Node Graph and Render Preview

A live map of Render Preview#

Node Graph shows the scene inputs that feed Render Preview. Open it from Panels, the HDR Canvas tab group, or the Materials workspace. Use the full-screen button when you need more room.

These connections use the same object and material values as Geometry Properties and Material Properties. There is no second, competing assignment state. HDRi export is independent of preview graph connections.

Connect and disconnect#

Drag between matching ports in either direction to connect them; a live wire follows the pointer. You can also click an output, then a matching input. Incompatible inputs are disabled. Press Escape to cancel. Assigning another material replaces the previous assignment. Objects with an active lock or locked ancestor cannot have their assignment or collection connection changed.

Drag an occupied single-connection input into empty space to disconnect. Double-click a wire, or select it and choose Disconnect, press Delete, or use its right-click menu. The Geometry collection input can have multiple wires, so choose a particular wire to disconnect. Escape or losing focus cancels an unfinished drag. Disconnecting a material returns the object to Use Layer Material, with its source/preview fallback when the layer has no material. The graph shows direct material wires only while Chosen Material is active. Disconnecting an object keeps it in Geometry Tree for reconnection. The camera connection is required. Undo/Redo restores graph changes alongside other scene and lighting edits.

Arrange the graph#

Drag a node by its title. Drag empty space to pan. Use the zoom buttons or +/− keys (20–200%) and Fit graph to see the connections. Command/Ctrl+wheel zooms around the pointer; buttons zoom around the panel center. Organize arranges nodes into spaced columns following connection direction and fits the result. It preserves connections and is one undoable layout edit. Focus a node title and use arrow keys to move it; Shift uses larger steps. Focus the graph and press 0 to fit. Node positions are saved with the project.

Select a material or object node to reveal its properties panel. Light editing controls keep their existing layout. Full-screen and detached-window behavior follow the workspace rules.

Beta scope#

This is a render-target connection editor for the current PBR preview. It does not compile arbitrary shaders or provide Octane rendering, procedural texture nodes, multiple cameras, custom render targets, or geometry processing nodes. The render-pass selector, camera and preview effects remain their existing controls. A graph connection does not add 3D geometry to an exported HDRi.

Imported models and lights#

The imported subject node represents its source hierarchy as a collection. Edit individual imported nodes in Geometry Tree and Geometry Properties; the graph does not duplicate thousands of source nodes. Scene lights have collection connections, with light settings in Geometry Properties and no material input. Custom GLSL lives in Material Properties; this graph remains a render-target connection editor.