AO Maps?

pfunkyfize

Hi all,

Where in the Iray surface nodes in the surface tab would I use Ambient Occlusion maps on an object? I downloaded a model with an AO map and wondering where I use the map. There were Albedo maps too but I ended up using those in the Diffuse map node. Thanks!

Richard Haseltine

You don't need them, AO (Ambient Occlusion) is mainly used to fake the shadowing where light doesn't bounce into nooks and crannies but Iray is already very good at bounce light. However, since the map is generally dark in inaccessible areas and light in exposed ares you could use it to control effects (dirt accumulation, wear, or polishing) by plugging it into another proeprty or using it as a mask in the Layered Image Editor to modify one of the other maps with an overlay

pfunkyfize

Richard Haseltine said:

You don't need them, AO (Ambient Occlusion) is mainly used to fake the shadowing where light doesn't bounce into nooks and crannies but Iray is already very good at bounce light. However, since the map is generally dark in inaccessible areas and light in exposed ares you could use it to control effects (dirt accumulation, wear, or polishing) by plugging it into another proeprty or using it as a mask in the Layered Image Editor to modify one of the other maps with an overlay

Ah! Thanks for that Richard!