Hard Light Productions Forums

Modding, Mission Design, and Coding => The Modding Workshop => Topic started by: .::Tin Can::. on April 15, 2004, 11:11:03 am

Title: Brief Question
Post by: .::Tin Can::. on April 15, 2004, 11:11:03 am
I was going over the Main HLPBB Site, and stumbled across this screenshot, I view them quite a bit and this caught my eye, very special too. I was wondering:

(http://img5.imageshack.us/img5/2963/station.JPG)

Is this kind of effect on the Arcadia possible? I mean, have this kind of extremely awesome glowing effects. I love it, and was wondering how it could be done? Would it be possible? Let's try and not flame here either please... :sigh:
Title: Brief Question
Post by: Unknown Target on April 15, 2004, 11:18:09 am
It's not a screenshot, it's a render (and it looks like one of Setekh's too).
And yes, it is possible, and was already sorta done (check the SCP forum).
Title: Brief Question
Post by: Black Wolf on April 15, 2004, 11:22:04 am
Yes and no. That particular shot is a render (A very nice one too I might add). But that particular effect (called Overexposure I believe) was briefly implemented by the SCP people - it looked as awesome then as it does in that picture, but it was kinda buggy - I'm not 100% sure what was wrong, but I know they took it out pretty quick. Perhaps it'll be going back in after 3.6 though.
Title: Brief Question
Post by: .::Tin Can::. on April 15, 2004, 11:25:32 am
What were the bugs that followed its implimentation? And yes I know it's a render, I was just wondering if we could DO that in the game, have everything light up as well as it looks in that picture.
Title: Brief Question
Post by: StratComm on April 16, 2004, 12:43:19 am
It never got fully implimented, just played around with.  And yeah, try looking for info on overexposure about 6 months ago in the SCP forum.  I don't know if pics will still be there, but it'd be worth a look to see how it was going to come out.  As I recall there was trouble getting the effect in without effectively adding another render pass, as things are already somewhat overburdened in that respect.
Title: Brief Question
Post by: Liberator on April 16, 2004, 12:51:41 am
Well, if we could apply glow and spec maps at the same time it would help.

main render pass
glow pass
spec pass

are there any other's?
Title: Brief Question
Post by: Rictor on April 16, 2004, 12:58:55 am
Wasn't it Sticks who developed the effect? What was wrong with it, if you recall? Or did it just get put on hold until after 3.6?
Title: Brief Question
Post by: redmenace on April 16, 2004, 01:20:50 am
yeah sticks put it in but didn't commit because (i think) of the code freeze. in addition, just keep waiting we are in the middle of bug hunting. we don't want another 3.5.
Title: Brief Question
Post by: Rictor on April 16, 2004, 01:43:29 am
and by "in the middle of", you mean....?

:lol: :lol:

Well, you can't blame me for trying.
Title: Brief Question
Post by: Unknown Target on April 16, 2004, 06:36:17 am
red, it was before the code freeze, iirc, but I think it was too buggy, and the overexposure applied to everything, not just lights (like, say, the actual ships). Basically, as it was, it required too much resources to make it look like you smeared vasoline over the screen :D
Title: Brief Question
Post by: Singh on April 16, 2004, 06:43:23 am
I think the build after 3.6 is going to be the buggiest one all of humanity has ever seen.....prolly cause my system to explode with the sheer ub3rn3ss tho :D
Title: Brief Question
Post by: redmenace on April 16, 2004, 08:29:18 am
funny thing is that the original thread has long since moved to the internal and the last post was by bobboau in october last year.
(http://dynamic4.gamespy.com/~freespace/forums/attachment.php?s=&postid=342758)
Title: Brief Question
Post by: JarC on April 16, 2004, 08:52:56 am
Quote
Originally posted by redmenace
funny thing is that the original thread has long since moved to the internal and the last post was by bobboau in october last year.
(http://dynamic4.gamespy.com/~freespace/forums/attachment.php?s=&postid=342758)
yeah, but you must be 'special'  to read it...

'You do not have permission to access this page.'
Title: Brief Question
Post by: karajorma on April 16, 2004, 09:37:12 am
That's what he meant about it being moved to the internal :D
Title: Brief Question
Post by: redmenace on April 16, 2004, 09:52:07 am
believe me there is nothing special about me.
Since you all can't read it now I PDFed the thread up to when it moved.
www.swooh.com/peon/redmenace7/OXEffect/Over Exposure Thread.pdf
(http://www.swooh.com/peon/redmenace7/OXEffect/fuctdanaus.jpg)
(http://www.swooh.com/peon/redmenace7/OXEffect/OEbug01.jpg)
(http://www.swooh.com/peon/redmenace7/OXEffect/screen00.jpg)
(http://www.swooh.com/peon/redmenace7/OXEffect/screen03.jpg)
(http://www.swooh.com/peon/redmenace7/OXEffect/screen05.jpg)
(http://www.swooh.com/peon/redmenace7/OXEffect/screen07.jpg)
Title: Brief Question
Post by: Unknown Target on April 16, 2004, 10:46:46 am
That's the bug shots, but if you look in the real thread, you can find the shots that actually look good :D
Title: Brief Question
Post by: Fineus on April 16, 2004, 10:50:22 am
Except the links to those images are broken...
Title: Brief Question
Post by: .::Tin Can::. on April 16, 2004, 11:22:06 am
Damn, this thread grew since I've last been here.

In reference to the subject, I wasn't refering to making ALL the ships shiney gold and sparkle, just the Arcadia like it was in that shot. Looked like a large CITY station. Very nice...
Title: Brief Question
Post by: Liberator on April 16, 2004, 11:47:27 am
Maybe if it was rendered just off the Glow and Spec passes, that would prevent it from messing up the Main Render pass.
Title: Brief Question
Post by: ShadowDrakken on April 16, 2004, 01:01:25 pm
Quote
Originally posted by Black Wolf
Yes and no. That particular shot is a render (A very nice one too I might add). But that particular effect (called Overexposure I believe) was briefly implemented by the SCP people - it looked as awesome then as it does in that picture, but it was kinda buggy - I'm not 100% sure what was wrong, but I know they took it out pretty quick. Perhaps it'll be going back in after 3.6 though.


Actually, overexposure is a washed out look, like with you stare at the sun in FS2, the effect here is called blooming, where a bright object's edge bleeds into the surrounding area :)
Title: Brief Question
Post by: StratComm on April 16, 2004, 02:10:15 pm
It's all just a matter of what you're calling it.  IIRC Light Blooming refers to a specific render process which this is absolutely not.

Anyway, you'd only want this applied to the glow maps, not to spec or anything else.  Applying it to the spec map would wash out the detail that the spec maps can provide.
Title: Brief Question
Post by: Liberator on April 16, 2004, 03:35:20 pm
Spec maps define the reflectivity of the object, so the light reflected should have "blooming" too
Title: Brief Question
Post by: Lightspeed on April 16, 2004, 03:40:11 pm
Quote
Originally posted by StratComm
Anyway, you'd only want this applied to the glow maps, not to spec or anything else.  Applying it to the spec map would wash out the detail that the spec maps can provide.


that, and to objects in front of suns.
Title: Brief Question
Post by: Nico on April 16, 2004, 04:32:00 pm
You want raytracing too, maybe? :p
Yeah, I think what you call overexposure ( it's just a glow, but since the name is already taken by the slef illumnation maps... ) should be applied to the glow ( d'uh! ) map only, but should also ignore the black color, coz I tried the old build (  the pic is with the demon, above, is from me ) and it glowed even the black, which was very odd :p ( but, honestly, for some things, black glow could be hella cool, ah, choices, choices :p )