Maya 2026 / Arnold + Redshift

Shape the highlight. Keep the setup.

Browse 145 16-bit EXR maps, apply them to Arnold or Redshift area lights, control the scene from one mixer, and move a lighting setup between renderers in one click.

Get Area Light Maps Pro → See Render Results

145 EXR maps Arnold + Redshift area lights 2048² resolution Free updates

Area Light Maps Pro Library interface inside Maya

Visual Library Search, filter, preview, favourite, apply, or create a mapped light.

Light Mixer Exposure, Kelvin temperature, tint, map swapping, mute, and solo.

Renderer Conversion Move all lights or selected lights between Arnold and Redshift.

Rigs + Placement Build five rigs, aim lights, place reflections, and save presets.

145

Mapped area-light patterns with matching thumbnails.

Arnold and Redshift area-light workflows in one panel.

2048 × 2048, half-float EXR maps with matching thumbnails.

v2.0

Dual-renderer lighting tools built for Maya 2026.

Rendered with Area Light Maps Pro

Light maps that visibly shape the render.

These renders were created with the included maps to demonstrate reflection character, studio-light form, directional breakup, and cinematic light patterns.

Bottle lighting variations created with Area Light Maps Pro — Product-lighting variations

Portrait ring light and product softbox lighting examples — Ring light, softbox, and product response

Architectural and cinematic lighting examples made with Area Light Maps Pro — Cinematic and architectural light patterns

One lighting workspace

Browse, mix, link, rig, place, and convert.

Area Light Maps Pro keeps the controls that matter to lighting artists in one Maya panel, with the same artist-facing workflow across Arnold and Redshift.

Visual map library

Pick a map by looking, not by reading filenames.

Search by name, filter by category, preview at useful sizes, maintain a favourites list, and apply a map directly to selected area lights. Double-clicking a thumbnail creates a mapped light with your default renderer.

145 maps across 11 categories.
Actual thumbnail previews for every EXR map.
Apply to Selection, Create New Light, and Favourites controls.
Choose Arnold or Redshift for each new light when needed.
Adjustable thumbnail sizing for compact or visual browsing.

Area Light Maps Pro favourites interface

Light Mixer

See Arnold and Redshift lights in the same mixer.

Each ALM area light shows its renderer, map thumbnail, map name, exposure, Kelvin temperature, tint, mute, and solo controls. Changes stay in sync with Maya.

Clear Arnold and Redshift badges for every light.
Temperature range from 2000K to 12000K.
Two-way exposure control with Maya.
Mixer state persists with the scene file.

Arnold area lights in the Area Light Maps Pro Light Mixer — **Arnold**AR_ lights

Redshift area lights in the Area Light Maps Pro Light Mixer — **Redshift**RS_ lights

Light Linking

Choose exactly what each light affects.

Select objects in the viewport and link a light only to that selection, or return it to the default all-geometry state. Arnold and Redshift lights use the same clear row-by-row workflow.

One row per Arnold or Redshift area light.
Selection-only linking in one click.
Instant restore to all geometry.
Maya light links survive renderer conversion.

Arnold area-light linking in Area Light Maps Pro — **Arnold**Per-light links

Redshift area-light linking in Area Light Maps Pro — **Redshift**Per-light links

Rigs + placement

Build a useful rig, then make it yours.

Create Three-Point, Clamshell, Rim Pair, Product Ring, or Single Key rigs that center, scale, aim, and optionally assign a default softbox map.

Aim selected lights at an object.
Move selected lights to the active camera.
Use Reflection Placer to solve a chosen specular highlight point.
Save and reload complete lighting setups as reusable presets.

Area Light Maps Pro lighting rigs interface

Renderer conversion

Change renderer without rebuilding the rig.

Convert all ALM lights or only the selected lights from Arnold to Redshift and back. ALM replaces the renderer-specific light shape while keeping the setup you already authored.

Keeps transforms, hierarchy, scale, animation, and constraints.
Keeps map assignment, exposure, spread, tint, and temperature state.
Keeps Maya light links and supported contribution controls.
Runs as one undo step and rolls back the action on failure.

Area Light Maps Pro renderer defaults and conversion controls

Real light-map character

Softbox falloff, grids, hotspots, material wrinkles, reflectors, and cinematic structures that remain visible in surface reflections.

Choose the renderer per action

Set a default renderer, then create an Arnold or Redshift light explicitly whenever the shot calls for it.

Save and recall rigs

Store transforms, exposure, spread, maps, tint, temperature, and renderer choice as reusable lighting setups.

Actual plugin interface

Every major workspace, shown as it ships.

Select any screenshot to view it at a larger size.

Library tab screenshot — Library145 maps

Favourites tab screenshot — FavouritesSaved maps

Arnold Light Mixer tab screenshot — Light MixerArnold

Redshift Light Mixer tab screenshot — Light MixerRedshift

Arnold Light Linking tab screenshot — Light LinkingArnold

Redshift Light Linking tab screenshot — Light LinkingRedshift

Settings tab screenshot — SettingsConversion

Designed for

Lighting workflows where reflections matter.

Product Visualization

Shape readable highlights on glass, metal, plastic, cosmetics, packaging, and polished surfaces.

Beauty Lighting

Use clamshell, ring, softbox, reflector, and beauty-dish patterns for controlled studio response.

Portrait Lighting

Build catchlights, edge separation, soft facial transitions, and warm or cool tonal balance.

Look Development

Test material response quickly by changing the light-map structure rather than rebuilding the rig.

Studio Rendering

Create repeatable lighting rigs that can be stored and loaded across multiple Maya scenes.

Requirements + included files

Install once. Start lighting immediately.

The purchase contains the complete plugin, one-click shelf installer, full map library, matching thumbnails, and installation/user documentation.

Autodesk Maya 2026 Built around Maya's PySide6 and dockable workspace-control environment.

Arnold or Redshift Use either supported renderer, or install both when you want one-click scene-light conversion.

Windows 10 / 11 The current release is designed and tested for Windows.

145 EXR Maps 2048 × 2048 half-float EXRs with matching thumbnails and category organization.

One-Click Shelf Installer Add the ALM launcher to the ReimagineFX Tools shelf.

One-Time Purchase Includes the purchased product and free updates for future releases.

FAQ

Before adding it to Maya.

Can the maps be applied to existing area lights?

Yes. Select one or more compatible Arnold or Redshift area lights and use Apply to Selection. You can also create a new mapped light directly from the browser.

Can I create a mapped light directly from the browser?

Yes. Double-click a map thumbnail or use Create New Light in the preview inspector. ALM uses your default renderer, with explicit Arnold and Redshift choices available when needed.

Does the Light Mixer state save with the Maya scene?

Yes. Temperature, tint, mute, and solo metadata are stored with the scene so the mixer can restore the intended state.

Can I reuse a lighting setup in another scene?

Yes. Save the current ALM area lights as a rig preset, then load that preset into another scene. You can preserve the saved renderer or load the rig as Arnold or Redshift.

What stays intact during renderer conversion?

ALM keeps transforms, hierarchy, scale, animation, constraints, map assignment, exposure, spread, tint, temperature state, supported contribution controls, and Maya light links. The renderer-specific light shape is the part that changes.

What does Reflection Placer require?

Select one or more area lights, then select a mesh face or vertex at the desired highlight location. The active camera and surface normal are used to position the light.

Can I use only one renderer?

Yes. Install the renderer you use. ALM loads Arnold or Redshift on demand when it is available; both are required only when converting lights between them.

Will Arnold and Redshift renders look pixel-identical?

No. The two renderers use different light models and sampling. Conversion keeps the authored lighting setup and artist-facing values, then each renderer resolves that setup through its own lighting model.

Built by a lighting artist

Spend the time on the highlight, not the setup.

Browse 145 mapped light patterns, control Arnold and Redshift area lights, build rigs, link illumination, place reflections, and carry the setup between renderers from one Maya panel.

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