Spotlights

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Spotlights

Postby Tutorial on Sun Mar 06, 2005 11:59 pm

category
General Half-Life 2/Lighting

description
Often over-used but can still look nice, follow this tutorial on spotlight application.

keywords
spotlight, spotlights, spot, light, point_spotlight.

Ever wanted to create your own version of the combine spot light?

With much trial and error, this tutorial was formed (to help you not have to go through the same crap!)

Spotlights:
The following tutorial should produce results much like this:
Image
or indeed:
Image

First, create your spotlight or light source. This can be anything from a neon strip light to a inset light fitting in the ceiling to - a spotlight. I've used a prop_static for the benifit of this tutorial - model name: props_wasteland/light_spotlight01_lamp.mdl

Place the model but don't orientate it to shine the direction you want just yet. That come later. Next, place a light_spot at the bulb end, and set it up to shine in the direction the spotlight is facing. For my searchlight model, this is already set up. I just had to move the light_spot into a decent position on the model. Give the light a suitably high brightness (800 for mine).

Finally, add a point_spotlight, and position it at the same place as the spotlight. Alter the beam width, length and colour to get the desired beam effect.

3D view:
Image

From above:
Image

To position and orientate the search light properly, simply group the 3 entities and use the rotate handles (click the entities twice to get the round corner handles, and move them till the light it orientated for how you like. This saves hours in calculating angles and all that!
Image

Compile and enjoy the light in all it's volumetric glory!

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Postby mwalker on Tue Jul 26, 2005 9:23 pm

hey where is that recessed light model from ? i can't find it anywhere
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Postby Rick_D on Thu Jul 28, 2005 10:21 am

props_lab I believe

That or one of the cs maps, office or something
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Postby mwalker on Thu Jul 28, 2005 11:11 am

its not in any of the HL2 stuff as far as i can tell
how would i go about finding it in cs_office or whatnot if that is the case?
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Postby wiggle987 on Thu Jul 28, 2005 5:08 pm

The recessed light was a prop for his mod.
Image
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Postby mwalker on Thu Jul 28, 2005 10:17 pm

ah... well. hmm. he disappeared?
would it be easy to make a working recessed light without cutting chunks out of the ceiling?

the globe lights kind of bug me

actually, a lot of lighting stuff in the game makes me neaseous in the less professional maps
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Postby Dude But if ... on Tue Aug 16, 2005 12:33 am

is there any way tomake the beam of light move around? like it was actualy searching or if it were like a lighthouse beam?
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Search light

Postby wisemx on Tue Aug 16, 2005 12:42 am

...There's a set of fully functional Search lights on my Files page:
http://www.akilling.org/akg/default.asp?akg=files
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Postby Cmpfreak88 on Tue Aug 16, 2005 9:17 pm

In case you were still wondering that recessed light is in the cs_office folder and I think it's called light_recessed or something similar. Nice tutorial.

I did have one question though, whats the typical range for the brightness and what should maximum distances be set at?
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Postby AquilaPhamas on Mon Aug 29, 2005 11:33 pm

Ok, I put one of these in my map but it doesnt show up in the map saying that the light_spot entity has leaked even though it is well within the boundries of the map. The only thing that could leak would be the big cone of light used as a helper in hammer shown in the following.

Image
Image[/img]
Image
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Postby Spas12 on Tue Aug 30, 2005 12:11 am

It means the walls of the map may have a leak.

Load pointfile and see.

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Postby AquilaPhamas on Tue Aug 30, 2005 12:32 am

Yah I fixed it but now all i get is the actual ring of light on the ground I cant see like the path in the light, as in where its coming from u get me?

PS Gratz on ur postwhore status
Image
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Postby AquilaPhamas on Tue Aug 30, 2005 1:17 am

Image

wtf
Image
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Postby Spas12 on Tue Aug 30, 2005 3:17 am

set the pitch for both entities to -90.
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Re: Spotlights

Postby chevasbr on Sun Nov 16, 2008 12:52 pm

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