OTOY Forums

The gauntlet is dropped, and a worthy challenge . There seem to be a number of free IES file generators out there, but nothing directly disclosing the formulaic translation between a given light cone geometry and resulting ies file.

However ArchiCAD does have an explicit IES light source option, where a manufacturer's or other IES file is loaded by the ArchiCAD light object to generate the light cone. For this light type, If the IES data is then accessible to Octane, along with the light position and orientation, would this suffice for Octane to be able to generate a polygon of same position and orientation , using same ies data as a texture?

To clarify my motives - if I want a spotlight light coming from a direction where there is no geometry modelled, or where modelling anything would be counter-productive to workflow and intent (eg where the model is still schematic rather than realistic, and spot lighting is purely for atmospheric effect, and where there is a need to iteratively test, then adjust angle and characteristics of the light source on the fly until the right effect is created) .

There are frequent cases where a 'real' spotlight object would enter or even obstruct the desired camera view of the scene when this is undesirable and a distraction from the intent of the scene - diverting a lot of effort away from the desired outcome and into workarounds for hiding light objects where the light effect but not the object containing light emitting polygons needs to be visible

An Lamp with an IES can be rendered in Octane as a simply polygon plane with an emitter material with the IES in the distribution pin. It's the Lamps without an IES file that are problematic.

Paul

face_off wrote:An Lamp with an IES can be rendered in Octane as a simply polygon plane with an emitter material with the IES in the distribution pin. It's the Lamps without an IES file that are problematic.

Paul

The trick is that a genwral light source with ies has no polygons - which is why I was suggusting Octane plugin should naybe nanufacture a polygon where the archicad area light is placed, pointi g in the aame direction... Does tgat make sense?
In fact I am suggusting this happens even where there is an object associated with the light, so that we dont end up with tens of tiny polygons associated with the modelled light bulb all emitting when the archicad light bulb material is allocated an IES texture in Octane...

As stated above, I think the IES light source is a reasonably simple situation. It's where there is no IES file that it gets complex. And I don't think the plugin should convert some light sources to emitters, and not others - since that would be too confusing for users.

Paul