solid construct input boxes

visibility

Purpose
To determine how an object will be visible for the raytracer.

Usage
Visibility can be changed by clicking on the visibility toggle box. The following options are available:

• total
  Objects are always visible (also in reflections and through transparencies). This is the default setting.

  indirect only

  Objects are visible only in reflections and through transparencies.

  direct only

  Objects are only directly visible, but not in reflections or through transparencies.

  none

  Objects are totally invisible

Example:
indirect can be used only to create an environment map (reflection map). To do so, group a ball to the model, and make sure the ball encloses the whole model. For the ball, assign a map to the diffuse color and select indirect only . If you now render the model, the map on the ball will be reflected on surfaces with reflection as attribute. The ball itself will not be rendered. Make sure the ball receives enough light; otherwise, raise the ambient color for the ball.
When using indirect only for reflection mapping, it is also possible to select other solids and to animate them.
An environment map can also be created using environment in the render menu, but then it will not be possible to select solids other than a ball, to transform the solid or to animate it.

Comments
The visibility is inherited down the tree (e.g. when selecting invisible for a tag in the tree, that part of the tree will be completely invisible).

See also
environment.