====== Bloom-like lighting highlights for Spring maps ======

^  Author | Argh |
^  Date | 11 June 2009 |

Check this out... I figured out a fast way to do bloom-like map highlights- feature highlight lighting that actually reaches true whitepoints with OpenGL lighting.

It's really easy, too.

  - Make yer heightmap (duh).
  - Make yer texturemap via L3DT / WorldMachine. Do not render any lighting at this time.
  - Take yer heightmap into L3DT Pro, render a lightmap at 8X.
  - Export said lightmap as a JPG to Photoshop.
  - Shrink the lightmap the few pixels it takes to get it the same as the texturemap.
  - Open the texturemap, and put the texture layer over the rendered lightmap.
  - Turn on Hard Light or Overlay as the texture layer's blend setting. They produce different effects, in terms of final saturation- Overlay is more "physically correct", but Hard Light can produce a more dramatic look.
  - Adjust the contrast and brightness of the lightmap layer, using Curves, until you hit what feels right, in terms of brightness on hill edges facing your sun angle, etc.
  - Compile yer map.
  - Make your map's lighting angle the same as your rendered lighting angle in L3DT.

Voila. Bright highlights on everything. Best part is that if you want to do paint-over or details or cleanup or metal-sports or whatever... you can do that on that texture layer, without screwing up the lighting :-)