LEGO® Theta V HDRI Research

In this research result I've used an app called "ThetaV-HDR" to shoot 24 images. The app supports bracketing and you are able to setup ISO, white balance, shutter time and exposure for each frame individually.

A HDR image needs a row of pictures from under- to overexposed (dark to bright). The 24 pictures can be converted with Photoshop to a 32bit HDR image and saved in a radiance format (.hdr) used for Blender Cycles or any other modern path tracer.

The top left picture is the reference photo shot with an iPhone 6. I removed the LEGO models and shot another clean plate for the CGI parts made with Mecabricks. The HDR image is used for image-based lighting for photoreal rendering with physically-based shaders.

Once you have setup the scene close to the original reference picture you can render any kind of Mecabricks model in this environment without additional effort.