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💡 Scene Lighting

The lighting system in StorySplat allows you to add and manipulate various light sources to control the illumination and mood of your 3D scenes. Proper lighting significantly enhances the visual appeal and realism of 3D models and interactive elements.

❗ Important Note: Scene lighting currently only affects traditional 3D mesh models (like those imported from .glb, .gltf files, or custom mesh hotspots) and standard hotspot visuals (spheres, image/video/gif planes unless 'Unlit Shader' is enabled). Gaussian Splats themselves are pre-lit based on their capture data and are not affected by lights added within the StorySplat editor. We are exploring future options for splat relighting.

Default Scene Lighting

Every new StorySplat scene starts with a Default Hemispheric Light. This light provides basic, ambient illumination from above and below, ensuring your scene isn't completely dark. You can:

  • Modify: Adjust its intensity, color, and ground color like any other light.
  • Delete: Remove it if you prefer a custom lighting setup or a darker scene.
  • Replace: Delete the default and add different light types for more specific effects.

Accessing the Lighting Menu

  1. In the StorySplat editor, locate the vertical toolbar on the left.
  2. Click the "Lighting" button (☀️ icon).
  3. The Lighting Controls panel will appear.
  4. Click "Enter Light Edit Mode" to start adding or modifying lights.

Light Types Explained

StorySplat offers several types of lights:

  • Hemispheric Light (🌗):
    • Simulates ambient sky and ground light (e.g., outdoor daylight).
    • Provides soft, even illumination from two opposite directions (sky and ground).
    • Good for establishing base lighting levels. No shadows.
    • Properties: Intensity, Color (Sky), Ground Color.
  • Point Light (💡):
    • Emits light equally in all directions from a single point, like a bare light bulb.
    • Intensity falls off with distance.
    • Useful for localized light sources (lamps, sparks). Casts shadows if configured.
    • Properties: Intensity, Color, Position, Range.
  • Directional Light (☀️):
    • Simulates a distant light source like the sun, where rays are parallel.
    • The light's position matters for shadow calculation, but the direction vector determines the light angle.
    • Casts parallel shadows.
    • Properties: Intensity, Color, Position (for shadow origin), Direction.
  • Spot Light (🔦):
    • Emits light in a cone shape from a specific point towards a direction.
    • Creates focused beams of light. Casts shadows within its cone.
    • Properties: Intensity, Color, Position, Direction, Angle (cone width), Exponent (falloff intensity), Range.

Managing Lights

  • Adding: While in Light Edit Mode, select a light type icon (Hemispheric, Point, Directional) in the panel and click "Add Light". The new light appears near the camera's current view.
  • Selecting: Click on a light's name in the panel list. The selected light's properties appear below, and a visual representation (wireframe sphere or direction indicator) appears in the 3D view, along with transform gizmos.
  • Editing Properties: Adjust sliders (Intensity, Range, Angle, Exponent) and color pickers in the properties panel for the selected light. Modify Direction vectors numerically if needed.
  • Transforming (Position/Rotation):
    • Select the light in the panel list.
    • Click the Move (↔️) or Rotate (🔄) gizmo icons in the panel list next to the light's name.
    • Use the corresponding gizmo that appears in the 3D view to adjust the light's position or direction. Note: Only Position applies to Point/Hemispheric, while Position & Rotation apply to Directional/Spot.
    • You can also input precise coordinates in the light's properties panel (Position/Direction fields).
  • Deleting: Select the light in the list and click the "Remove" button.
  • Exiting Edit Mode: Click "Exit Light Edit Mode" in the panel. Light visuals and gizmos will disappear, but the lighting effect remains.

Customization Tips

  • Naming: Double-click a light's name in the list to rename it for easier organization.
  • Color: Use the color pickers for precise color selection. Subtle tints can add mood.
  • Intensity: Adjust intensity gradually. Values typically range from 0 (off) to 2 (very bright), but can sometimes go higher.
  • Combining Lights: Use multiple lights for realistic effects (e.g., a Directional light for sun, Point lights for lamps, and a low-intensity Hemispheric light for ambient fill).
  • Shadows: Note that shadow casting adds performance overhead. Currently, shadow configuration options are limited in the editor.

Performance & Best Practices

  • Remember Compatibility: Lights only affect meshes and standard hotspot visuals, not the Gaussian Splats themselves.
  • Start Simple: Begin with a Hemispheric or Directional light for base illumination.
  • Limit Complexity: While there's no hard limit, fewer lights generally lead to better performance, especially on lower-end devices.
  • Use Range: For Point and Spot lights, adjust the Range property to limit their influence and improve performance.

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