Seeing it

What the lighting actually does.

Each of these is one frame of the game, photographed twice: once with the ray traced lighting off, once with it on at the settings this site recommends. Same place, same hour, same position, same everything else. Drag across a picture to wipe between them.

Comparisons: 3
Photographs: 5
Captured at: 1920 by 1080

Off and on

The same frame, twice.

The graveyard, at night, with the ray traced lighting off — The graveyard, at night One long shadow from Link, and the fence throwing its own across the grass.

The graveyard, at night, with the ray traced lighting on — The graveyard, at night One long shadow from Link, and the fence throwing its own across the grass.

Hyrule Field, at night, with the ray traced lighting off — Hyrule Field, at night Nothing out here lights anything, so what light there is has to come from somewhere.

Hyrule Field, at night, with the ray traced lighting on — Hyrule Field, at night Nothing out here lights anything, so what light there is has to come from somewhere.

Inside the mountain, with the ray traced lighting off — Inside the mountain Carved rock, and how much of it the light actually reaches.

Inside the mountain, with the ray traced lighting on — Inside the mountain Carved rock, and how much of it the light actually reaches.

On its own

Sets of photographs.

Not everything is an argument about the renderer. These are with the lighting on, as the game draws it. Click one to open it, and move the cursor across it to magnify.

A day in one street

The same walk out of the same door at five hours of the same day, with the lighting on. Nothing moves between them but the sun.

Still filling up

More is coming.

More photographs, of more of the game, and video as well. This page is new and there is a lot of the game left to show.

How these were made

Nothing was set up for the camera.

The program can put itself at any entrance in the game at any hour, hold the clock still, and stop updating while it carries on drawing. So each pair is the same arrival, at the same tick, with one line of configuration changed between the two. Nothing was walked to, posed, or picked from a run of attempts.

There is no filter on them and no editing. They are 1920 by 1080 as the program drew them, which is why the interface is still in shot.