When rendering an image, exposure control (or tone mapping) is just as important as the lighting and materials used. Exposure control helps to convert real-world luminance values into a realistic image. It mimics the human eye response to luminance values with regard to color, saturation, contrast, and glare. Use the following settings to adjust the exposure of a rendered image.
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Exposure Value | Overall brightness of the rendered image. This setting is comparable to the exposure compensation setting in cameras with automatic exposure. Enter a value between –6 (brighter) and 16 (darker). The default value is different for each lighting scheme. |
| Highlights | Light level for the brightest areas of the image. Enter a value between 0 (darker highlights) and 1 (brighter highlights). The default is 0.25. |
| Mid Tones | Light level for areas of the image whose brightness lies between the highlights and the shadows. Enter a value between 0.1 (darker mid tones) and 4 (brighter mid tones). The default is 1. |
| Shadows | Light levels for the darkest areas of the image. Enter a value between 0.1 (lighter shadows) and 4 (darker shadows). The default is 0.2. |
| White Point | Color temperature of the light sources that should display as white in the rendered image. This setting is similar to the White Balance setting on digital cameras. If the rendered image looks too orange, reduce the White Point value. If the rendered image looks too blue, increase the White Point value. If the scene is illuminated with daylight, use a value of 6500. If the scene is illuminated with incandescent lights, match the White Point value to the color temperature of the lights (see Initial Color Parameters), or start with a value of 2800 and adjust it up or down as necessary to achieve the desired results. |
| Saturation | Intensity of colors in the rendered image. Enter a value between 0 (gray/black/white) and 5 (more intense colors). The default is 1. |