HDRi Night and Day Images and Timelapses to Download

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As a 3D designer, you might find yourself needing to depict the same location in a variety of lighting conditions, and at various points in the day.

With traditional HDRi Maps, this can be challenging. Most maps are a static capture of a specific place at a specific moment in time. If the light or time of day isn't perfect for your project, there's not much you can do.

Time of Day Variations and HDRi Timelapses

Here at CGI.Backgrounds, we understand this limitation of traditional HDRi Maps and Backplates. For that reason, our professional photographers have created something unique--sets of HDRi Maps for selected locations that depict the same physical place throughout the day and night.

You can think of these unique image sets as HDRi timelapses. Here's an example of one of our night/day paired HDRi Maps, depicting a salt lake and salt flats in various lighting conditions throughout the day.

For this specific location, we actually have imagery not only from a variety of times of day, but from various angles.

In this image, we've presented the location as a literal timelapse, so you can see how many different times of day we've depicted.

In reality, though, you could choose a single HDRi Map from any time of day or any angle, allowing you to determine the perfect asset for your project.

Urban Timelapse HDRi Maps

Night/day variations and imagery depicting different times of day aren't just for remote locations, either. Our collection includes a variety of urban locations, captured throughout the day from the same angle.

Cities change dramatically as the day progresses. Vehicular and pedestrian traffic varies, building lights turn on and off, and more.

In this set of HDRI Maps and Backplates from the Netherlands , we've captured a single urban location throughout the day and into the evening.

In each HDRi Map, you can see the sun move through the sky, public transit vehicles arrive and depart, and much more.

Again, as a 3D designer, you could choose various moments from throughout the day, obtaining the perfect light for your project.

You could also choose multiple HDRi Maps from the same location, to depict your subject in different lighting conditions, but with a consistent visual backdrop.

Capturing Night/Day HDRi Maps

Consider the challenges involved in capturing these unique HDRi Maps and Backplates!

To capture the same real-world location in varying lighting conditions, our professional photographers need to visit a location and stay there for an entire day. To maintain the ideal angle, their equipment can barely move throughout their time on location.

Free HDRi websites rarely have the resources to perform these kinds of all-day photoshoots, especially in challenging desert and remote locations. That's a great reason to turn to CGI.Backgrounds, and consider one of our subscription plans to access this unique imagery.

How to Use HDRi Timelapses

You can use our HDRi Timelapses in a variety of ways. If you're creating a 3D render of a vehicle, for example, you could place the same vehicle model into the scene at varying points in the day, by choosing several HDRi Maps or Backplates.

Combined with Image Based Lighting, this allows you to create concept imagery showing the vehicle in multiple real-world conditions. You can also provide your team or brand with several options for the time of day, before choosing a map to proceed to final production.

In addition, character designers love these maps, as they're ideal for character look studies. You can choose 5+ different HDRi Maps from throughout the day, rendering your character in changing conditions to ensure the textures you've chosen look great no matter the light.

Finally, our Day/Night HDRi maps are a great fit for architectural visualization. If you're using our maps just for lighting data and not visuals, choosing various times of day allows you to customize the perfect lighting conditions to render your structure.