About the Shape Property of a Light

Assigning a shape to a light modifies the illumination of a scene.

Just as a light can have a color, it can also be assigned a shape. For example, a rectangular shape acts like panel lighting in a ceiling. A linear shaped light acts like a narrow fluorescent tube. The Shape property becomes available in the Lighting Properties palette when the Type property (under the Render Shadow Detail panel) is set to Soft (sampled).

Shapes available for selection depend on the type of the light:
  • Spotlight: Rectangular and Disk shapes are available.
  • Point light and Web light: Linear, Rectangular, Disk, Cylinder, and Sphere shapes are available.