Windlight Question

[EstellaSerrano]

I've got a question regarding windlight settings. I often find myself struggling with the windlight settings, because it usually shows my avatar with either super pale, glowing skin or yellow skin or something inbetween. My graphics are all the way bumped up. Texture bumpiness is also fine, resolution is fine. I just cannot find any good windlight setting. 

I'm looking for a windlight setting that I can use to roleplay with. That is both realistic, not too bright but also makes my avi's skin come off as normally pale. As it is supposed to be, in this pictures below. (credits to images go to where it's due, of course. To the people who they belong to, on flickr). (it's the skin I'm actually using, I'm aware it might be edited but still). Because currently my skin ends up looking like these: https://imgur.com/a/C2HYVz5

 

Edited February 5, 2019 by EstellaSerrano
Added image.

[Tamara Artis]

There are many windlight settings and some of them are the default settings for specific viewer, some can be downloaded and installed in your own viewer and it often happens that the photographer edits the specific windlight. 

You didn't say which viewer you use or what windlights you tried. So I can only advise you to pose your avatar and try different windlights until you find the one that fits you. If possible, search for those that have "avatar optimal" words in their names. Also, you can edit any windlight and play with the sun and ambient colors.

[Myra Wildmist]

Hi, Estella.

First, the bottom photo you posted is almost certainly photoshopped, so it's not a good representation of the lighting and effects you can get in sl. However, you can get some very realistic looks, but there are a lot of factors that go into how you look in sl. Here's a little list of settings that will help. These are going to be dependent on your computer, of course:

1. Enable Advanced Lighting Model.
2. Enable all local lights.
3. Turn on Ambient Occlusion. It softens the edges of the shadows and does a few more things.
4. Set your resolution to Outstanding. (It's a FS setting. Not sure if it's the same in the Linden viewer.). If you can walk around with Lifelike, even better.
5. Set your Anti-Aliasing t0 16x

Those are just to get you started. You could also turn on your Depth of Field, but that's going to put some more pressure on your graphics. If you have a newish system, you'll probably be fine.

There are other settings, but that's my getting started list. If anyone else has any suggestions, weigh on in. : )

Now, about windlights.  Most of them are a bit too extreme or don't have decent shadows or the colors don't belong on this planet.

I make almost all of mine. However, there are a few nice ones that might work for you:

• (SS) Atmospheric 06:00 b Nice, dusk windlight. The shadows could be better, but the light is good.
• (SS) Atmos 07:00 1 and 0:800 1 Both nice, and nice enough shadows. Again, nice dusk time light.
• AvatarOpt. There's one called Analuletia AvatarOpt -- that one's not too good.
• Fineday
• Papersnow is nice, but you have to change the time of day on it to get it to look nice. I like it around 9 am.
• Raymond's Bright and Hazy Day and Raymond's Brighter Day

That should get you started on windlights. At the very least, play with the time of day. That can make a huge difference in the look of the windlight. If you edit a windlight, remember time of day controls the height of the sun in the sky, so it controls the length of your shadows. Est angle controls the angle of the sun (or moon) relative to the horizon, essentially control the angle of your shadows.

Feel free to im me in world. All of my flickr photos are done in-world without photoshopping: https://www.flickr.com/photos/myrawildmist/

 

[Chic Aeon]

In your examples that you took of yourself, both have ambient light color shifts -- you can see that easily by looking at the background walls (presumably a light neutral color but that really doesn't matter when you have two examples). 

You most likely need a Windlight setting with very little color included in the lighting.  Here is an example of what you DON'T want:

 

If I take that same light setting and change from COLORS to grayscale (or close to it) then it looks like this -- pretty much what my skin is supposed to look like). 

 

Below is my personal "everyday" default setting:

There are hundreds of choices in the Third Party Viewer lists (Mine are the ones called Places made LONG ago and named after sims that are mostly gone now).  Learning how to change the settings and make your own is a big part of being a photographer in SL.

I have a long time and very popular Windlight page including some not so new now but still informative video links. You can find it here:  https://chicatphilsplace.blogspot.com/2009/09/windlight-settings.html

Happy learning!

Edited February 10, 2019 by Chic Aeon
spelling

[rasterscan]

I discovered, as usual long after most of you, that in Quick Prefs, clicking 'Atmos 6' right near the top of the drop down list, and sliding the sun slider where desired, makes the game look fantastic. Before that I spent years on a fixed midday sun position, which is fine, but not half as visually pleasing, know what I mean ?