To create mental ray shadow maps
For Maya Spot Lights, Directional Lights, Area Lights and Point Lights, there is a Shadows subsection in the mental ray section of the light’s Attribute Editor. You can select the desired shadow map from the Shadow Map Format drop-down box so that mental ray generates shadow maps.
Note:
mental ray does not handle shadow maps on scaled light sources very well. Proportional scaling for the light should be used instead.
Render detail shadow maps in mental ray for Maya
For information on detail shadow maps, see Detail Shadow Map Attributes.
To render detail shadow maps in mental ray for Maya
- Open the Attribute Editor for the light shape node.
- In the Attribute Editor, expand the mental ray section.
- Select Detail Shadow Map under the Shadow Map Format attribute in the Shadows section.
- Turn on Use mental ray shadow map overrides.
- Adjust other attributes as necessary. For more information, see Detail Shadow Map Attributes.
Use detail shadow maps for colored shadows
You can use mental ray for Maya’s detail shadow map to render colored shadows in your scene. This effect is driven by the transparency color of the object, like raytraced shadows.
To render colored shadows with detail shadow maps
- In the Scene View, select the light that you want to use to create a shadow. The light must be a point light, spot light or a directional light.
- Open the Attribute Editor for the light shape node.
- In the Attribute Editor, open the Shadows section, and set the Shadow Color.
- Expand the mental ray section and select the Detail Shadow Map option under the Shadow Map Format attribute in the Shadows section.
- Select the Use mental ray shadow map overrides option.
- Render your scene in mental ray for Maya.