Topics

16

[C4D] General Discussion / Render nodes as a separate purchase starting in V8

« on: 2022-02-26, 21:54:02 »

First off, let me say that I understand that Corona needs to raise prices since everything else around us is getting more expensive.
Don’t hate the player, hate the game!
I also understand that for current license holders “everything” will stay the same in regard to render nodes.
In this blog post from last year https://blog.corona-renderer.com/corona-in-2022-new-features-visuals-licensing-and-more/ you talk about node usage data and how small players subsidizing big players that heavily use render nodes.
While I do have a 3 node license and won’t be effected (for now…), I think leaving a small tier 3 nodes or 2 or heck, even 1 node would be very helpful for the “small players”. 
According to the yearly 3 and 5 node price difference, you valued 1 render node at €30 that will jump 233% to €100.
3 render nodes will then cost more than a full license. 
When it comes to “subsidizing big players”, one could argue that c4d users have for years subsidized Corona Scatter and the Corona DR solution for max users, while we used the c4d build-in tools like the fragile team render framework and mograph, etc.

I honestly believe that this move will hurt the “small players” the most, that already struggle with pricing their renderings in this economy.
I also have the feeling that it’s probably just a matter of time that “grandfathered” licenses will loose their nodes too.

So how about, every license comes with 3 nodes included and after that €100 per node? Win/Win for all?!
Thank you, Chaos-rona!!! 

17

[C4D] I need help! / The "current state of VR" - corona and beyond

« on: 2022-01-30, 21:00:42 »

Hi all,
I’m preparing to create a 3D virtual tour for a client, and I wonder what the “current state of VR” is?
For starters, I find it strange that my iPhone 12 pro still doesn’t recognize that equirectangular images in my library could be displayed as a 360º sphere. It’s 2022 and I still need to download a 360º viewer app?
While that by itself is not “VR”, but with so many 360 cams out there, this basic stuff should “just work”.   
What’s the easiest way to share 360º render previews for approval, without asking everyone involved to download a viewer app?

Do you have any recommendations for creating a good VR tour experience? Maybe care to share a VR tour you created?
I created a simple tour before using www.marzipano.net and I like the simplicity, you get to download the entire tour to host on your own server and of course I like that it’s free.
Do you use a different tool with better features?

While I’m not convinced that VR is currently such a great real estate sales tool, there is soooo much talk about the metaverse, that makes me wonder if it makes sense to look more into the whole VR thing…
Am I asking all this in the wrong place? Is unreal engine the future of VR real estate marketing?

Share your thoughts! 

18

[C4D] Bug Reporting / “Save project with assets” looses .ies in Corona light

« on: 2022-01-25, 01:55:23 »

Usually a window pops up “can’t find file…” When searching from that dialog, it then puts the .ies in the root of the project folder.
No ies folder gets created. Link in corona light is lost.
Finding the right .ies and relinking all by hand in a big scene can get pretty tedious…
This problem is not new, but never got around to file a bug report. Might be a c4d issue.

19

[C4D] I need help! / Rotating texture

« on: 2022-01-12, 20:33:25 »

Corona V.7
What is the best/ fastest way to rotate a texture inside a material?
The projection shader and corona seem to hate each other…
The C-bitmap shader has a ton of UV controls but no rotation? Why not?

20

[C4D] General Discussion / Physical material tutorial

« on: 2021-11-29, 16:55:54 »

Does anybody know a good YT tutorial explaining all the bells and whistles of the new physical material?
So far I avoided using the pbr mat but wanted to try the clear coat feature.
After looking at the help desk article. I have more questions than before.
Why does IOR get greyed out when in “metal” mode? Have I been setting up metal wrong for years?
What does the “Level” setting do in edge color?
Cleracoat: what’s the difference between “Amount” and “Roughness” (when to use what)?
…and so on.

Is it just me or would a dedicated “Normal” channel make sense for a new pbr material?
Most, if not all, tex generators output a normal map and adding the normal shader to the bump in every material by hand is a real time killer…

21

[C4D] I need help! / C4D Asset browser

« on: 2021-10-24, 20:40:44 »

This is not directly related to corona but I I’m trying to wrap my head around the “new“ asset browser concept.
It seems like all assets (PBR maps, etc.) get saved inside the database folder.
Does that mean the old content browser concept of using global tex links to images stored on a server is gone? 
Is there a secret shortcut that keeps global tex links in place and doesn’t copy images to the database?
Watched several videos about how great the asset browser is but it seems we lost the flexibility
of where exactly these assets are stored.
What am I missing here?

22

[C4D] I need help! / CrazyBump replacement on macos

« on: 2021-10-21, 18:53:00 »

Hi all,
I’m still using CrazyBump, but I’m currently updating macOS and CB will not run anymore.
What are you guys using on Mac to generate normal, spec etc maps?
Years back I tried B2M but that kept constantly crashing, so I went back to CB.
I work in archviz and mostly use already saved materials, but every now and then I need to create custom materials. 
Any pointers to, what app is as simple and fast to use as CB, is appreciated.

23

[C4D] I need help! / c multi shader - changing distribution pattern

« on: 2021-06-10, 18:26:14 »

Hi all,
Is there any way to keep the C multi shader from changing it’s random distribution when the hierarchy in the object manager changes? Every time you add an object on top in the object manager the multi shader changes.
While that doesn’t matter on tree leaves etc, I use the C multi shader a lot for floors and tiles and in these cases the changing pattern is a real problem.
Is this behavior a feature or a bug?
So far the only thing I could figure out is to move all objects below the objects with multi shader materials, but in large scenes with many multi shaders that quickly becomes a scene organizing nightmare.
I made a small test scene (attached) to check if v7 fixed this. Nope.
If someone wants to try, just drop in cubes to see what happens.

Any ideas how to “bake” the distribution pattern?

24

[C4D] General Discussion / Instanced ies lights not rendering

« on: 2021-05-17, 17:26:19 »

MacOS / R18/ Version: 7.0 daily Dec 31 2020
Are instanced ies lights supported in corona?
The ies (or a regular corona light) renders in the reference object but not in the instances.
How do you set this up to work correctly?

25

[C4D] Daily Builds / V7 support in macOS 10.13.

« on: 2021-02-27, 15:58:38 »

Is there any way V7 dailies and/or the upcoming release can be supported in macOs 1013.?
When you started V7 dailies last year it said, quote: “From now on, Corona will require macOS version 10.13 or newer”.
Well, it “successfully” installs in 10.13, but corona in c4d missing and opening CIE gives me “You can’t use this version of the application “Corona Image Editor.app” with this version of macOS.”
V7 12/31 is the last daily that worked.

26

[C4D] I need help! / Rendering dust cloud as seperate pass

« on: 2020-12-27, 17:34:40 »

Hi,
I’m working on an animation and need to render out a separate pass for the dust cloud behind the truck.
Dust cloud is a simple emitter spitting out spheres with a volume mat applied.
Can’t find a way to render this in one go. When using the volumetrics pass, it includes the haze object I setup for the mountains in the back and they unfortunately overlap.
What is the best way to separate the dust for color correction in AE?

Also, is there a better way to create a more realistic dust trail, without expensive plugins that are not even supported yet?
Right now it looks more like a cybertruck diesel with a broken exhaust.

Thanks for your help!

27

[C4D] I need help! / Creating a mask for “invisible” object

« on: 2020-10-28, 17:10:26 »

Hi all,
I’m trying to masked out areas with a material on a plane that renders transparent but shows up in mask passes. This is for these situations where you need to mask everything behind an open window/ door etc.
Sure, I could render a second time, only for the masks, but I need this for the times when your deadline is at 6pm and you stop your render at 5:59… sounds familiar?
The only “weird” workaround I could find is to use Refraction / Thin (no refraction) and Reflection black value set to 0.1%.
Using no Reflection and the mask wouldn’t render at all.
While this workaround appears “invisible” in the rendered image, it technically still needs to calculate reflections that add to render time.
I tried many other things before that didn’t work. For example Comp tag “Seen by cam” unchecked / “visible in mask” visible.
Or, put the plane (not seen by cam / mask visible) in the multi pass “include selection”

Do you know of a better way to do this? Please let me know.
Thanks.

28

[C4D] Feature Requests / UHD cache folder in project directory - relative path for team rendering

« on: 2019-12-06, 16:01:47 »

Saving the UHD cache to a “cache” folder in the project directory that can be seen and loaded by all nodes.
This would also help in mixed OS environments where a absolute path just won’t work.

Just like working with ies files in TR got so much easier, after you implemented the ies folder
In the project directory.

29

[C4D] I need help! / Corona material display in viewport

« on: 2019-10-05, 21:15:33 »

Hi all,
I was wondering if it’s possible to turn off the display of certain materials in the viewport.
To make it more clear what I mean, I’m currently working on some car models adding water spots, dirt etc. “above” the car paint.
These imperfections are basically just a color in diffuse and dirt texture in opacity.
Now, in the viewport all cars display the top most material in the stack and all look the same.
Is there a way to just display the car paint material, make the dirt layer invisible?
FYI: I’m not using IR, so no need to mention it.

While we are here, is it on the Corona roadmap to make the display of Corona mats in the viewport better than it currently is?
Metal, glass etc showing up as pure black in the viewport.
I have seen the standard response of “use IR” for material display, but that is not an option for everyone.

30

[C4D] Bug Reporting / Render region issues

« on: 2019-06-18, 17:34:24 »

MacOS 10.13.6 / C4D Studio R18.057 / Corona Version: 4.0 (core 4)

1. The set render region disappears after starting new render regardless if region mode is active or inactive.

Expected behavior:
Like in previous versions, the render region marquee stays active between renders.

2. Render region marquee ignored while Team Rendering.