Shape
Chooses the base volume shape.
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3D / AtmosphereAdvanced
VolumeFog
Procedural volumetric fog in 3D
Creates procedural volumetric fog, smoke or illuminated atmosphere inside a Fusion 3D scene with shape, noise, density, lighting and scattering controls.
VolumeFog
DaVinci Resolve · Fusion
Creates procedural volumetric fog, smoke or illuminated atmosphere inside a Fusion 3D scene with shape, noise, density, lighting and scattering controls.
Overview
What VolumeFog does
Creates procedural volumetric fog, smoke or illuminated atmosphere inside a Fusion 3D scene with shape, noise, density, lighting and scattering controls.
VolumeFog is actual 3D participating media inside the scene: the volume occupies space, the camera looks through it, and lights can scatter through it before Renderer3D returns the scene to 2D.
Mental model
VolumeFog is actual 3D participating media inside the scene: the volume occupies space, the camera looks through it, and lights can scatter through it before Renderer3D returns the scene to 2D.
Common uses
Add 3D fog to a Fusion scene
Create volumetric shafts around 3D lights
Build smoke-like atmospheric volumes
Add depth to abstract 3D graphics
Create animated noisy haze
Flow anatomy
Inputs & outputs
The port structure shows how this node fits into a Fusion graph.
SceneInput
3D scene context and optional supporting inputs used by the volume.
Effect Mask
Optional mask that limits where the node affects the image.
VolumeFog
Fusion node
SceneOutput
The resulting 3D scene or scene object.
Inspector
Important parameters
Start with these controls before reaching for more complicated workarounds.
Translation / X Offset / Y Offset / Z Offset
Sets the Z Offset.
Rotation / Order / X / Y / Z
Sets the X, Y and Z components of order.
Scale / Lock X/Y/Z
Links the X, Y and Z values for scale.
Size
Sets the overall size.
Soft Edge
Softens the transition at the edge of the mask, matte or effect.
Adaptive Sample
Enables adaptive volume sampling so more work is spent where the fog needs it.
Samples
Sets how many samples are used to integrate the volume.
Z Slices
Sets the number of depth slices used to integrate the volume.
First Slice Time
Offsets the time sampled by the first volume slice.
Color / Red / Green / Blue / Alpha
Provides separate controls for the red, green, blue and alpha channels.
Gain
Sets the gain of the effect.
Subtractive/Additive
Selects or adjusts the additive behavior.
Fog Only
Shows Fog Only in the Viewer for setup or diagnostics.
Detail
Controls the amount of fine structure in the procedural pattern.
Noise Gain
Adjusts the contrast or gain of the procedural volume-noise pattern.
Brightness
Sets the brightness of the effect.
Noise Translation X/Y/Z
Sets Noise Translation on the X, Y and Z axes.
Noise Rotation / Order / X/Y/Z
Sets the X, Y and Z components of order.
Noise Scale
Sets the spatial scale of the procedural noise shaping the fog.
Seethe
Animates the procedural noise through time.
Discontinuous
Breaks the procedural volume noise into a more discontinuous pattern.
Inverted
Inverts the current map, mask or selection.
Camera
Chooses the scene camera used to evaluate Volume Fog.
Camera Position / Pick / X/Y/Z
Sets the X, Y and Z components of pick.
Do Lighting
Makes the volume respond to scene lights.
Do In-Scattering
Enables light scattering inside the volume, producing visible beams and atmospheric depth.
Light Samples
Sets how many lighting samples are evaluated inside the volume.
Density
Controls how strongly the medium absorbs/scatters light.
Scattering / Scattering Color
Sets the scattering Color.
Asymmetry
Controls the preferred direction of light scattering through the fog.
Transmission / Transmission Color
Sets the transmission Color.
Reflection / Reflection Color
Sets the reflection Color.
Emission / Emission Color
Sets the emission Color.
Practical setup
A reliable workflow
- 1
Add VolumeFog to the 3D scene before Renderer3D.
- 2
Position and scale the volume around the area that needs atmosphere.
- 3
Set Density low while building the look.
- 4
Add noise detail and Seethe only after the base volume works.
- 5
Enable lighting and in-scattering for interaction with 3D lights.
- 6
Increase samples only as much as the final render requires.
Typical node chain
3D Scene→
VolumeFog→
Renderer3D
Examples
Where this node fits in real work
3D light shafts
Place fog around a lit 3D scene.
Merge3D + Lights + VolumeFogRenderer3DMediaOut
Animated haze volume
Animate Seethe for slowly evolving atmosphere.
VolumeFogMerge3DRenderer3D
Troubleshooting
Common mistakes
Applying VolumeFog before the image is in the technical state the node expects.
Pushing VolumeFog too far before checking artifacts at full resolution.
Judging VolumeFog on one still frame instead of checking motion and edge behavior.
Production notes
Practical tips
Compare VolumeFog with bypass regularly while tuning it.
Keep VolumeFog and other technical conversions separate from creative grading when possible.
After strong VolumeFog processing, check alpha, highlights and image boundaries.
Related nodes