368
IMAGE: GORDON BAIN
P
HOTOSHOP HAS
made a huge leap
forward in its handling of 3D
objects, particularly in the key
area of the final render. One
of the key enhancements
is the use of Image-Based
Lighting (IBL), which uses an
image of your choice that can
tint and be reflected in the
rendered model.
This 3D model of a
Grumman F9F-5 Panther
has been modeled by Forum
regular Gordon Bain, who
has generously agreed to let
me include it on the website
with this edition. We’ll look at
how to apply a few advanced
techniques to the plane to
make it come to life.
Rather than place it in the
sky, I’ve located our plane
underwater, gently settling
down onto the ocean bed.
This is as close as
Photoshop gets to real 3D
modeling. If you find it all
just too daunting, I quite
understand and won’t hold it
against you.
1
This file consists of two elements: the underwater background, and the plane model. As it’s a 3D
model, we can position our plane in any pose we like, using the 3D axis indicator and other positioning
tools as described earlier in this chapter. It’s probably easiest to hide the Ground Plane.
3
Double-click the Environment button at the top of the
3D panel (above the lights), to open the Properties panel.
Select All and Copy the Background layer in the document.
Check the IBL tickbox, and click the New icon next to it: Paste
the copied background into the IBL file, and Save it. The image
will now appear much darker (but this is temporary).
Image-based lighting
12
The third dimension
369
HOT TIP
If you find this
rendering
technique is just
too much like hard
work, you can
always simulate
the effect with an
Adjustment Layer.
2
In the 3D panel, turn off one of the Infinite Lights and use the handle to turn the other so it’s facing
towards the sun. Double-click the light to open the Properties panel: here, check the Shadow box, so
the light casts a shadow, and choose a Softness value of around 40%.
4
The Image-Based Lighting will tint the plane – but we need to give it some depth. Click on the
Camera icon in the Properties panel, and set some Depth of Field values – I’ve chosen a distance of
0.3, and a depth of 4. This gives the impression of the plane fading off with distance, accentuated by the
refraction of the water. Click the Render button at the bottom of the Properties panel, and go and have a
cup of coffee while it renders. To make the scene more convincing, I’ve also applied some Gaussian Blur to
the background to push it out of focus as well.
How to Cheat in Photoshop CC
..................Content has been hidden....................
You can't read the all page of ebook, please click here login for view all page.