Making particles transparent

There are three different ways in which you can create transparent particles using the three basic render type shaders for the Particle and Fluid simulators (Billboard, Blob, and Sphere). For example, you may want to make transparent fluid using the Blob shader with the Fluid simulator.

• On the particle's Particle Type > Color property page, set the Alpha value for the level of transparency you want. Then on the Shading Properties page in the Billboard/Blob/Sphere shader's property editor, set the Ambient - Type to Use % of Base Color and set the % of Base to 100% or more to see the effect better.

• In the render tree, select the particle type from the drop-down list. Load the Particle Color shader from the Nodes menu and plug it into the Color input of the Billboard/Blob/Sphere shader to override the particle type color. In the Particle Color shader's property editor, select Override Particles - Alpha and set the New Color - Alpha value to the level of transparency you want.

• In the render tree, select the particle type from the drop-down list. Load the Particle Gradient shader from the Nodes menu and plug it into the Color input of the Billboard/Blob/Sphere shader to override the particle type color. In the Particle Gradient shader's property editor, select Alpha and set the alpha value and the gradient control to the level of transparency you want.