light

Create light

Syntax

light('PropertyName',propertyvalue,...) light(ax,...) handle = light(...)

Properties

For a list of properties, see Light Properties.

Description

light creates a light in the current axes. Lights affect only patch and surface objects.

light('PropertyName',propertyvalue,...) creates a Light object using the specified values for the named properties. For a description of the properties, see Light Properties. The MATLAB^® software parents the light to the current axes unless you specify another axes with the Parent property.

light(ax,...) creates the light in the axes specified by ax instead of in the current axes (gca). The option ax can precede any of the input argument combinations in the previous syntaxes.

handle = light(...) returns the Light object created.

Examples

Light the peaks surface plot with a local light source oriented along the direction defined by the vector [-1 0 0], that is, looking from 0 along the positive x-axis.

surf(peaks,'FaceLighting','gouraud','FaceColor','interp',...
      'AmbientStrength',0.5)
light('Position',[-1 0 0],'Style','local')

Tutorials

For more information about lighting, see Lighting Overview.

Tips

You cannot see a Light object per se, but you can see the effects of the light source on patch and surface objects. You can also specify an axes-wide ambient light color that illuminates these objects. However, ambient light is visible only when at least one Light object is present and visible in the axes.

You can specify properties as property name/property value pairs, structure arrays, and cell arrays (see set and get for examples of how to specify these data types).

See also the Patch Properties and Surface Properties AmbientStrength, DiffuseStrength, SpecularStrength, SpecularExponent, SpecularColorReflectance, and VertexNormals properties. Also see the lighting and material commands.

Documentation