For those who don’t know the tool: Volume Forge is a volumetrics add-on for Blender that targets both Eevee and Cycles with localized light volumes and fog volumes.

What it is and what it builds

Volume Forge creates localized volumetric objects inside Blender. The intent is simple: place atmosphere only where it matters in the frame, instead of filling the entire scene with volume and then masking it back down. It is a faster and more practical path to focused volumetrics, with the additional claim that results often render much faster than physical fog applied across the whole scene. Each created volume is a mesh object with its own unique material, stored in a dedicated collection named Volume Forge. A created volume stays editable through the add-on panel rather than requiring manual rebuilding of the setup per scene.

The add-on workflow starts with four creation operators, then switches to editing controls once a valid Volume Forge object is selected.

Two volume types define shader behavior

Volume Forge exposes two volume types that differ at shader level. Light Volume uses an emission-driven volume. The store description calls it an emissive fake fog approach. The documentation describes it as usually faster to render and easier to push toward stylized light shafts, beams, and graphic atmospheric effects. The origin of this mode traces back to a widely used Blender trick: connecting an Emission shader into the Volume output, which can produce fog-like volumetrics that are often significantly faster to render than full physical fog.

Real Fog uses a Principled Volume shader and is intended for a more physically believable localized haze or fog response, including visible shadowing inside the volume. The documentation flags it as generally more expensive to render than Light Volume. Real Fog is not emissive, so it requires light in the scene to read clearly.

Two creation methods decide how geometry is generated

Volume Forge also splits creation by geometry construction. Cube is the fastest placement method. A Cube volume is created at the current 3D Cursor position, then behaves like a normal mesh object for transforms. Both Cube buttons follow this rule, and an unexpected placement typically traces back to the 3D Cursor location.

From Faces creates a volume prism between two selected quad faces. The prerequisites are strict: Blender must be in Object Mode, exactly two mesh objects must be selected, and each selected mesh must have exactly one selected quad face. If these conditions are not met, the operator stops and returns a warning instead of creating an invalid volume.

Selection order matters in From Faces workflows. The first selected object defines side A, the source side, and the second selected object defines side B, the target side. In typical Blender selection behavior, the second selected object is usually also the active object. This order defines an A to B direction used by the generated volume, including fade and spread behavior.

The prism generation reads the two selected quad faces in world space, reorders face B to best match face A, then generates the prism between them. If face A and face B do not match perfectly, the generated prism can differ slightly from the original B face. This is expected behavior, driven by a preference for planar faces to avoid twisted or deformed faces that can produce unstable volumetric results. Face B is adjusted as little as possible while keeping the generated volume clean and usable.

The four creation operators and their consequences

The Create section is always visible and shows two columns, Light Volume and Real Fog, each with Cube and From Faces options.

Create Light Volume Cube creates a mesh cube, moves it into the Volume Forge collection, assigns a dedicated Volume Forge material, and configures it in Light Volume mode. No object or face selection is required. This is positioned as a fast option for quick beam tests, early look development, and stylized shafts that do not need to be built between real surfaces. After creation, Cube-built objects expose the full Fade Direction control because the internal fade direction is not locked by geometry.

Create Light Volume From Faces builds a light volume anchored to scene geometry. It uses the two-object, two-quad-face requirement and the A to B selection order. The result is a prism between the faces with a dedicated Light Volume material, and the created object becomes the active selection. Fade Direction is hidden for these objects because it is locked by the A to B construction. Invert Fade remains available to reverse the internal fade without rebuilding the object.

Create Real Fog Cube creates a mesh cube at the 3D Cursor, places it in the Volume Forge collection, assigns a unique material, and configures it in Real Fog mode using a Principled Volume. The non-emissive nature of this mode means scene lighting becomes part of visibility. Cube-created fog objects keep Fade Direction visible, along with Fog Density, Main Color, Noise controls, Volume Shape controls, and Advanced Mask controls.

Create Real Fog From Faces builds a prism between two selected quad faces using the same A to B selection logic, creates a dedicated material in Real Fog mode, and selects the new volume for immediate editing. Like the light version, Fade Direction is hidden because it is locked by the A to B construction, while Invert Fade remains available.

Panel anatomy and what each section controls

Once a valid Volume Forge object is selected, the add-on panel exposes editing sections in a fixed order.

Selected Volume shows the active object name, the current mode, and a Viewport Wire toggle used to make navigation easier when a dense volume obscures scene context.

Mask and Falloff controls the internal fade and the overall mask. Fade Direction appears on Cube volumes and defines the axis along which the internal fade travels through the voluem. Fade Start controls where the visible fade ends. Invert Fade reverses fade direction without changing the chosen axis. Fade Interpolation controls the softness or sharpness of the transition between the visible side and the masked side. Edge Softness softens falloff near the volume boundaries.

Look controls the main visual response. Emission Strength exists only in Light mode and controls how much light is emitted inside the volume, with higher values making the light volume read stronger and denser. Fog Density exists only in Fog mode and controls the density of the localized fog volume. Main Color sets the main visible color of the volume.

Noise shapes internal variation and is positioned as essential for beams, broken-up shafts, and more organic fog. Noise Amount sets overall influence. Noise Global Scale sets the base scale of the Noise Texture. Noise Detail, Noise Roughness, and Noise Distortion provide procedural refinement. Noise Scale is a mapping scale vector, and reducing the Z component is described as a key technique for stretching the pattern along the volume length for longer god-ray style streaks. Noise Location moves the noise pattern in 3D space without moving the mesh. Noise Rotation rotates the noise pattern. Ray Spread opens or tightens the internal pattern along A to B travel. Invert Spread reverses the direction of the spread effect. Noise Animation animates the W dimension of the noise, with 0 keeping it static and positive or negative values moving it in opposite directions. Animated controls can be keyed directly when the small dot appears next to the parameter in the add-on UI.

Volume Shape controls tube-like rounding of the generated mesh through a non-destructive Bevel modifier. Enable Tube Bevel activates the modifier limited to relevant edges. Bevel Amount controls bevel width. Bevel Segments controls segment count. Clamp Overlap helps prevent problematic self-overlap when bevel becomes too large. Bevel Weight Direction appears on Cube-created volumes and changes which axis the bevel edge weighting follows. On From Faces volumes, the edges marked with bevel weight are the edges adjacent to the source and target faces.

Advanced Mask controls the tail end of the internal mask. Fade End controls where the fade reaches its end position. Shadow Color controls the color used on the darker side of the mask. Fade Start, Fade End, Main Color, Shadow Color, and Invert Fade together define how the volume transitions between a cleaner visible side and a darker masked look.

Marketplace details, compatibility, and licensing

The listing price is $19. The listing includes Blender Version 4.5 through 5.1, render engine usage in Cycles and Eevee, and license as GPL. The listing also states that future improvements are planned and that updates remain free for purchasers. Volume Forge is sold on Superhive.

New tools and innovations should be tested before use in production, especially when visibility depends on lighting, scale, render settings, and mask values that can shift between shots.

https://superhivemarket.com/products/volumeforge

https://depthoptica.com/docs/volume-forge/index.html

The post Volume Forge for Blender first appeared on DIGITAL PRODUCTION and was written by Bela Beier.

For those who don’t know: Compositing Academy (Alex Hanneman – LinkedIn | IMDB) is a training and development hub created by professional compositors for compositors. The studio produces practical tools and VFX courses focused on real production use rather than theory.

A True Volume, Not a Trick

Compositing Academy has released Volumetric Noise, a fully three-dimensional procedural noise engine for Nuke. The plugin raymarches genuine 3D volumes in Nuke’s viewer, eliminating the need for 2D cheats to fake atmosphere, fog, or cloud layers. It runs on Windows and supports Nuke 16.0v6 through 17, with limited fallback for 15 if the Vectorise CPU option is disabled in the Blink node.

Raymarching is a rendering technique that steps a virtual camera through a 3D field to calculate light, density, and colour at each point, supposedly allowing realistic fog, smoke, and cloud depth.

Unlike card-based noise projections, Volumetric Noise works as a native volumetric renderer. It allows full control over shapes, erosion, and motion, functioning like a simplified 3D render engine embedded in Nuke. The plugin is aimed at compositors who want realistic parallax, light scattering, and shadowing without round-tripping to Houdini or another 3D package.

Real Depth, Real Shadows

The plugin supports one directional light source, providing reactive lighting, shading, and shadow steps for density control. Shadows can be biased and jittered for fine-tuning. Lighting intensity and scattering parameters emulate volumetric fall off, enabling backlit frog and soft illumination effects.

Density, gain, and gamma settings define softness and depth, while erosion and distortion layers introduce non-repetitive structure. These features enable art-directing density variation, wispy edges, and natural cloud breakup, effects usually reserved for full 3D simulations.

Occlusion and Parallax in Comp

Volumetric Noise supports Z-depth and P-pass occlusion. Volumes can be masked against 3D geometry or plate-derived depth data, enabling integration with live-action environments. Although the tool does not support deep compositing, it provides bias and contour softness controls to reduce aliasing in Z or P data.

Alex states that this approach covers around 60 to 70 per cent of typical atmospheric compositing tasks. Deep compositing remains necessary for complex holdouts, heavy motion blur, or fine geometry such as vegetation. Camera parallax and real 3D movement are fully supported. Artists can fly through volumes and preview them as point clouds in Nuke’s 3D viewer, which aids precise placement and occlusion alignment.

Lightweight and Fast

The developer reports near-real-time playback and rendering speeds of about 1 second per frame, depending on sampling and scene density. Built-in optimisation features include slicing, space skipping, and a heatmap visualiser showing where calculations occur in the volume. Empty space is automatically skipped, improving render efficiency. Motion blur is achieved by exporting motion vectors that combine camera and noise movement for use with Nuke’s VectorBlur node. Internal defocus is not supported; instead, users can split volumes and defocus externally.

Designed by a Compositor

Alex positions the plugin as an artist-friendly tool, just the controls you need, nothing more. Presets include base clouds, ground fog, backlit fog, wispy volumes, and world-space scalable cloudscapes. The developer emphasises that Volumetric Noise is procedural, not a pre-baked VDB loader, and aims to offer infinite variety for shot-specific art direction.

Pricing and Availability

Volumetric Noise is available now from Compositing Academy for USD 99. A free watermarked version is offered for testing, labelled as BETA. The plugin requires Nuke Indie or Nuke Commercial and is compatible with Windows systems. Future minor compatibility fixes are planned. A potential version 2 update may involve an upgrade fee. As with all new tools, users are advised to test the plugin in their own production environments before deployment.

The post No More 2D Smoke and Mirrors: Volumetric Noise for Nuke first appeared on DIGITAL PRODUCTION and was written by Bela Beier.

With the new version 4.3 of the Godot Engine, the developers have integrated numerous improvements and new functions that are specifically tailored to the needs of CG artists. The focus is on optimising and expanding existing tools to make complex digital projects more efficient and flexible.

Volumetric fog: more realism in the visualisation

The introduction of “Volumetric Fog” in Godot 4.3 offers you an improved representation of fog and smoke in real time. The engine now supports the simulation of light scattering within fog volumes, which makes for more realistic and atmospheric environments. Especially for scenes that require a dynamic atmosphere, such as in film production or real-time visualisations, this is a welcome enhancement.

The new fog function is fully integrated into the pipeline and works efficiently with the existing lighting and shading engine. However, the complex calculation of the light interactions within the fog can require high computing power, depending on the scene and project. Users should therefore test the new functions thoroughly before integrating them into production projects.

Meshlet rendering: Efficient rendering of complex geometries

Meshlet rendering is another important new feature in Godot 4.3. This technology makes it possible to divide large and complex models into smaller parts, so-called meshlets. This leads to more efficient processing and visualisation of geometries, as only the visible parts of the model need to be rendered. For VFX artists working with highly detailed scenes, this is a significant relief as it can considerably reduce render times. Especially in real-time applications, such as games or interactive visualisations, meshlet rendering can help to optimise performance on different hardware configurations. Here too, however, it is advisable to evaluate the technology in detail before using it in production.

Improved animation tools: Precision and flexibility

The animation toolset has also been revised with Godot 4.3. The new functions offer you as a user more precision when creating and customising animations. The “Animation Retargeting” feature allows you to easily transfer animations to different characters, which greatly simplifies the workflow for projects with multiple characters.

The integration of Animation Trees has also been improved, allowing you to manage and customise complex animations more efficiently. These new features are particularly useful for artists working on projects with many animated characters or objects. Improved control over timing and transitions allows for more realistic motion sequences, which is important in VFX and game production.

Extended file format support: More flexibility at work

Godot 4.3 extends support for different file formats, giving you greater flexibility when importing and exporting your projects. The engine now supports a wider range of 3D file formats, including FBX and OBJ, and improves integration with external tools such as Blender. This expanded format support facilitates the exchange of assets between different software solutions and enables smoother collaboration in mixed production environments. Although the new formats have been extensively tested, artists should ensure that all imports are correct and lossless before using them in current projects.

Further optimisations: Improved performance and stability

In addition to the major features, Godot 4.3 offers a number of smaller optimisations that have a positive effect on the general performance and stability of the engine. These include improvements to the rendering backend, which increase the general frame rate and responsiveness of the engine.

The developers have also worked on the user interface to further improve the workflow. This particularly affects the scripting and debugging areas, where new tools and options have been added. These changes are aimed at providing you as a user with an even more pleasant and productive working environment.

Licence model and availability

Godot 4.3, like the previous versions, remains available under the MIT licence, which means that the engine can be used free of charge. This openness makes Godot particularly attractive for indie developers and small studios who want to benefit from the professional features without having to pay high licence costs.

For more information and detailed instructions on how to use the new features, you can consult the official documentation. Information on downloading and installing the latest version can be found directly on the manufacturer’s website.

The post New functions in Godot 4.3 for CG Artists first appeared on DIGITAL PRODUCTION and was written by Jürgen Firsching.