Volumetric Lighting

We will be experimenting with Unity's Adaptive Probe Volumes (APV) as part of Unity 6. Please follow the steps below.

Volumetric Lighting

1. Step 1: Create HDRP Project: Create a new Unity HDRP project such as starting with the High Definition 3D Sample template in Unity.

2. Step 2: HDRP Tutorial: Step through the High Definition Render Pipeline tutorials.

3. Step 3: Clear Baked Lighting Data: Unbake all Lighting data. This way we can start with a base scene and recreate our own lighting.

4. Step 4: Create a new Volume Unity's volume system is the main way to control the visual settings per camera in HDRP. Multiple volumes may share the same profile. We are able to adjust the size of the volume, contrast, saturation, and much more. When the camera enters the volume, the settings then are applied to the frame.

First, lets create a new volume

5. Step 5: Create a new Profile Then, create a new profile

6. Step 6: Add Override Then, Add Override and Color Adjustments

7. Step 7: Experiment! Apply your overrides to your frame and try moving in and out of your volume. Try setting your Mode to Global or Local. We can adjust many things including the sky and post processing.

8. Step 8: Disable the Fog Now lets try to set up the sky for HDRI with the volume system. This is done with a visual override. If we deselect the Fog, we can see that the HDRI unobstructed.

9. Step 9: Visual Environment In your Hierarchy window, you may go to Lighting > Volumes > Volume Global. Then, in your Inspector, you will see Visual Environment. There, you can choose between four types of skies including: non-HDRI sky, HDRI Sky, Physically Based Sky, and Gradient Sky.

10. Step 10: Sky Exposure Values Remember to make sure all your baked data is cleared so that we can see that in the absence, of proper indirect lighting, HDRP will always fall back to the sky probe. Now you can try adjusting the exposure values.

11. Step 11: Sun Light What if we would like to have bounce lighting? HDRP is physically based, so we can control the color temperature of the light using the Kelvin scale. In your Hierarchy window, you may go to Lighting > Directional Light Sun. Then in your Inspector window, we can find the Light component and then the Emission tab. We can try using the Day Light preset. Now try experimenting with the Shadows override components and the Indirect Lighting Controller component. Adjusting the Indirect Lighting Controller values can be a quick way to dim unwanted ambient lighting without using Unity Global Illumination.