P3D HDR Brightness Mod - Bright Daytime and Dark Night

[Anxu00 176]

Thanks for this.  +1 for LM to make the adjustment easier with the UI.

[rparson99 32]

X c lent mod!   Thanks allot!

[dgraham1284 92]

These are my reshade files: https://www.dropbox.com/s/nl8sad5ltzjzh8r/reshasde.rar?dl=0

[Fi5kuS 57]

3: Find the entry for //avgLuminance *= 0.85f; , this is what we will be using to darken the nighttime.  Remove the slashes and change the 0.85f to 1.20f for now.  Next Fire up P3D, set the date to 2/18/2015 at night, and load the sim using your favorite aircraft someplace in the northeast usa.  Click map, set the aircraft altitude to 35000 ft, and load the thunderstorm weather theme.  This is date and time in which there is no moon.  You should see NO clouds outside your windscreen, if you see clouds increase the avg luminance value until you no longer can see clouds.  This is heavily dependent on proper calibration of your monitor.

 

 

I tried changing or increasing this value, which made the night darker but clouds even whiter. But If I load up that particular date you mentioned in northeast of USA the clouds are much darker and the night seem more realistic. Could it be the moon that is so brightening then? 

[Flic1 972]

Here's my own tweaks with HDE v2 skies and clouds. I'm liking the brightness/glare from the clouds.

 

Thanks to the OP for these tweaks, will be trying them out this evening!

 

btw---willywonka - How did you get that nice dark vcin the second pic?? Do these tweaks give you that effect? I was using Shade in FSX and miss this effect when you are heading towards the sun...especially in the 777!

[Pilot53 543]

I tried changing or increasing this value, which made the night darker but clouds even whiter. But If I load up that particular date you mentioned in northeast of USA the clouds are much darker and the night seem more realistic. Could it be the moon that is so brightening then?

Yes the varying moon phases will effect cloud visibility at night. Some visibility I find is realistic with a near full moon. However if you are seeing too much brightness you may need to increase the first multiplier, but that will make day darker. on my setup i was able to get it so both day and night look accurate. For Even more capability it would be great to be able to alter the brightness of the moon itself, but I have not yet found a way.

[Flic1 972]

Yes the varying moon phases will effect cloud visibility at night. Some visibility I find is realistic with a near full moon. However if you are seeing too much brightness you may need to increase the first multiplier, but that will make day darker. on my setup i was able to get it so both day and night look accurate. For Even more capability it would be great to be able to alter the brightness of the moon itself, but I have not yet found a way.

 

Mike - Is it possible that the stars are contributing to some of these issues at night with clouds being too bright?  I personally think the stars are unrealistically bright (for stars!) and wonder if the cumulative effect of them causes this issue...???

[willywonka 36]

Thanks to the OP for these tweaks, will be trying them out this evening!

 

btw---willywonka - How did you get that nice dark vcin the second pic?? Do these tweaks give you that effect? I was using Shade in FSX and miss this effect when you are heading towards the sun...especially in the 777!

That's my version of the HDR; you can get it here: https://bitbucket.org/pnirattisai/p3d-hdr-tweaks/downloads#tag-downloads. Click on Tags, then download the Preston's_tweaks_-_bright_clouds

 

Follow the instructions to install.

 

Remember, I made my HDR based on HDE v2 skies and clouds. I have no idea how it'll look with default, REX, or any other texture sets!

[Pilot53 543]

Im not 100% sure if the stars contribute brightness to the environment or not, but I dont think they do otherwise you wouldnt get total darkness on 2/18. I also belive you can lower the brightness of stars by editing stars.dat

[willywonka 36]

Anyone know what constant to change to get darker cloud shadows?

[Fi5kuS 57]

That's my version of the HDR; you can get it here: https://bitbucket.org/pnirattisai/p3d-hdr-tweaks/downloads#tag-downloads. Click on Tags, then download the Preston's_tweaks_-_bright_clouds

 

Follow the instructions to install.

 

Remember, I made my HDR based on HDE v2 skies and clouds. I have no idea how it'll look with default, REX, or any other texture sets!

 

Tried your settings, and I have a reasonable calibration on my monitor now. Clouds are unfortunately pitch white (see picture), so It has to be something with the moonlight. Perhaps you want to try for your self? Load up Tromsø Airport, Norway between 8-9 PM. We should get a similar result I guess. Anyways, thanks for sharing your settings!

 

EDIT - Tried setting the date to 18th of April. Moon went away and the night was a lot darker. Clouds were also much darker. Not sure if I like the effect of milky white clouds with a little moonlight.

 

[carlito777 712]

Thanks a lot for this tweak! It is really great. Finally, the night is really dark. I hated those white clouds at night in the default setup! Really great now with the tweak!

[ChaoticBeauty 6,692]

Thank you! I'm going to try this.

[willywonka 36]

 

Tried your settings, and I have a reasonable calibration on my monitor now. Clouds are unfortunately pitch white (see picture), so It has to be something with the moonlight. Perhaps you want to try for your self? Load up Tromsø Airport, Norway between 8-9 PM. We should get a similar result I guess. Anyways, thanks for sharing your settings!

 

EDIT - Tried setting the date to 18th of April. Moon went away and the night was a lot darker. Clouds were also much darker. Not sure if I like the effect of milky white clouds with a little moonlight.

 

Hmm.. my clouds are much darker (but not invisible) than yours. What texture are you using?

 

On my monitor, everything in your screenshot looks really bright, including the terrain. I only made what looks good on my monitor so you'll have to experiment and find a setting that works best on your setup. :huh:

[autogyro 18]

I can't seem to find a nice balance for a bright day and dark night.

 

Not familiar with HSHL coding... Is there a way to adjust the contrast up? Other than monitor settings?