After Effects Light Layer Settings Explained

The Light Settings dialog in Adobe After Effects is the configuration window used to create and customize 3D light sources within a composition. This article provides a clear breakdown of how to access this dialog, the different light types available, and how its key parameters—such as intensity, falloff, and shadow options—affect 3D layers in your workflow.

Accessing the Dialog

To open the dialog to create a new light, select Layer > New > Light from the top menu, or press the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + Alt + Shift + L (Windows) or Cmd + Option + Shift + L (macOS). You can reopen this dialog at any time to modify an existing light by selecting the light layer and choosing Layer > Light Settings, or by simply double-clicking the light layer's icon in the timeline.

Light Types

The first major choice in the dialog is the Light Type dropdown menu, which dictates how the light emits rays across your 3D scene:

  • Parallel: Emits directional, parallel rays of light from an infinitely distant source, functioning similarly to sunlight. The position of the light does not matter, only its direction.
  • Spot: Emits light from a specific point in a constrained cone shape, constrained by an angle. It features a position and a point of interest, behaving like a flashlight or stage spotlight.
  • Point: Emits light in all directions (360 degrees) from a single point in 3D space, similar to a bare lightbulb.
  • Ambient: Casts flat, omnidirectional light across the entire scene without a specific origin point. It raises the overall brightness and does not cast shadows.

Core Light Properties

Below the light type selection, the dialog provides basic color and power controls:

  • Color: Sets the hue of the light emitted using a standard color picker.
  • Intensity: Controls the brightness of the light. Values can exceed 100% for intense illumination or be set to negative values to subtract light from a scene.

Spot Light Controls

When Spot is selected as the light type, two additional parameters become active:

  • Cone Angle: Dictates the width of the light beam in degrees.
  • Cone Feather: Softens the outer edge of the light cone, creating a smooth transition between the illuminated area and the surrounding darkness.

Falloff Controls

Falloff determines how the light's intensity decreases as the distance from the light source increases:

  • Falloff Type: Options include None (constant intensity over any distance), Smooth, and Inverse Square Clamped (physically accurate decay based on real-world physics).
  • Radius and Falloff Distance: Sets the exact boundary where the light begins to decay and where it reaches zero illumination.

Shadow Settings

At the bottom of the dialog, checking the Casts Shadows box allows the light source to project shadows behind 3D layers that have their own "Casts Shadows" material option enabled.

  • Shadow Darkness: Adjusts the opacity of the resulting shadow, ranging from 0% (invisible) to 100% (solid black).
  • Shadow Diffusion: Softens the edges of the shadow, simulating soft-box lighting or distant light sources rather than sharp, hard-edged shadows.