The texture used by the Ball texture. To use a single image of a highly reflective chrome ball in an environment, map a File texture to the Ball texture’s Image parameter, and then map the image file to the File texture’s Image parameter.
To use several images of a highly reflective chrome ball in an environment, map a Volume texture to the Ball texture’s Image parameter, and then map one of the image files to the Volume texture’s Pix Sequence parameter (see Volume texture).
The rotation (in degrees) of the ball image about the vertical axis. The valid range is -10000 to 10000. The slider range is 0 to 180. The default setting is 0.
Set the Inclination value to the inclination of the camera (that is, the angle between the camera’s view and the environment’s YZ plane) used to generate the image file (by photographing or rendering a reflective ball in an environment). For example, if the inclination of the camera is 45 degrees, set the Inclination value to 45. If the camera is parallel to the YZ plane, set the Inclination value to 0. When creating the ball image, a camera inclination and elevation of zero will provide the best resolution for the view you intend to use.
The rotation of the ball image about the horizontal axis. The valid range is -10000 to 10000. The slider range is -90 to 90. The default setting is 0.
Set the Elevation value to the elevation of the camera (that is, the angle between the camera’s view and the environment’s ground plane: XY plane for a Z-up scene) used to generate the image file (by photographing or rendering a reflective ball in an environment). For example, if the elevation of the camera is 90 degrees (that is, it is directly above the ball), set the Elevation value to 90. If the camera is parallel to the ground plane, set the Elevation value to 0. When creating the ball image, a camera inclination and elevation of zero will provide the best resolution for the view you intend to use.
Causes the position of the Ball texture’s Image file to be defined relative to the window, not the camera view. If Eyespace is ON, the Ball texture’s Image file automatically matches the environment’s Backdrop image file (provided they were both originally photographed/rendered from the same point of view), even if the camera view changes. Reflections, however, are based on the background being infinitely far away; that is, the reflection planes are ignored (see Projection Geometry below). Rendering is faster when Eyespace is ON. The default setting is OFF.
Causes the Image file to be reflection mapped onto the background. If Reflect is OFF, the Image file is mapped using a solid texture spherical projection (see Projection texture). This allows you to model the geometry of the background image and then map the background image to this geometry, for example, to add shadows, lighting effects, or fog to your scene. The default setting is OFF.
The Projection Geometry parameters define the location of the sky or room walls of the original environment so that the system can calculate reflections on surfaces in the re-created environment.
For example, if the original environment consisted of a ground plane and a sky, then you would set the Sky_radius value to the radius of the sky, and the Bottom value to the distance between the ground plane and the reflective ball. If the original environment consisted of a room, then you would set the Bottom, Top, Left, Right, Front, and Back values to the distance between each wall and the reflective ball.
In some cases you may want to use values different than the original environment. For example, instead of using the Bottom, Top, Left, Right, Front, and Back values to define the walls of a room, you may simply use the Sky_radius parameter. Because Sky_radius defines a sphere, reflections on surfaces in the simulated environment will be smoother and less likely to become blurred. You can also combine Sky_radius with Bottom, Top, Left, Right, Front, or Back.
