Check out this free 2D Rim Light Tool for Nuke
Compositing training provider Compositing Academy has released the Rim Light Tool, a free Nuke plugin for faking rim lighting effects in 2D.
The add-on, which is aimed at title sequences and motion graphics work, creates a rim light on a 2D image using only an alpha as input.
Create rim lighting effects on 2D images using only an alpha
The Rim Light Tool provides a custom node for generating a rim lighting effect on the edges of a 2D image, including soft shadows, using only that image’s alpha channel.
It isn’t a light wrap tool, and doesn’t require 3D data like position or normal information.
You can see a comparison to traditional ways of faking a rim light in 2D, such as using an Emboss node, in the video above: as well as generating more realistic results, the add-on comes with controls for light falloff and shadow smoothing.
Licensing and system requirements
The Rim Light Tool is compatible with Nuke 15.0+. It requires a commercial version of Nuke: it won’t work with Nuke Non-Commercial. The add-on is free, including for commercial use.
Download the Rim Light Tool for Nuke from Gumroad
(Enter a figure of $0 to download them for free, or make a voluntary donation)
Visit Compositing Academy’s website
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