blender · HeyBraza shows you
how to add an hdri background in blender
HeyBraza points at the world tab, the little yellow dot and the environment texture slot, which is where everyone gets lost.
an hdri lights your whole scene and gives it a background in one step, which is why almost every good-looking blender render uses one. the setting is hidden behind a small yellow dot in world properties.
short answer
in world properties click the yellow dot next to 'color', choose 'environment texture', and open your .hdr file. switch the viewport to rendered shading to see it, and tick film > transparent if you want the hdri to light the scene without appearing behind it.
or do it yourself
- 1download a free .hdr or .exr (polyhaven is the usual source) and save it somewhere you'll find again.
- 2open world properties (the red globe icon) and click the small yellow dot to the right of 'color'.
- 3choose 'environment texture' from the list, then click 'open' and pick your .hdr file.
- 4switch the viewport to rendered shading (z > rendered) to see the lighting and background land.
- 5too bright or too dim? adjust 'strength' just below - and if you want the hdri to light the scene but not appear behind it, tick render properties > film > transparent.
steps last checked
let HeyBraza do this with you
HeyBraza teaches you software while you're using it. hold a key and ask out loud - an ai tutor that sees your screen walks you through every step in real time, pointing and highlighting on your real work, talking you through it as it goes - not someone else's tutorial.
downloadcommon questions
how do i rotate the hdri?
in the shading workspace add a 'mapping' + 'texture coordinate (generated)' node into the environment texture and spin the z rotation.
my background is still grey - why?
you're in solid or material preview shading. press z and pick 'rendered' to see the world.
