Conjuring atmosphere with seasonal weather effects
A short guide to the atmospheric rain, snow, and fog effects in Lumion
Change the weather, change the mood
Nothing evokes emotion quite like the weather. While rainy scenes conjure a cozy ambiance, fog instantly adds a sense of mystery and intrigue to a setting.
But changing the weather in a render does more than just create atmosphere – it also enhances realism, adds seasonal context, and engages viewers in a much more immersive way.
There are some simple tricks to achieving this in Lumion – let us show you how.
Seasons change
It's always the most wonderful time of year inside Lumion. Whichever of the seasons happens to be your favorite, you can take your clients there in an instant.
Experiment with the weather and natural lighting effects in Lumion to portray the perfect seasonal setting and elevate the sense of realism in your renders.
The precipitation effect
The precipitation effect automatically adds raindrops to your chosen sky and on any surfaces or bodies of water. But there’s much more to it than that.
To find the effect, head to photo or movie mode, click the +FX icon, then go to the Sky/Weather tab. You’ll see an effect called Precipitation, so click on that.
If it’s not rain you’re after, you can move the first slider to turn it into snow. But for now, let’s stick to rain. There are several sliders here to help you tweak its properties to your liking. Precipitation phase determines how long it’s been raining for, and therefore how wet the ground is. Particle quality is for adjusting how much rain is visible on your camera lens and on each surface. You can also adjust the size and speed of these drops.
Create diamonds and rivers on windows
One of the most compelling uses of the precipitation effect is creating raindrops on windows. To do this, firstly select the material you want the raindrops to appear on – in this case, glass. Next, select the Force rain streaks options on your material.
Turn on the precipitation effect if you haven’t already. Use the Rain streaks slider to achieve that rain-drops-on-glass effect. You can also choose how big your rain streaks are with the Size of rain streaks slider.
Eager to experiment?
If you're new to Lumion but would like to try and create some atmospheric scenes like these yourself, start by getting a free 14-day trial of Lumion Pro. You'll enjoy unlimited access to our full library of features and effects.
The fog effect
Fog offers a quick and easy way of introducing an air of drama and moodiness to any scene. In Lumion, the fog effect lets you personalize your options to achieve the exact results you had in mind.
Start in photo or movie mode, click the +FX icon, then once again head to the Sky/Weather tab. Click the effect called Fog.
You’ll see three options: Fog density, Fog falloff, and Fog brightness. Adjust these to your liking to determine the amount of fog that fills your scene, its transparency, and how light it is. You can also change the color of your fog and adjust the brightness of your chosen shade.
A deeper sense of immersion
In this scene, we've used fog to elevate the sense of realism in this airport scene.
Paying close attention to the lighting, and density of the fog effect can provoke a more emotional reaction from a viewer and provide them with a much more immersive experience with your designs.
Invite us into your world
We'd love to see what worlds and environments you craft using these atmospheric weather effects. Share your renders, whatever the weather, on our community forum, or tag us on social media with the hashtag #madewithlumion.
