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The topic has many time been discussed. I know.
But I don't understand why you basically don't unable the possibility to activate the SUN when using HDR image in lighting field (image based).
Physical Sky is a combination of a Sky (which works like a HDR soft lighting) and a SUN which projects strong parallel light. It is very clear when we use multi light.

I don't understand why it is so difficult to have the possibility to use a HDR instead of the SKY and have the SUN active. And without manipulations like create a manual sun or a ghost sphere with a HDR material around the scene ?
The SKY is great but it is flat (no clouds, no variation of color, etc...)

This would be a great new feature !!!

Yes, I agree and from memory, v1.6 and earlier had this feature and it was great to use a real sun in combination with an image/photo as a backplate. I'm not sure what the reason was to change this when v2 came out but it did remove the simplicity that was already there with the previous version. May be some more experienced users can add to this?

Well, one potential problem is that most HDRI files that feature a sky, already have a "sun". That is, a "hot spot" where much of the light originates. So, you have a strong possibility of having "two suns" in many of the HDRI files.

Perhaps an option (manually or by default) to lock the sun's orientation to the brightest pixels in the HDRi image?

Procedural clouds like in the Alias renderer introduced 1991 would be nice

With today's coding possibilities, generating credible clouds would be no problem, or is it?

Andreas Hopf wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 13, 2021 1:13 pm

Procedural clouds like in the Alias renderer introduced 1991 would be nice

With today's coding possibilities, generating credible clouds would be no problem, or is it?

Great idea and I recall this being tabled before so hopefully it gets added onto the 'to do' list....

This is what it was back then. Still got the Indigo2 and Octane somewhere in my cellar, lol.

huh.... I asked for Artlantis render sky options years ago.... with a few simple sliders to control the shape, density etc. of the clouds.

Lebenzet wrote:I don't understand why it is so difficult to have the possibility to use a HDR instead of the SKY and have the SUN active

Did you try to change illumination to Active Sky under Image based tab?