scene-materials

Scene Setup & Materials

Use the blender MCP tools to execute Python code inside Blender. All scene and material operations are done via bpy calls sent through the MCP.

Lighting Setup

Three-Point Studio Lighting

Standard professional setup: key light (main), fill light (soften shadows), rim light (separate subject from background), and a soft overhead.

import bpy, math

def add_area_light(name, location, rotation_euler, energy, size=2.0):
    bpy.ops.object.light_add(type='AREA', location=location)
    light = bpy.context.object
    light.name = name
    light.rotation_euler = rotation_euler
    light.data.energy = energy
    light.data.size = size
    return light

# Key light — strong, 45° front-left above
add_area_light('Key', (4, -4, 5), (math.radians(60), 0, math.radians(45)), energy=800)

# Fill light — softer, opposite side
add_area_light('Fill', (-4, -3, 3), (math.radians(50), 0, math.radians(-40)), energy=200)

# Rim light — behind subject, creates edge separation
add_area_light('Rim', (0, 5, 4), (math.radians(-45), 0, math.radians(180)), energy=400)

# Overhead soft light
add_area_light('Overhead', (0, 0, 8), (0, 0, 0), energy=150, size=5.0)

HDRI Background (Poly Haven)

Download an HDRI from polyhaven.com (e.g., studio_small_08_4k.exr) and apply it:

import bpy

world = bpy.context.scene.world
world.use_nodes = True
nodes = world.node_tree.nodes
nodes.clear()

bg = nodes.new('ShaderNodeBackground')
env = nodes.new('ShaderNodeTexEnvironment')
out = nodes.new('ShaderNodeOutputWorld')

env.image = bpy.data.images.load('/path/to/hdri.exr')
bg.inputs['Strength'].default_value = 1.0

links = world.node_tree.links
links.new(env.outputs['Color'], bg.inputs['Color'])
links.new(bg.outputs['Background'], out.inputs['Surface'])

Material Archetypes

Apply using Cycles principled BSDF. All materials target fully opaque results (no transparency).

Titanium (compressor blades, spools)

mat = bpy.data.materials.new('Titanium')
mat.use_nodes = True
bsdf = mat.node_tree.nodes['Principled BSDF']
bsdf.inputs['Base Color'].default_value = (0.62, 0.60, 0.58, 1.0)
bsdf.inputs['Metallic'].default_value = 1.0
bsdf.inputs['Roughness'].default_value = 0.25
bsdf.inputs['Specular IOR Level'].default_value = 0.5

Nickel Superalloy (hot section, turbine)

mat = bpy.data.materials.new('NickelSuperalloy')
bsdf = mat.node_tree.nodes['Principled BSDF']
bsdf.inputs['Base Color'].default_value = (0.72, 0.68, 0.60, 1.0)
bsdf.inputs['Metallic'].default_value = 1.0
bsdf.inputs['Roughness'].default_value = 0.35

Stainless Steel (casings, structural)

mat = bpy.data.materials.new('StainlessSteel')
bsdf = mat.node_tree.nodes['Principled BSDF']
bsdf.inputs['Base Color'].default_value = (0.80, 0.80, 0.80, 1.0)
bsdf.inputs['Metallic'].default_value = 1.0
bsdf.inputs['Roughness'].default_value = 0.15

Carbon Composite (fan blades)

mat = bpy.data.materials.new('CarbonComposite')
bsdf = mat.node_tree.nodes['Principled BSDF']
bsdf.inputs['Base Color'].default_value = (0.08, 0.08, 0.08, 1.0)
bsdf.inputs['Metallic'].default_value = 0.0
bsdf.inputs['Roughness'].default_value = 0.45
bsdf.inputs['Specular IOR Level'].default_value = 0.3

Copper Alloy (combustion components)

mat = bpy.data.materials.new('CopperAlloy')
bsdf = mat.node_tree.nodes['Principled BSDF']
bsdf.inputs['Base Color'].default_value = (0.72, 0.45, 0.20, 1.0)
bsdf.inputs['Metallic'].default_value = 1.0
bsdf.inputs['Roughness'].default_value = 0.30

Chrome (spinner, polished surfaces)

mat = bpy.data.materials.new('Chrome')
bsdf = mat.node_tree.nodes['Principled BSDF']
bsdf.inputs['Base Color'].default_value = (0.95, 0.95, 0.95, 1.0)
bsdf.inputs['Metallic'].default_value = 1.0
bsdf.inputs['Roughness'].default_value = 0.05

Assigning Materials to Objects

import bpy

def assign_material(obj_name, mat_name):
    obj = bpy.data.objects.get(obj_name)
    mat = bpy.data.materials.get(mat_name)
    if obj and mat:
        if obj.data.materials:
            obj.data.materials[0] = mat
        else:
            obj.data.materials.append(mat)

Render Quality Settings

Enable ambient occlusion and screen-space reflections for realistic metallic shading:

import bpy

scene = bpy.context.scene
scene.render.engine = 'CYCLES'

# Ambient occlusion via Cycles world shader (baked into render)
scene.world.light_settings.use_ambient_occlusion = True
scene.world.light_settings.ao_factor = 0.3

# Screen-space reflections (EEVEE only; for Cycles use glossy bounces)
scene.cycles.use_fast_gi = True
scene.cycles.glossy_bounces = 4
scene.cycles.diffuse_bounces = 4

Saving Scripts

Before executing any scene or material script via the MCP, save it to scripts/ in the project directory (e.g. scripts/setup_studio_lighting.py). This keeps your work reproducible and allows re-running or adjusting the setup without re-generating it from scratch. Update CLAUDE.md with any project-specific material names or lighting choices that differ from the defaults here.

Shadow-Catching Ground Plane

import bpy

bpy.ops.mesh.primitive_plane_add(size=20, location=(0, 0, 0))
plane = bpy.context.object
plane.name = 'ShadowPlane'

mat = bpy.data.materials.new('ShadowCatcher')
mat.use_nodes = True
mat.cycles.is_shadow_catcher = True
plane.data.materials.append(mat)