Lighting Optimization Techniques

Light Baking Case Study — Unity (Performance & Visual Enhancement)

I created an in-depth light baking case study in Unity focused on improving performance while maintaining strong visual quality.

In this study, I explored and compared multiple baking methods, including Shadowmask, Subtractive, and Indirect lighting, and analyzed their impact on:

Batch count

SetPass calls

Triangle count

Overall scene performance

I demonstrated how proper light baking can significantly optimize an entire scene while enhancing visual fidelity.

Additionally, I conducted deeper research on reducing lightmap texture memory without compromising visuals. Key optimization techniques included:

Using multiple meshes vs. a single mesh to evaluate lightmap atlas usage

Comparing one mesh with unique UV1 vs. three meshes sharing the same UV1, showing how shared UVs reduce lightmap memory

Creating the UV1 (lightmap UV) directly in Blender instead of generating it in Unity, resulting in better UV packing and reduced wasted space in lightmap atlases.
All this was later Implemented in the Pipeline .

All findings, comparisons, and visual breakdowns are documented in Figma with clear metrics and screenshots.
Feel free to explore the full case study.
Figma link : https://www.figma.com/design/WjAx43TJRS9j4aPXs3OVWW/baking?node-id=0-1&t=D1u0sWSZw46n7LZH-1