Soft Clip Node

It works on a principle similar to Fog 3D: the effect depends on the distance between the object and the camera. Instead of adding color (like the fog), Soft Clip reduces the opacity of nearby objects.

Key difference with the classic near clip of Camera 3D: the near clip cuts off the geometry sharply, which produces a visible pop. Soft Clip fades it out gently.

• Effects Library: Tools > 3D > Soft Clip
• Quick add: right-click in the Node Editor → Add Tool > 3D > Soft Clip

• SceneInput (orange) - required. The upstream scene must contain a Camera 3D, otherwise the node can't calculate distances.

Place Soft Clip after the Merge 3D containing the camera, and before the Renderer 3D:

Merge 3D (with camera) → Soft Clip → Renderer 3D

This ensures the fade is applied just before rendering and won't be overwritten by other downstream nodes.

Enable (default: on)

Turns the effect on or off without stopping the script processing in the Settings tab.

Smooth Transition (default: off)

By default, the fade is linear between Transparent Distance and Opaque Distance. When on, it applies a non-linear curve for a more natural transition (soft on entering and leaving the zone).

Radial (default: off - perpendicular mode)

Switches between two ways of measuring:

• Perpendicular - distance along the camera axis. Fast, but objects at the edges of the screen can be clipped differently when the camera pivots.
• Radial - true Euclidean distance. Consistent behavior regardless of position on screen. Recommended for wide shots.

Show In Display Views

Shows the effect in every viewer (not only through the camera view). Useful for previewing while navigating freely in 3D.

Transparent Distance / Opaque Distance

Define the fade range, along the Z axis from the camera:

• Opaque Distance - beyond it, objects are 100% opaque.
• Transparent Distance - closer than this, objects are 100% transparent (invisible).
• In between - interpolation (linear or smooth depending on the setting).

Rule: Transparent Distance must be lower than Opaque Distance (increasing distances from the camera). The reverse gives inconsistent results.

Two ways to hide objects that are too close to or too far from a camera:

Camera 3D Near/Far Clip

A hard cut - an object crossing the clip plane disappears instantly. Useful for render optimization (off-screen objects aren't rendered), but it produces a visible pop on screen.

Soft Clip

A progressive fade. The object becomes more and more transparent as it gets closer and disappears cleanly. Extra performance cost (per-object alpha calculation), but a visually better result.

Often combined: a wide camera Near Clip (for performance) + a Soft Clip a bit further out (for the gentle fade).

• Flythrough in a forest - trees passing close to the camera fade out gently instead of flashing. Soft Clip placed after the tree scatter.
• Particle system - avoid the "pop-in" of particles crossing the near clip plane. Soft Clip after the 3D pRender.
• Camera going through a wall - instead of seeing the wall cut in half, it fades away progressively. More elegant for cinematic shots.
• Showing a 3D working volume - in a preview, use Soft Clip to show only the objects inside a working area, with distant ones fading out gently.
• "Reveal" effect - animate Transparent Distance from the camera outward to progressively reveal an object that seems to come out of nowhere.

• No camera = no effect - if your scene has no Camera 3D, Soft Clip has no reference to measure distances. Add a camera even if you render with the default perspective camera.
• Smooth Transition = better render - turn it on almost always; the linear transition looks artificial.
• Radial for moving cameras - if your camera moves a lot (orbit, pan), Radial mode avoids odd fade variations at the edges of the image.
• Place Soft Clip after anything that applies lighting or textures - otherwise downstream adjustments can overwrite the fade.
• Combine Soft Clip with Fog 3D for a double effect: haze in the distance (fog) + near fade (soft clip). Consistent transitions in both directions.
• For a far clip use (distant objects that disappear), reverse the logic: set Transparent Distance far and Opaque Distance near - but the official documentation suggests using Fog 3D for the distance instead.