Obscura Challenge #1

Light a heritage scene.
Let the community decide.

Two weeks to design, one week to return your images, one week of open voting. Three winners.

Pre-registerHow it works

Pre-registration from 2 November 2026 | Challenge from 25 January 2027

A scene ready to light

Obscura® is a real-time 3D lighting simulation platform. In this challenge, you receive a heritage scene ready to light, so your time goes into the lighting, not into modelling.

A scene, ready to light

No modelling and no import to handle. You start on the lighting right away.

Your own IES files

Add your own IES files to the scene if you wish.

An open community vote

The community chooses the winners on obscura.lighting.

How it works

1

Pre-register

From 2 November 2026

Leave your email. It is free.

2

Design

25 January to 7 February 2027

Light the scene from fixed viewpoints and export up to 5 images.

3

Return your images

8 to 14 February 2027

Finish your images with global adjustments of exposure, contrast and sharpness, then upload them.

4

Vote

15 to 21 February 2027

The community votes on obscura.lighting.

5

Results

24 February 2027

The three winners are announced.

Prizes

The three entries with the most votes win an Obscura® Pro licence.

1st place

12 months

of Obscura® Pro

2nd place

6 months

of Obscura® Pro

3rd place

3 months

of Obscura® Pro

Manufacturer partners also award prizes under their own brand. The partners are announced before the challenge opens.

Pre-register

Leave your email and we will tell you as soon as the challenge opens.

Questions

Is it free to take part?

Yes. Creating your account and taking part in the challenge cost nothing.

Who can take part?

Anyone who works or studies in lighting, architecture, engineering or a related field.

Do I need to know Obscura®?

No. A short tutorial takes you through your first luminaire and your first render.

What do I need?

A Windows computer. Obscura® is a Windows desktop application.

Can I use my own luminaires?

Yes. You can add your own IES files. Importing other objects or scenes is not available in the challenge.

A question? Write to contact@lobservatoiredelanuit.fr.