UberVolume

From Omnifreaker Shaders Scripts and Addons for DAZ Studio
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UberVolume is an interior volume shader (in prman speak) for DAZStudio that allows you to produce a variety of Smoke/Fog/Mist/Cloud affects.

User Guide

Setup

UberVolume step by step.jpg

UberVolume can be used in several different ways. In order to create a volumetric spotlight, follow these steps:

  1. Create a Spotlight (1)
  2. Double-click the 'Parent Cone to Light' or one of the others marked with 2 in the above image.

If you would like to apply one of the look presets, you can then:

  1. Select the SpotLight 1 Volume (3)
  2. Go to surfaces and select the SpotLight 1 Volume (4)
  3. Double-click on the !Uber Volume Dust, Cloud, etc to apply (6 in the image)
  4. Select whatever effect you want to produce, these can be edited in the surface for strength etc. See below.

Basic Controls

Bellow is a description of the various controls of UberVolume.

UberVolume doc properties.jpg

Color
The Color of the Volume
Density
The Density of the Volume; The higher the value the more difficult to see through the volume.
Density 0.01 Density 0.02 Density 0.05
UberVolume def.jpg UberVolume density02.jpg UberVolume density05.jpg
Volume Start/End
Min/Max distance the light will penetrate the volume. Leaving these values small/large will ensure the entire volume is used.
Step Size
This is the main speed/quality control and represents how often the volume is sampled along the light ray. Small values will mean many samples and smooth transitions; Large values can lead to grainy images and fast renders.
Step Size 1.0 Step Size 8.0
UberVolume def.jpg UberVolume steps8.jpg
Scatter
The Color that is scattered, tinting the background the complementary (opposite) color of the scatter color.
Scatter Blue Scatter Orange
UberVolume scatter001.jpg UberVolume scatter150.jpg

Smoke Controls

Adding smoke will add a 3D noise texture to the Volume.

Strength
This is a mix value between an even volume and the smoke pattern.
Strength 0 Strength 50 Strength 100
UberVolume density02.jpg UberVolume smoke050.jpg UberVolume smoke100.jpg
Detail
The amount of detail in the smoke. Low detail can look puffy while high detail can look more wispy.
Detail 1 Detail 10 Detail 20
UberVolume smoke100.jpg UberVolume smoke100 detail10.jpg UberVolume smoke100 detail20.jpg
Scale
The size of the noise pattern. Large scale can look more like clouds while scale values can produce a dusty look.
Scale 1 Scale 10 Scale 20
UberVolume smoke100 scale01.jpg UberVolume smoke100.jpg UberVolume smoke100 scale20.jpg
Contrast
The Contrast between the smoke/empty areas. A high value produces hard transitions.
Contrast 1 Contrast 5 Contrast 20
UberVolume smoke100.jpg UberVolume smoke100 contrast05.jpg UberVolume smoke100 contrast20.jpg

Tips and Tricks

  • Alert.png One of the limitations of an interior shader is that the camera cannot be inside the volume. Otherwise the atmospheric effect goes away.
  • Give your volume color by using lights that support texture maps/gells like UberSpot and UberPoint.