Blender OSL

Blender OSL is an open shading language (OSL) integration into the blender software. This integration allows users to write custom shaders using OSL, which can then be applied to different objects or materials in a 3D environment.

OSL is a C-like language which is designed for shading and rendering tasks. It is used for high-performance shading in production rendering systems like Arnold, RenderMan and so on. OSL is well suited for physically based rendering (PBR) and can handle complex rendering tasks with ease.

Features

• Open Shading Language Integration
• C-like Language for Shading and Rendering Tasks
• Support for Physically Based Rendering
• High Performance Rendering

Installation

To use blender OSL, you need to first download and install the blender software. You can download the latest version of blender from the official website https://www.blender.org/download/.

After installing blender, you need to enable the OSL feature from the preferences menu. To do this, follow the steps below:

1. Open Blender
2. Click on Edit from the top menu bar
3. Select Preferences
4. Click on the Add-ons tab
5. Search for OSL and select the checkbox for OSL: Open Shading Language
6. Click on Save Preferences

OSL is now enabled and ready to use in blender.

Usage

To use OSL shaders in blender, you must first create an OSL script. An OSL script is a text file with an ".osl" extension. OSL scripts can be created using any code editor.

Here is an example of a simple OSL script:

#include "stdosl.h"

shader simple_shade(
    color DiffuseColor = color(0.9, 0.9, 0.9),
    float Roughness = 0.1,
    output closure color SurfaceClosure = surfaceclosure())
{
    SurfaceClosure = diffuse(N, DiffuseColor) * roughness(Roughness);
}

After creating the OSL script, you can use it in blender by following the steps below:

1. Open blender
2. Create a new material or open an existing material for an object
3. In the shader editor, add an "OSL" node
4. In the "OSL" node, select the OSL script that you created
5. Connect the "Surface" output of the "OSL" node to the "Surface" input of the "Material Output" node

You have successfully added an OSL shader to your material in blender.

Conclusion

Blender OSL is a powerful feature that allows users to write custom shaders for rendering tasks. With support for physically based rendering and high-performance rendering, OSL is an ideal choice for professionals working in the 3D rendering and animation industry.