CompuServe Messages

Dave, we've tried all the different types of lightning and were most happy with hand painted/animated ones. Do them in animator pro (or you favourite 2d animation package) and composite them in your 3d animation or put them on 2d "cards" with tex/op mapping material. another way that would allow good control would be to create geometric strikes using the shaper and lofter. You could easily draw the paths around the logo using the freehand tool in the 2d shaper while viewing the 3d logo object. Loft a simple shape with mapping co-ordinates on. Add branches to the fork seperately. Use an animated opacity map to reveal the lighting – use the same map for self-illumination and use glow or lenzFX as a post-process. for an instant lighting strike with controllable geometry you could make a deciduous tree (winter setting for no leaves) in Silicon Garden (if you own it) and turn it upside down and use the same kind of material and technique as above. The inverted branches might make a quick and tweakable lighting fork. Use animated lights in your 3d scene to give the flickering lightining effect. Turning them on and off very rapidly (strobe effect) might give you the opportunity to have the logo appear during one of the lights off moments. Very spooky <g>.