use the moon phase to simulate the passage of a time. Refer to "Animating Sky & Fog settings" for more.
The phase is controlled using the Moon Phase controls in the Sky Lab palette.
To set the moon's phase:
1 Display the Sky & Fog palette by clicking the Sky & Fog button at the top of the Bryce window.
2 Click the Sky Lab button. The Sky Lab dialog appears.
4 Enable the Moon Phase option.
5 Drag over the Moon Phase control. The phase changes as you drag.
6 Click the OK icon to exit the dialog.
Moon Brightness and Sharpness
The moon is directly affected by the light reflected from the earth. The brighter the reflection, the brighter the moon's shadow. In Bryce this effect is controlled by the Earthshine setting which makes the moon brighter or darker.
A realistic moon does not have sharp edges and may appear blurry on hazy nights. The Softness control lets you set the moon's edge softness to give a more realistic feel.
To set the brightness of the moon's shadow:
1 Display the Sky & Fog palette by clicking the Sky & Fog button at the top of the Bryce window.
2 Click the Sky Lab button. The Sky Lab dialog appears.
4 Enable the Moon Phase option.
5 Drag the Earthshine slider. Drag right to increase the brightness and left to decrease it.
6 Click the OK icon to exit the dialog.
To set the moon's edge softness:
1 Display the Sky & Fog palette by clicking the Sky & Fog button at the top of the Bryce window.
2 Click the Sky Lab button. The Sky Lab dialog appears.
4 Enable the Moon Phase option.
5 Drag over the Softness control. Drag right to soften edges, or left to sharpen them.
 Corel Corporation http://www.corel.com Voice: (800) 772-6735 Fax: (716) 447-7366 www.corel.com/support |