Spot Light

A Spot Light throws a cone of light from a point toward a target, like a flashlight, a stage spot or a car headlight. Inside the cone things are lit; outside it they stay dark, which makes it the light for drawing the eye to one place.

How it works

The light sits at the object's position and aims at a target point in the scene. The width of the cone and the softness of its edge decide the character: a narrow, hard-edged cone feels theatrical, a wide, soft one feels like a reading lamp. Like the point light, it is invisible in the air; only the pool it casts shows. For a beam you can see, use the Spot Beam.

Settings

• Angle is the half-width of the cone.
• Penumbra softens the edge of the pool, from a hard circle at 0 to a soft fall-off at 1.
• Intensity and Color set brightness and tint.
• Distance limits the reach (0 means unlimited); Decay sets the fall-off, with 2 physically correct.
• Cast shadows turns on shadows. Shadow FOV and Focus fit the shadow area to the cone, keeping the shadows sharp.

Use it for

Product hero shots, stage and concert scenes, flashlights and headlights, museum and gallery lighting and any scene that needs a spotlight moment. Angle, penumbra, brightness and colour can all be animated, so a spot can sweep, narrow or fade in. Combine it with volumetric fog for atmosphere.