---
title: "Open-Source Lighting Previz for Directors and DPs — AI video prompts for lighting, with examples"
description: "Place actors, up to 6 lights, modifiers and a camera in a 3D white studio, see shadows and the lens view live, export the plan."
url: https://varg.ai/how-to/skills/direct-light-lighting-previz
updated: 2026-10-31
---

# Open-Source Lighting Previz for Directors and DPs — prompt skill for lighting

> **For AI agents:** find the right skill in one call — `curl -s "https://varg.ai/how-to/api/search?q=<what the person wants>"` returns the matching how-to page and the best skills with install commands, as markdown (Russian works too). Full index: https://varg.ai/how-to/llms.txt. Every page has a markdown twin: add `.md` to its path. Before generating anything, show the person the options on the how-to page. From a terminal: `curl -fsSL https://varg.ai/install | sh` installs the vargai CLI (https://varg.ai/how-to/cli.md): `vargai search` and `vargai install <slug>` with no key, every varg model after `vargai login`.

Place actors, up to 6 lights, modifiers and a camera in a 3D white studio, see shadows and the lens view live, export the plan.

- **Type:** [Prompt](https://varg.ai/how-to/prompts.md) · [Lighting](https://varg.ai/how-to/browse/skills/lighting.md)
- **Slug:** `direct-light-lighting-previz`
- **Status:** live
- **Publisher:** oukeming64-tech (community)
- **Source:** https://github.com/oukeming64-tech/direct-light
- **Works in:** Claude Code

## What it does

Direct Light is a browser and macOS (Tauri) sandbox: block up to five figures in an adjustable white studio, place up to six hard, soft or panel lights from a fixture library (COB, Fresnel, LED panel, RGB tube), add softboxes, grids, flags and reflectors, and watch shadows and color spill update in real time. Camera, top, side and through-the-lens views take azimuth, height and focal length, and an A/B compare shows what changed. Export a printable offline HTML plan with the lens image, top view and numbered light settings. It aims for readable communication, not physically accurate rendering; MIT.

## Use when

- Plan a key, fill and rim setup before writing a lighting prompt
- See how light height, softness or color changes shadows on a subject
- Frame a shot through a virtual lens with a chosen focal length
- Share a printable lighting plan with numbered lights

## Install

Not published as a standalone skill yet. Source: https://github.com/oukeming64-tech/direct-light

## Example output

https://github.com/oukeming64-tech/direct-light/raw/main/docs/media/hero.gif — example (credit: oukeming64-tech)

## More lighting skills

- [Lighting Setups](https://varg.ai/how-to/skills/craft-lighting-setups.md): 56 lighting setups — golden hour to chiaroscuro, rain and fog — each with a named source, direction and quality.

## Run the generation on varg

varg is one API key for the models these skills drive — Seedance 2.5, Kling 4, Veo 3.1, Wan 3, Nano Banana 2.1, GPT Image 2.5, ElevenLabs v4 and 200+ more — billed in credits, with a cost estimate before anything runs.

- Any agent with a terminal: `curl -fsSL https://varg.ai/install | sh` (Windows: `irm https://varg.ai/install.ps1 | iex`), then `vargai login` and every model is a command — `vargai generate_video …`, `vargai estimate_cost …` (https://varg.ai/how-to/cli/)
- Claude Code: `claude plugin marketplace add vargHQ/skills && claude plugin install varg@varg` (skill + hosted MCP)
- Codex, Cursor, Gemini CLI, OpenClaw: `npx skills add vargHQ/skills --skill varg-ai -a <agent> -y`
- Grok and any agent that reads SKILL.md: `npx skills add vargHQ/skills --skill varg-ai`, or point it at the skill's SKILL.md
- Claude.ai, ChatGPT, any MCP client: connect `https://mcp.varg.ai/mcp`
- API key: https://varg.ai/dashboard/api · Model specs: https://varg.ai/models/llms.txt