Jonas Noell and Flag Visuals have released DomeMaker, a plugin for Autodesk 3ds Max designed to streamline the creation of complex HDRI dome lighting setups. The plugin automates previously manual workflows and provides a real-time viewport-based environment setup, currently supporting V-Ray and V-Ray GPU in 3ds Max 2025 or later.
DomeMaker enables users to load HDRIs through a built-in browser with auto-generated thumbnails, create dome environments with one click, and switch HDRIs without rebuilding the scene. The tool supports scaling, rotation, exposure adjustments, and independent brightness controls for lighting and background. It also includes options to adjust white balance and visualize real-time changes with matched floor plane colors.
Advanced floor integration features include reflections, bump mapping, and procedural water puddle effects. All adjustments maintain visual consistency across both CPU and GPU rendering modes. The plugin supports rendering with customizable output settings, including toggling render elements for performance.
A built-in camera management system facilitates setup and depth-of-field adjustments, while a turntable animation tool enables automated rotation setups. DomeMaker is available for purchase on the Flak Visuals website.
To find out more, visit Flag Visual’s website.
