Maxon Computer Cinema 4D - 9.5, Cinema 4D - 9.0 Instruction Manual
Thinking Particles
Thinking Particles
Programming Team Christian Losch, Philip Losch, Richard Kurz, Tilo Kühn, Thomas Kunert,
David O’Reilly, Cathleen Poppe.
Plugin Programming Sven Behne, Wilfried Behne, Michael Breitzke, Kiril Dinev, Per-Anders Edwards,
David Farmer, Jamie Halmick, Richard Hintzenstern, Jan Eric Hoffmann,
Eduardo Olivares, Nina Ivanova, Markus Jakubietz, Eric Sommerlade,
Hendrik Steffen, Jens Uhlig, Michael Welter, Thomas Zeier.
Product Manager Marco Tillmann.
QA Manager Björn Marl.
Writers Paul Babb, Rick Barrett, Oliver Becker, Jens Bosse, Chris Broeske, Chris Debski,
Glenn Frey, Michael Giebel, Jason Goldsmith, Jörn Gollob, Sven Hauth,
Josiah Hultgren, Arndt von Königsmarck, David Link, Arno Löwecke, Aaron Matthew,
Josh Miller, Matthew ‘Mash’ O’Neill, Janine Pauke, Marcus Spranger, Luke Stacy,
Perry Stacy, Marco Tillmann, Jeff Walker, Scot Wardlaw.
SDK Docs & Support David O’Reilly, Mikael Sterner.
Layout Oliver Becker, Harald Egel, Michael Giebel, David Link, Luke Stacy, Jeff Walker.
Translation Oliver Becker, Michael Giebel, Arno Löwecke, Björn Marl, Josh Miller, Janine Pauke,
Luke Stacy, Marco Tillmann, Scot Wardlaw.
Copyright © 1989-2004 by MA XON Computer GmbH. All rights reserved.
English translation Copyright © 2004 by MAXON Computer Ltd. All rights reserved.
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Although every precaution has been taken in the preparation of the program and this manual, MAXON Computer
assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions. Neither is any liability assumed for damages resulting from
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This manual, as well as the software described in it, is furnished under license and may be used or copied
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Contents
Introduction........................................................................................................................................... 1
Overview................................................................................................................................................ 3
1 Settings ..............................................................................................................7
General tab ............................................................................................................................................ 7
Channels tab........................................................................................................................................ 10
Particle Geometry object ..................................................................................................................... 10
Network rendering .............................................................................................................................. 11
2 Nodes ...............................................................................................................15
TP Initiator Group ................................................................................................................................ 15
PPass ............................................................................................................................................... 15
PPass AB .......................................................................................................................................... 16
TP Condition Group ............................................................................................................................. 19
PAge................................................................................................................................................ 19
PLight.............................................................................................................................................. 20
TP Generator Group............................................................................................................................. 23
PBlurp ............................................................................................................................................. 23
PBorn .............................................................................................................................................. 28
PDraw ............................................................................................................................................. 30
PFragment ...................................................................................................................................... 33
PMatterWaves................................................................................................................................. 37
PStorm ............................................................................................................................................ 47
TP Standard Group .............................................................................................................................. 52
PAlignment ..................................................................................................................................... 52
PDie................................................................................................................................................. 54
PGroup............................................................................................................................................ 55
PMass.............................................................................................................................................. 55
PRolling ........................................................................................................................................... 57
PScale.............................................................................................................................................. 58
PSetData ......................................................................................................................................... 60
PShape ............................................................................................................................................ 62
PSize................................................................................................................................................ 64
PSpin ............................................................................................................................................... 65
TP Dynamic Group ...............................................................................................................................68
PBubble........................................................................................................................................... 68
PDeector ....................................................................................................................................... 69
PFreeze............................................................................................................................................ 73
PFriction.......................................................................................................................................... 74
PGravity .......................................................................................................................................... 76
PMotionInheritance ........................................................................................................................ 78
PPositionFollow ..............................................................................................................................80
PRepulse&Bounce ........................................................................................................................... 82
PVelocity ......................................................................................................................................... 83
PWind ............................................................................................................................................. 85
TP Helper Group .................................................................................................................................. 88
PChronometer ................................................................................................................................ 88
PGetData ........................................................................................................................................ 89
PGroup............................................................................................................................................ 90
PSpinConvert .................................................................................................................................. 90
PSurfacePosition ............................................................................................................................. 91
PTimer............................................................................................................................................. 93
PVelocityConvert ............................................................................................................................ 95
PVolumePosition ............................................................................................................................. 96
3 Tutorials.......................................................................................................... 101
Introduction....................................................................................................................................... 101
Combining Thinking Particles with XPresso ...................................................................................... 103
Using Thinking Particles with PyroCluster ..........................................................................................117
Deforming Particles ........................................................................................................................... 121
Working with Particle Groups ........................................................................................................... 123
Index.................................................................................................................. 143
THINKING PARTICLES
INTRODUC TION 1
Introduction
Create amazing particle effects
with Thinking Particles, the
node-based particle system that
gives you complete control over
each and every particle.
Thank you for purchasing Thinking Particles, the CINEMA 4D module that makes it easy
to control every aspect of particle motion. With Thinking Particles you can emit particles
from any point, edge or polygon, collide particles with objects and other particles,
achieve lifelike motion with forces such as gravity and wind that take the mass and
size of particles into account, spawn and fragment particles and much more.
This manual is divided into a tutorial section and a reference section. Thinking Particles
has dozens of powerful nodes that will require some exploring, so in order to get a
feel for Thinking Particles we recommend that you work through the tutorials and,
if something isn’t clear, look it up in the reference for a full description.
If you are impatient and want to get started straightaway then we recommend that you
read the PStorm node section in the reference rst. Look up ‘PStorm’ in the index.
As a node-based particle system, Thinking Particles may feel strange at rst. However,
with a little time and effort, you’ll soon feel right at home as you learn how to control
particles with the precision of a Swiss watchmaker.
Registration
Registering your Thinking Particles module is extremely important. The serial number
included with your Thinking Particles package is temporary and will expire three months
after the module’s installation. To receive your nal serial number, you must register.
So please ll in and return the registration form at the earliest opportunity.
Registering your Thinking Par ticles module will also entitle you to technical
support via telephone, fax and email. And, by checking the appropriate box on the
registration form, MA XON will keep you informed of the latest product information
and updates.
You can also register online at register.maxon.net.
Installation
To install Thinking Particles, run the installation program and follow the on-screen
installation instructions.
The installation program will create a ThinkingParticles folder in your CINEMA 4D
Modules folder. The installation program will place all the CINEMA 4D Thinking
Particles les into this ThinkingParticles folder.
Training
Training is available for Thinking Particles and other MAXON products. For details,
please contact MAXON or your local MAXON distributor.
2 INTRODUC TION
THINKING PARTICLES
Web Resources
Thousands of powerful resources are available on the web, including online tutorials,
discussion lists, textures, models, galleries and information on 3D books. You’ll nd
links to a rich selection of these sites at www.maxon.net, MAXON’s homepage.
One website that you may wish to bookmark is www.plugincafe.com, the home
of CINEMA 4D plugins. Here you will nd dozens of useful plugins, both free and
commercial. For plugin developers, there are resources, including the SDK, tutorials
and a free support forum.
Lastly, there is the MAXON website itself: www.maxon.net. In addition to the links
mentioned above, it is from here that you can register your MAXON product, download
updates, send MAXON a suggestion, check out the gallery, learn from online tutorials
and much more.
Technical Support
Your local MAXON distributor will be delighted to assist you with your technical queries
for Thinking Particles. You are also welcome to contact MAXON directly.
Please note that you will be entitled to technical support provided you have registered
your Thinking Particles module (see Registration, above).
THINKING PARTICLES
OVERVIEW 3
Overview
Thinking Particles is a rulebased particle system that
offers tremendous power
and exibility, but there
is no doubt that it will
take some time for you to
understand how to use the
package. For any particular
job there will be many
different approaches and a
number of solutions.
Here is a brief overview of Thinking Particles that should help to get you started.
Please read this and then work through the tutorials – the time spent will be well
worth it.
Thinking Particles is node -based and uses the CINEMA 4D XPresso Editor for the
creation and editing of its various nodes; so please ensure that you understand how
to use XPresso before proceeding. The other concept to master is that, once a particle
has been born from an emitter, the emitter no longer has any control of it. That’s
why it is important to group particles together so that you can then apply further
rules and operations to the group.
OK, so rst to generate some particles – you do this with the PStorm or PBorn nodes.
PStorm has many inbuilt parameters which means that you can give the particles speed,
size etc. straightaway; once you have created a PStorm node you will see particles
in the viewport. PBorn is simpler and you will need to apply some other rules to its
particles before you can use them; you can do this with, say, the PSetData node.
Unless you have created a new group for your particles (see ‘Particle Groups’ on
page 9) they will be placed in the All group (not really a group but the root of the
particle tree).
Now you can add other rules (nodes) into your particle system to affect the particles;
the rules are organized under headings like TP Condition (apply conditions such as
age), TP Standard (for particle shape, size, mass etc.), TP Dynamic (effects such as
gravity and wind) and others. Every node will affect the particle stream attached to
its input port – you can see how important it is to group particles.
So it is easy to, say, give your particles shape by associating them with CINEMA 4D
objects using the PShape node, or to affect them with gravity (give them weight and
use a PGravity node) or have them collide with one another (use the PRepulse&Bounce
node). Connect nodes via wires between their ports, as explained in the XPresso
section of the CINEMA 4D Reference Manual.
Finally, please remember to plan ahead and try things out before committing yourself
to a large, complex set-up. Also, keep in mind that adding shape to your particles will,
naturally, slow down the viewport display speed, so it’s best to experiment before
adding shape to your particles.
1 Settings
THINKING PARTICLES
SETTINGS 7
Settings
To unleash the power of
Thinking Particles, you’ll
frequently need to use particle
groups. This is the place to create
them. In addition, you can dene
global and local settings for the
groups, including how a group’s
particles are represented in the
viewport.
Choose how par ticle s are
represented in the v iewpo rt
and whe ther ob ject s used as
particles a re shown. On the
General tab yo u’ll als o nd
information s uch as the total
numbe r of particle s and the
numbe r of particle s in each
group at the curr ent fra me.
To take full advantage of the power of Thinking Particles you should always try to
work with particle groups. Particle groups enable you to achieve extraordinary control
over your particle effects.
For example, suppose you have created a shoal of sh from a single emitter and these
sh are swimming together. Suddenly predators arrive on the scene and you want
to separate the shoal into two smaller shoals that dart away in opposite directions.
Particle groups give you an easy way to achieve this.
Assign half of the sh to one particle group, the other half to another group, then
send the groups in opposite directions. This is just one simple example of the countless
uses of particle groups. Whenever you want to treat some particles differently to
others, you probably need to use particle groups. The Thinking Particles Settings is
where you create these groups.
In the Thinking Particles Settings, you can also check information such as the total
number of particles in a particular group at the current frame, or change how particles
are displayed in the viewport and more.
To access the Thinking Particles Settings:
- From the main menu, choose Plugins > Thinking Particles > Thinking Particles
Settings.
General tab
Total
The number of particles that exist at the current frame — a total count of all the
particles in all of the groups.
8 SETTINGS
THINKING PARTICLES
Tree
The number of particles in the currently selected branch of the particle tree. A branch
is a hierarchical level within the Thinking Particles group system. See also ‘Particle
Groups’, below.
Group
Shows the number of particles that currently belong to the selected group. See also
‘Particle Groups’, below.
Max Particles
Denes the maximum number of particles that can be generated. This setting
helps you to prevent situations where you accidentally create so many particles
that your computer system simply cannot cope with them all!
View Type
This parameter is a global setting that controls how the particles are represented in
the viewport. The particles can be shown as akes, dots, ticks, drops, boxes or they
can be hidden.
The View Type setting has no affect on how the particles will look when rendered. It is
purely a visual aid to help you recognize the particles in the viewport. However, each
particle group has its own settings and may use a different view type to override this
global value. For more information on these settings, see ‘Particle Groups’, below.
Show Objects
Enable this option if you have used an object for particles and you want the particle
objects to be shown in the viewport. Keep in mind that hundreds of complex objects
may slow down the viewport’s refresh rate. This value is a global one that may be
overwritten using settings of each particle group. For more information on these
local settings, see ‘Particle Groups’, below.
Force This Setting
Each particle group has its own display settings that usually override the global View
Type and Show Objects settings described above. However, sometimes it can be useful
to force all particle groups to use the global settings.
For example, suppose your scene has 20 particle groups, each with its local Show
Object setting enabled (you access these local options by choosing Settings from the
particle group’s context menu). To speed up the viewport’s refresh rate, you decide to
hide the particle objects. Although you could disable Show Object for each particle
group, it’s quicker to disable the global Show Objects setting and enable Force This
Setting. All groups will then be forced to use the global value.
THINKING PARTICLES
SETTINGS 9
Particle Groups
To get the most out of Thinking Particles it is important to plan ahead, consider how
all your particles are going to interact and, above all, assign different sets of particles
to different particle groups — this way you will build in exibility, which can save a
great deal of time should you decide to change things later.
The Particle Groups pane is where you add and remove particle groups, sort them
and edit their local settings. The All group is created automatically. By default, all
particles are assigned to the All group.
The groups are arranged in a hierarchy that works in the same way as CINEMA 4D’s
XPresso manager. The advantage of this structure is that you can build an entire tree
of groups, the top-most of which will contain all the groups belonging to that branch
and thus the particles of these groups also.
To add a new particle group, in the Particle Groups pane, right-click (Windows) or
Command-click (Mac OS) on the All group (or any other group if present) and choose
Add from the context menu that appears.
The new group will be created and placed below the group in the hierarchy that you
called the context menu from. New groups are named ‘Group’ followed by a number.
We recommend that you rename the groups to names that are more meaningful and
less likely to be confused with other group names. To rename a group, double-click
its name, enter the new name into the dialog that opens and click OK.
You can rearrange the hierarchy by dragging and dropping groups. To delete groups,
select them (Shift-click to add a group to the selection), right-click (Windows) or
Command-click (Mac OS) one of the groups and choose Remove from the context
menu that appears. Keep in mind that all sub-groups of the selected groups will be
deleted as well. Particles belonging to the deleted groups will be transferred to the
All group.
Each particle group has local
sett ings to de ne thi ngs suc h as
the color of the gr oup’s par ticl es
in the viewpor t and wh ether
particle objects are show n.
Settings
Each particle group has its own settings. To access these settings, in the Particle
Groups pane, right-click (Windows) or Command-click (Mac OS) the name of the
desired group and choose Settings from the context menu.
10 SETT INGS
THINKING PARTICLES
Here yo u can create dat a
channels that will enable you
to pass custom va lues to the
Think ing Par ticle s expr essio n.
In these settings, you can set a local value for the View Type and Show Object
setting. For information on these two settings, see ‘View Type’, ‘Show Objects’
and ‘Force This Setting’ above.
In addition, here you can rename the group and change the color used to display
the particles in the viewport. This is useful when working with multiple groups. By
assigning different colors to each group, you can soon tell which particles belong
to which group directly in the viewport. To change the color, click the Color box
and set the color system dialog that opens to the desired color. This does not affect
the color of the rendered particles!
Channels tab
You can pass your own data to a Thinking Particles effect via data channels. These
operate in the same way as the user data ports of XPresso expressions.
You can add data channels as ports to P Get Data nodes and P Set Data nodes.
The data types available are the same as those for XPresso – please refer to your
CINEMA 4D reference manual for a description of these data types. To remove a
channel from the list, select the channel and click Remove.
You can also use XPresso’s user data ports to pass values to the expression.
Particle Geometry object
The Particle Geometry object is needed if you are going to use objects as particles.
Any object that you want to use as particles must be a below a Particle Geometry
object in the hierarchy of the Object manager; it can either be a child of the Particle
Geometry object or simply below it in the hierarchy.
THINKING PARTICLES
SETTINGS 11
The obj ect that you want t o use
Parti cle Geometr y obje ct in the
To create a Particle Geometry object, from the main menu, choose Plugins > Thinking
Particles > Particle Geometry.
as par ticle s must be b elow a
Objec t manager.
When the Particle Geometry object is selected, its settings will be displayed in the
Attribute manager (see above). Drag the name of any particle group from the Thinking
Particles Settings and drop it into the Particle Group box. If Sub Groups is enabled,
the sub-groups of the chosen object will also be assigned to the particle group.
Network rendering
When rendering a Thinking Particles scene over a network using the optional
CINEMA 4D NET Render module, the rendering may take longer than if you were to
render the scene on a single computer!
This happens when there are complex interactions between the particles, since the
complete interaction of the particles must be calculated from frame to frame. In such
cases, adding more machines to the network may slow down the render time further
still, especially when mixing fast computers with slower ones. Avoid rendering these
types of scenes over a network.
2 Nodes
THINKING PARTICLES
NODES 15
Nodes
Nodes are the building blocks of
your Thinking Particles effect.
The nodes are arranged by group
according to their function.
To add a gravitational forc e to
particles , group the particles
and use PPass to pass the group
to a PGrav ity no de.
Thinking Particles makes use of CINEMA 4D’s XPresso system. The XPresso Editor is
the place to create and edit your Thinking Particles effects.
Nodes are the building blocks of Thinking Particles effects. To create a node, in the
XPresso Editor, right-click (Windows) or Command-click (Mac OS) and choose the
node’s name from the New Node > Thinking Particles menu. On this menu, the nodes
are arranged by group according to their function.
In this chapter you’ll nd a description of each Thinking Particles node, listed by group
and then by order of appearance on the menu. For general information on using nodes
and the XPresso Editor, please refer to your CINEMA 4D Reference Manual.
TP Initiator Group
PPass
This frequently-used node allows you to pass a group of particles to another node.
PPass is used to control which particle groups have which effects applied to them.
For example, suppose you want to apply gravity to a particular group of particles.
In this case you would rst assign the group to a PPass node and then connect the
PPass node’s Particle output to the Particle input of a PGravity node.
To learn how to create particle groups, see ‘Particle Groups’ earlier in this
chapter or work through the tutorials.
Choose which group of pa rtic les
the nod e should output .
Attribute manager settings
Group
To choose which group of particles the node should output, drag the name of the
desired group from the Thinking Particles settings (XPresso Editor: Custom > Thinking
Particles > Settings) and drop it into this box.
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THINKING PARTICLES
Suppose you want to set the
position of the 3 0th par ticl e
creat ed to the s ame pos ition as a
Null object . Use the node setup
shown here and s et the Co mpare
node’s Fu nctio n to ‘==’ and
You can use P PassA B to compare, say, the
positions of pa rtic les in t wo groups. In
this ex ample PPassA B passe s two groups
of particle s to PGet Data wh ich gets
the par ticles’ pos itions; thes e are the n
subtra cted one from the other.
Input 2 to 30.
Output ports
Index
The index number of the particle passed. This is especially useful when creating
particles in Shot mode.
Particle Count
The number of particles passed by the node.
Particle
Connect this port to the Particle input port of the node that should receive the group
of particles.
PPass AB
This node is similar to the PPass node except that it enables you to pass two groups
of particles to other nodes instead of just one group. This is especially useful when
you want to compare the particles in one group with the particles in another, as
illustrated above. You could alternatively use two PPass nodes but this is simpler.
PPassAB is essential when controlling the PRepulse&Bounce node.
To learn how to create particle groups, see ‘Particle Groups’ earlier in this
chapter or work through the tutorials.
THINKING PARTICLES
NODES 17
Choose which t wo grou ps
of particle s the node should
output.
Attribute manager settings
GroupA , GroupB
These boxes dene which particle groups the node should output. Open the Thinking
Particles Settings and, from there, drag the name of one of the particle groups and
drop it into the GroupA box. Drag-and-drop the name of the other par ticle group
into the GroupB box.
Distance Type, Distance
These settings allow you to check the distances between particles of the two
groups. The Distance Type setting controls whether the particles will be passed to
the Particle A and Particle B outputs port and if so, when they will be passed.
None
Distances are not checked.
Inside, Outside
Particles in groups A and B are passed to the output ports if they are closer to each
other (type set to Inside) or further apart from each other (type set to Outside)
than the Distance value.
Output ports
Distance AB
The distance between the particles in groups A and B.
Particle Count A , Particle Count B
The current number of particles of A and B.
Particle A, Particle B
Connect each of these ports to the Particle input port of the two nodes that should
receive the particle groups.
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THINKING PARTICLES
Position A, Position B
The positions of the particles.
Vector AB
The vector between the particles in groups A and B.
THINKING PARTICLES
NODES 19
Here we u se PAge to pass only cert ain
particles into a new pa rtic le grou p. For
examp le, we could use A bsolute with
T1=30 and T2=45 so t hat only parti cles
aged be tween 30 and 45 f rames w ill be
passe d into the n ew grou p.
Choose the type of even t that
should be chec ked. For example,
you can c heck wh ich par ticl es
have jus t been born.
TP Condition Group
PAge
This node enables you to check the age of particles or nd out which particles have
just been born, have just died or have just changed groups. The node is mostly used
for putting particles of a certain age into a new group, as illustrated above.
Attribute manager settings
Type, Relative T1/T2, Absolute T1/ T2
Set Type to the type of check that should be performed.
Born, Die
These settings check which particles have been born or have died respectively
during the current frame.
Enters Group
Checks which particles have entered a particular group during the current frame.
Relative
Checks which particles are aged between the two limits dened by Relative T1 and
Relative T2. These limits are specied as percentages, where 0% equals the time
of the particle’s birth and 100% is the time of its death.
Absolute
Checks which par ticles are aged between the limits Absolute T1 and Absolute T2,
which are measured in frames.
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THINKING PARTICLES
Here we u se a PLig ht node in such a way
that when the color of its associated
light ob ject r eaches more than 90% red
the Cube i s made vi sible in the viewpor t.
There are many other, rath er more u seful,
ways of using PLight.
Additional input ports
Animation Time
Since the node’s parameters can be keyframe animated, by default the CINEMA 4D
time is used internally to ensure that the values are interpolated correctly. However,
you can pass your own time value to this port. Its data type should be Time, which is a
Real number in the simplest case. If no value is passed, CINEMA 4D’s time is used.
Particle
Connect this port to the particle stream that you want to check, such as to the Particle
output port of a PPass node or a PStorm node.
Output port
On
This port outputs a Bool value for each particle to indicate the result of the check — True
if the check was positive, or False if the check was negative. For example, suppose
Type is set to Born, three particles have been born during the current frame and 100
particles already existed before this frame. The node will output False for each of the
100 particles that already existed and True for each of the three new particles.
The most common use of the On port is for placing particles of a particular age into
a new group (connect the On input port of a PGroup node).
PLight
Using this node, you can control actions using a light source’s color or intensity, or
you can check a light’s color, intensity and more at a specied point in 3D space.
Here yo u can choose, am ong
other t hings, which li ght
intensity or c olor sh ould trigger
an acti on.
Attribute manager settings
Light
To choose which light the node will test, drag and drop the light’s name into this
box.
THINKING PARTICLES
NODES 21
Threshold
With the help of this value, you can use the PLight node to control actions based on
the brightness of a light source at a particular position in 3D space (dened by the
Position values).
The node outputs a Bool value of either True or False depending on whether the
light’s intensity exceeds the Threshold value at this position in 3D space. The node’s
On port outputs the value False if the light’s brightness is less than or the same as
the Threshold, or True if it exceeds the Threshold. A Threshold of 1 equals a light
intensity of 100%.
For example, suppose you want a PStorm node to emit particles only when a light’s
intensity exceeds 50% at the world coordinates 200,10,-50. In this case, you would
create a PLight node, drag and drop the name of the light into the Light box, set the
Position values to 200,10,-50 and the Threshold value to 0.5 (0.5 x 100 = 50%). You
would then connect the PLight node to the PStorm node via their On ports.
Color On, Color, Color Variation
If you want to control actions based on the color of a light source at a particular
position in 3D space (dened by the Position values), enable Color and set Threshold to
0 (if you don’t set the Threshold to 0, the light’s brightness will be evaluated also).
The node will output a Bool value of True or False depending on whether the light’s
color is the same as (or similar to, depending on the Color Variation setting) the color
dened by the Color setting at this position in 3D space. The node’s On port outputs
True if the two colors are the same/similar, otherwise it gives the value False.
The Color Variation setting denes how similar — dened as a percentage — the light’s
color and the Color setting must be in order to produce a True value. For example,
with a value of 0%, the colors must match exactly in order to produce an output of
True, while a value of 100% means the colors will match regardless.
If you want to control actions based on a light’s color and brightness, in addition set
the Threshold value to the desired brightness. See ‘Threshold’, above. The node’s On
port will then only output the value True if the light’s brightness exceeds the Threshold
value and the light’s color is the same /similar color as the Color setting.
Position
This value denes position at which the light’s value(s) should be checked.
Normal
A normal is a directional vector with a length of 1, which is often used to help calculate
the shading of a polygon surface. A normal can be passed to this port in order to
inuence the light intensity at a given position.
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THINKING PARTICLES
If no vector is present, a normal that points towards the light source will be generated
automatically. The light will thus fall orthogonally (at right-angles) onto the virtual
surface and will therefore be at its maximum brightness.
Keep in mind that a normal pointing towards the light rays themselves, rather than
at the light object, will cause the light to shine onto the backface of a surface. Thus
an intensity of 0 may result, even if the light illuminates the exact given position.
Additional input ports
Animation Time
Since the node’s parameters can be keyframe animated, by default the CINEMA 4D time
is used internally to ensure that the values are interpolated correctly. However, you can
pass your own time value to this port. This should be of the data type Time, which is a
Real number in the simplest case. If no value is passed, CINEMA 4D’s time is used.
Output ports
Color
Outputs the RGB color of the light at the position dened by the Position values.
Direction
Outputs the directional vector between the light’s position and the position dened
by the Position values. This vector can also be calculated manually by subtracting the
light’s position from the Position values.
Intensity
Outputs the brightness of the light as a Float value at the position dened by the
Position values. An Intensity value of 0 represents 0% brightness, a value of 1
represents 100% brightness.
On
Outputs a Bool value of either True or False depending on the light’s brightness
and/or color at a particular position in 3D space (dened by the Position values). See
‘Threshold’ and ‘Color On, Color, Color Variation’ above.
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