Beyond the horizon: utilizing skies in your renders
Tips and tricks for adding the perfect sky to any render
The sky’s the limit
Changing the sky is an easy way of accurately depicting the season, weather conditions, and time of day that you'd like to feature in your design. But with careful consideration, your choice of sky can also convey a specific feeling or emphasize a design's relationship with its surroundings.
Lumion offers multiple options for sky selection. In this short guide, we’ll cover real skies, keyframe animations for real skies, and custom HDRI skies. So, let's get started and help you find the perfect fit for your design!
Real skies
Real skies offer the simplest way of altering the atmosphere that fills your scene.
To find them, click the +FX icon in photo mode, then go to the Featured tab. Choose Real skies. You can then select the sky you want by browsing through the various categories.
You’ll find everything from bright blue skies to dark, moody sunsets, so pick your favorite. Tweak the Heading, Brightness, Background brightness, and Sun intensity using the sliders, or flip the sky with the toggle.
Keyframe animations for real skies
There's a quick and easy way to create the illusion of a sky moving over time in Lumion, using the keyframe animations for real skies feature.
To achieve this animated effect, simply go to movie mode, select your sky in the same way as before, then add keyframes to the Heading, Brightness, Background brightness, and Sun intensity using the sliders.
Custom HDRI skies
While there’s a vast choice of skies on offer in the software, sometimes you might have something more specific in mind.
Lumion lets you load a custom HDRI sky of your choice, so you can tailor the lighting, ambiance, and overall look of your scene.
Once you’ve opened the real skies effect, you’ll see a Load custom HDR file button beneath the Select real sky icon. Click on this to select and open your preferred file. That’s it!
Which sky will you go for?
Show us your renders that feature real skies, custom skies, or animated keyframes by tagging #madewithlumion on social media, or posting them on the Lumion Community. We’re excited to see your creations!
If you’re new to Lumion, why not start with a free 14-day trial? You’ll get unlimited access to all the latest features, content, and updates.
