DAZ Studio 101

In this episode I’ll tell you much of what I know about the Environment Lighting in DAZ Studio. This technique is also known as Global Illumination. I’ll explain the meanings of such cryptic abbreviations as IBL and HDRI, and how all these pieces fall together to make your scenes look handsome.

This is a continuation of the previous episode about Mesh Lights. If you haven’t already, you can watch it here.

Products I’m using in this video:

• HDRI Platinum Pack 1 by DimensionTheory
• HDRI Platinum Pack 2 by Dimension Theory
• Monsters in my Cupboard by 3D Universe

Some links to HDRI resources:

• https://textures.com
• https://hdrihaven.com
• https://hdrmaps.com
• https://www.hdri-hub.com
• https://hdri-skies.com
• https://cloud.blender.org
  

In this episode I’ll explain the basics of using Mesh Lights. Those are surface properties that can make any object emit light. I’ll show you how to set this up, how to adjust it and how to make it invisible so you can shoot through it.

I’ll also throw in some random anecdotes about surface normals and “Shaders vs Material Presets”. I hope you like it! Here’s the link about Surface Normals: – –

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normal_(geometry)

And this is the link to Eastman Kodak Museum:

• https://www.eastman.org/

Patreon Supporters can get my Light Starter Scene I’ve mentioned here:

• https://www.patreon.com/posts/31080812

Enjoy!

In this episode I’ll give you an introduction to the various parametric light objects we can create from the menu, how to use them and how to tweak their respective parameters as they apply to the Iray render engine.

Here’s the link about Colour Temperature I’ve mentioned: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Color_temperature

Here’s the one about Luminous Flux: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luminous_flux

In the following episodes I’ll tell you everything I know about lighting in DAZ Studio. It’s so much that I’ve decided to split this section into multiple smaller parts.

In this part I’ll explain the different types of lighting we have at our disposal, touch on surface properties as they apply to Iray and 3Delight, and I’ll explain how the default lighting works that we get with every new scene (and also how to remove it).

In this episode I’ll tell you many interesting things about how to use cameras in DAZ Studio. It’s a rather complex topic, which is why this episode is a little longer than usual.

We’ll create a simple scene together from the latest Platinum Club Freebie product, frame up a shot, and create a couple of cameras to play with. Along the way I’ll cover how to handle camera parameters, the concept of foreshortening and perspective, how focal length influences your shots visually and how to set aspect ratios for each shot.

The props I’m using in this episode are from the Sleek Lounge Furniture set.

Any questions, please let me know.

In this episode I’ll explain the differences between the Content Library Tab and the Smart Content Tab. I’ll also show how to bring content into your scenes, and touch on the different types of content (for example, a shirt fits on a figure, but a material preset fits on a specific shirt).

In this episode I’ll show you how to manipulate objects in the viewport using four tools: the translate, scale, rotate and universal manipulator tools. I’ll also explain the concept of world vs local/object coordinates and touch on screen coordinates.

These are tough concepts to grasp, but with a bit of practice, you’ll be flying around your objects and position them where you want them to do in no time.

In this episode I’ll talk you through the various Viewport Drawing Styles.

The default we usually see is “texture shaded”, which is a nice compromise between displaying a good looking “live” picture, while keeping your computer responsive for navigating and posing.

However, with larger scenes your system may become slower and less responsive. We can use a lesser detailed Drawing Style to bring responsiveness back into our scenes.

In this episode I’ll show you how to navigate your 3D world within the viewport. I’ll explain several ways to do this, and I’ll also show you how to customise the modifier keys for faster navigation using your mouse and keyboard.

In addition, there’s also a fully immersive way to “walk” through your scene using the ASD and W keys. I’m going into more detail on how to navigate like that here or on my View in iTunes Store.

In this episode I’l explain how we can utilise Install Manager to update both DAZ Studio as well as content if and when updates are available. I will also show you how to update Install Manager itself.

This happened to me today and was not a planned part of the series, but I found it was a good opportunity to demonstrate how to handle updates (since we’ve just been talking about it a few days ago).