CompuServe Thread

Hi Stephen, Please don't type in CAPS.. it hurts our eyes and it means that your shouting. 😉 << light cone.. >> I just searched the library with a keyword LIGHT and there are several files that may be of interest to you. jonas[adesk]

Hi Stephen, The most common approach to this effect is to model a cone with the same size and orientation as the spotlight beam. Then assign a semi-transparent, self-illuminated material to the cone. The files that Jonas suggested should provide you with the details, and the book "Inside 3D Studio" also contains examples. Steven

Hi Stephen, In addition to Stephen Elliot's suggestions I usually apply a graduated opacity map to the self illuminated cone. Use Ani Pro to create a 256 colour vgrad ramping from white down to black, save it as a gif and choose it in your opacity map slot. When applying the material, ensure the white end of the graduated map is at the thin end of the cone. This will give you a gentle tapering off so that you don't see the base of the cylinder. It may require a little experimenting, but can produce some nice results. I hope these pointers are useful. Regards, Andy Roberts BITS Corp.

hi Stephen, << light cone.. >> try putting a smoke.sxp with small values to maque your cone consistant. keep the Vgrad opacity as says bits and put some smoke.sxp for the mask. i makes an animated transparency on your cone. Try it! Laurent.