Mike Horvath <mik### [at] gmailcom> wrote:
> I want to create a spiral lamp element sort of like a CFL. Which will
> render faster, a series of point lights along the curve, or making the
> object emit light? Thanks!

That depends on whether you're using radiosity anyway, how close the lamp is to
the visible portions of the scene, and whether it is the main light source.

Generally, scenes illuminated by comparatively small emissive objects require
exceptionally "expensive" radiosity settings. The "importance" mechanism can be
used to counter this to some degree, but not completely.


That said, using an excessive number of point light sources can also slow down a
render tremendously. You might instead want to think about using an arrangement
of 1-dimensional area lights approximating the lamp's shape.

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