3. Lighting with an HDR image
Once the camera matching has been performed, it is time to add the High Dynamic Range panorama to the scene to allow for accurate lighting and reflections.
Temporarily add the HDR or EXR file as your environment background, and ensure it displays in the camera viewport. Rotate
the image horizontally in the material editor until the part of the HDRI that matches the background image comes into view in
the viewport. This image is now oriented correctly for use in lighting the scene.
To do so, using 3ds max and VRay, create a VRayLight in the scene, set the type to 'Dome' and drag an instance of the HDRI
from the material editor to the 'Texture' slot in the light's properties (Figure 12). Other packages and renderers employ similar
methods to achieve the same result.
Figure 12
It is usually helpful at this point to add a simple object or objects to the scene with very basic materials such as a matte
grey (Figure 13). This will give an indication of the brightness of the HDR light, which can then be adjusted until it reaches
an appropriate level for the scene.
Figure 13
At this point, the set up of the HDRI and background image is complete. Objects and materials can now be imported to seamlessly
blend with the background image. The following image was created using a 3SIX0 HDRI and background image, and employing the
techniques described above (Figure 14).
Figure 14
