Light Shading Properties

Harmony provides you with a wide series of parameters to customize your light shading effects. See below the description for each node's parameters.

Volume Object Properties
Normal Map Properties
Light Position Properties
Light Shader Properties
Tone Shader Properties

Volume Object Properties

Parameter Description
Name

With the light shading feature, the naming of the nodes becomes important. Since there isn’t any limitation on the number of Volume Object nodes that can be added to a node structure, it's quite important to give a good name to each Volume Object node. These names will later appear in the Normal Map node, in the Volume Creation section.

ID

This is the identity number you assign to a drawing or a group of drawings that will be represented in the same volume once it is generated by the Normal Map node. This ID is also in the Normal Map node, where a list of all Volume Objects is applied.

Cut Volume Cues with Geometry

When this option is not selected, Harmony cuts the 3D geometry (shading bas relief) of the drawing after it has been generated by the Normal Map node.

Some nodes, such as filters, can affect the shape or colour of the drawing. Those nodes will be processed and recognized by the Normal Map node. Therefore, it is possible to limit the 3D geometry only on a part of the drawing, but not all of it. The 3D geometry follows the edge of the entire drawing and will not be affect by the filters.

Use Drawing to Create Volume

During the generation created by the Normal Map node, the shape of the drawing or group of drawings identified with the same ID will be recognized to create the volume. When this option is selected, the Light Shader and Tone Shader effect appear inside the contour of those drawings.

Elevation Baseline

The baseline defines how much you can add or carve the Volume Object. The drawing or group of drawings connected to this Volume Object node share the same baseline value. Because this setting is closely tied to the adding/curving option called Intensity (0-100) (accessible in the Volumetric Colour Information of the Normal Map node), both places need to have some parameters set. Playing only with the Geometry Intensity won’t change anything if there aren’t any parameters set in the Normal Map node.

Normal Map Properties

Parameter Description
Volume Creation

Lists all the different volume object IDs are listed. This is where you can define the basic volumetric shape of each Volume Object node connect to the Normal Map.

Object

Let you add or remove Volume Object nodes that are connected to the Normal Map node.

Add All Defined Objects: Adds all Volume Object nodes connected to the Normal Map node.

Remove Selected Objects: Removes all Volume Object nodes from the Volume Creation list.

Name

The name that was previously set ineach Volume Object node. This information can be really helpful when there are many volume objects listed. With a good name, it is easy to discover what the ID number is related to. When you hover over this column, a tooltip appears listing all volume objects with the same ID.

In the following image, the tooltip indicates that three copies were made from FootR-Object. By keeping the same name, you can easily see that each time you see a Volume Object named “FootR-Object”, the ID will be the same.

In the second example, a specific name was created for each volume object, even if they have the same ID. That way, it is easy to find a specific nodenode when searching for an element with the Search tool in the NetworkNode view.

ID

The identity number that was previously set in the volume object nodenode appears here. The tooltip in the ID column lists all drawing elements that are connected to the volume object with this identity number.

Bevel Size

Defines the size of the bevel on the contour of all the drawings related to a specific ID number

Elevation

Defines the elevation of a specific volume object. The higher the value, the more the volumetry of this Volume Object resembles a conical or pyramidal shape.

Elevation Smoothness

Complementary to the Elevation column. Instead of keeping a conical or pyramidal shape, the shape will be smoothed to create a sphere or a bump shape. The edge will be round instead of sharp.

Bevel Multiplier

A multiplier of the Bevel Size value in the board. This affects every object listed.

Elevation Multiplier

A multiplier of the Elevation value in the board. This affects every object listed.

Elevation Smoothness Multiplier

A multiplier of the Elevation Smoothness value in the list. This affects every object listed.

Consider Truck Factor

Keeps the same ratio for the Light Shading system when the camera zooms in or out. This parameter cannot work properly if the size of the drawing, with a volume object nodenode, is changed on the drawing itself. In other words, if the animation is directly created on the drawing layer.

Override Modelling by Colour
Add Colour

Lets you add or remove any colour that will affect the Adding/ Carving options in the list beneath. When you select this button, each colour palette in the scene is listed and all their swatches are displayed.

Swatches

The first column of the Override Modelling by Colour board is the Swatches. This column does not have a name. When you select a colour swatch from the Add Colour list, the colour swatch appears at the beginning of the list.

Generate Normals

Activates or deactivates the generation of the Normal Map.

Normal Map Quality

Lets you change the Quality of the Normal Map from low to high.

Output Elevation in Blue Channel

When selected, the Elevation is calculated and appears in the soft render mode.

When deselected, the object ID appears in the soft render mode.

Because it is connected to the blue channel of a drawing, the result will only affect the blue channel.

Light Position Properties

Parameter Description
Source Lets you control the value of the light source.
Target The point or direction at which the light is pointing
 

3D Path: Lets you use a 3D path when animating the light.

Separate: Lets you enter separate values for the X, Y and Z axes.

(x) Axis: Lets you type in a new East/West coordinate corresponding to the desired position.

(y) Axis: Lets you type in a new North/South coordinate corresponding to the desired position.

(z) Axis: Lets you type in a new Forward/Backward coordinate corresponding to the desired position.

Light Shader Properties

Parameter Description
Name Lets you rename the node.
Light
Light Type

Directional: A light that is parallel in the scene. Each “beam” of light follows the direction defined by the light source and target, and point in the same direction. This type of light is used when the light source is far away or very big, like the sun.

Point: A light that illuminates everything around it. Its “beam” of light will go in all directions like a fire.

Spot: A light that forms a conical shape like a flashlight.

Cone Angle

The value that defines the light’s cone angle. This option is only accessible with the Light Type set to Spot.

Diffusion

Lets you play with the diffusion of the light on the surface of the drawing. In other words, it is the edge softness. This option is only accessible with the Light Type set to Spot.

Light Source Elevation

Defines the height of the spotlight. This option is only accessible when the Light Type set to Spot or Point.

Shading Type

Smooth: The light and tone fx will have smooth edges.

Sharp: The light and tone fx will have sharp edges.

Bias

Define the polarization of the light.

When the Shade type is set to Smooth, it defines the width of the light’s smooth zone.

When the Shade type is set to Sharp, the Bias defines the antialiasing on the edge of the hightlight or tone zone. But,if the Shade type is set to Sharp, the Bias option need a small value such as 0.1 or 0.2. The exponent will be able to compensate the limitation of this small value.

Abruptness

This is a multiplier value of the Bias option. It will define how quick the polarization of the light will change from a value to another.

Adjust Light Intensity

Lets you adjust the light intensity.

Intensity

Lets you set the strength of the light.

Multiplier

Multiplies the value of the Intensity option.

Surface Reflectivity

This option is useful for exaggerating the light on the edge of the 3D geometry. The closer an edge is to the light source, the more intense the light will be.

Colour
Red/Green/Blue/Alpha

The colour and transparency of the Colour Card. You can also attach these parameters to function columns to change their values over time.

Click the colour swatch to open the Colour Picker window and select a colour.

Colour Swatch

Opens the Colour Picker window in which you can specify the colour.

Use Image Colour

Lets you use the colour of the drawing in a lighter or darker colour for the highlight and tone fx.

Image Colour Intensity

Lets you blend the colour of the light with the image colour.

Flatten Fx

This is useful when there are several highlight and tone fx, one over the other, but are supposed to be merged together. Sometimes, shadows and lights look better when they do not overlap.

Tone Shader Properties

Parameter Description
Name Lets you rename the node.
Light
Light Type

Directional: A light that is parallel in the scene. Each “beam” of light follows the direction defined by the light source and target, and point in the same direction. This type of light is used when the light source is far away or very big, like the sun.

Point: A light that illuminates everything around it. Its “beam” of light will go in all directions like a fire.

Spot: A light that forms a conical shape like a flashlight.

Cone Angle

The value that defines the light’s cone angle. This option is only accessible with the Light Type set to Spot.

Diffusion

Lets you play with the diffusion of the light on the surface of the drawing. In other words, it is the edge softness. This option is only accessible with the Light Type set to Spot.

Light Source Elevation

Defines the height of the spotlight. This option is only accessible when the Light Type set to Spot or Point.

Shading Type

Smooth: The light and tone fx will have smooth edges.

Sharp: The light and tone fx will have sharp edges.

Bias

Define the polarization of the light.

When the Shade type is set to Smooth, it defines the width of the light’s smooth zone.

When the Shade type is set to Sharp, the Bias defines the antialiasing on the edge of the hightlight or tone zone. But,if the Shade type is set to Sharp, the Bias option need a small value such as 0.1 or 0.2. The exponent will be able to compensate the limitation of this small value.

Abruptness

This is a multiplier value of the Bias option. It will define how quick the polarization of the light will change from a value to another.

Adjust Light Intensity

Lets you adjust the light intensity.

Intensity

Lets you set the strength of the light.

Multiplier

Multiplies the value of the Intensity option.

Surface Reflectivity

This option is useful for exaggerating the light on the edge of the 3D geometry. The closer an edge is to the light source, the more intense the light will be.

Colour
Red/Green/Blue/Alpha

The colour and transparency of the Colour Card. You can also attach these parameters to function columns to change their values over time.

Click the colour swatch to open the Colour Picker window and select a colour.

Colour Swatch

Opens the Colour Picker window in which you can specify the colour.

Use Image Colour

Lets you use the colour of the drawing in a lighter or darker colour for the highlight and tone fx.

Image Colour Intensity

Lets you blend the colour of the light with the image colour.

Flatten Fx

This is useful when there are several highlight and tone fx, one over the other, but are supposed to be merged together. Sometimes, shadows and lights look better when they do not overlap.