Volume Render
Create and manipulate 3D volumetric data.
What it does
Volume Render turns a shape, Distance Field, image, video capture, or another Volume into volumetric fog, cloud, or smoke and ray-marches it in the viewport. Multiple sources combine.
A shape becomes a soft puff of fog around its surface. An image is extruded into a thin depth-tapered slab. A captured frame stack becomes one depth slice per frame, a clip as a solid block of volume. Display Mode switches between soft volumetric fog and a lit solid surface for shapes and liquids. Scattering, Absorption, Phase, and the lighting controls shape how light moves through the medium. A Volume Material node wired into Material sets colour, scattering, and glow in one place instead.
When to use it
Fog, smoke, clouds or haze around a shape or Distance Field.
A flat image as a soft 3D slab, or a captured clip as a block of volumetric depth.
A solid-looking cloud, liquid or blob rendered as a lit surface rather than soft fog: Display Mode set to Surface.
Glowing fire or embers: Emission paired with a density-driven colour gradient.
| Parameter | Type | Default |
|---|---|---|
sources | Any | Collection(AttributedCollection { col... |
fill | OneOf([Color, FieldOf(Color), FieldOf(Scalar), FieldOf(Vector)]) | — |
fill_channel | String | "" |
material_in | OneOf([ImplicitRenderSettings]) | — |
display_mode | String | "Volumetric" |
shade_smooth | Boolean | true |
edge_falloff | Number | 0.500 |
volume_depth | Number | 0 |
frame_channel_mode | String | "Color" |
mesh_mode | String | "SDF" |
point_radius | Number | 1 |
kernel_type | String | "Gaussian" |
smoothness | Number | 0 |
fog_distance | Number | 50 |
detail_strength | Number | 0.350 |
emission_intensity | Number | 0 |
voxel_resolution | Number | 64 |
voxel_padding | Number | 0.100 |
voxel_fill_interior | Boolean | true |
voxel_tessellation | String | "Medium" |
sdf_resolution | Number | 128 |
sdf_max_distance | Number | 10 |
resolution | Number | 128 |
bounds_size | Number | 100 |
scattering | Number | 0.500 |
absorption | Number | 0.100 |
phase | Number | 0.300 |
ambient | Number | 0.200 |
alpha | Number | 0.500 |
strength | Number | 1 |
Gotchas
A shape or Distance Field source that looks like it has vanished points at Fog Distance and Display Mode. Volumetric mode relies on Fog Distance to give the surface visible thickness; Surface mode sphere-traces the isosurface directly and ignores it.
Volume Depth defaults to 0 (auto): a single image keeps a thin tapered slab, while a frame stack spreads one world unit of depth per frame. Raise it to pin an exact Z thickness for either source.
A Volume Material node connected to Material overrides the node's own Scattering, Absorption, Phase, Ambient, and Alpha values, and the Fill input is ignored. Author all appearance on the Volume Material node upstream.
Detail (turbulence) and Emission affect shape and Distance Field volumes only. Image and video-capture volumes stay smooth.
Worked example
Add a Volume Render and wire a shape (or a Distance Field) into Sources.
Leave Display Mode on Volumetric for soft fog, or switch to Surface for a lit solid look.
Raise Detail for wispy turbulent edges, and raise Emission with a density-driven colour gradient on Fill for glowing fire or embers.
For full material control, wire a Volume Material node into Material instead of tuning Scattering/Absorption/Phase directly.