Topics

31

General CG Discussion / Any walls and tiles users out there?

« on: 2017-11-22, 22:47:51 »

Hi all - Just wondering if anyone out there is using Vizpark's walls and tiles?  Years ago I bought mightytiles, which turned out to be a disaster.  Just curious if W+T is user friendly, worth buying, etc.  For example I do a lot of board an batten, usually using floor generator + multitexture.  Would W+T be able to do that effect parametrically with displacement?

Anyway, cheers and thanks for any input!
Daniel

32

Hardware / Curved Monitors?

« on: 2017-10-27, 22:43:23 »

Hi all - I'm shopping for a new monitor(s) and contemplating going curved.  I've seen varying feedback including it helps with eye strain (something I suffer from), you run the risk of having distorted lines, it's a gimmick, etc.  Does anyone have any feedback on this?  All the interns at the architecture office where I work have curved screens (U3415W's) and they seem fairly happy with them.  But a bunch of sleep deprived architecture interns aren't necessarily the most discerning group :)

I'm specifically looking at one of the Dell 34" screens (either the U3415W or the U3417W, can't decide) or else going huge with the Samsung CHG90.  Has anyone used any of those?  It seems the Samsung is a pretty rare monitor, I don't see many reviews, despite seeming like a potentially awesome solution.

Anyway, thanks for any feedback!
Daniel

33

[Max] Bug Reporting / Render slaves do not respect region box

« on: 2017-10-01, 00:44:28 »

Hi - Just wanted to report (may not be a bug) that the render slaves still send 'stripes' of data outside of my render region box.  So basically only my local machine respects the region.  Is this expected behavior or a bug?

Thanks!
Daniel

34

[Max] I need help! / Real Displacement Textures - Final Word?

« on: 2017-09-19, 23:36:30 »

Hi all - I've poked through as many threads as I can find regarding Real Displacement textures (rd-textures.com) and the proper setup for them.  It seems like there is some conflicting info out there and some pre and post PDR workflow ideas too, which just add to the confusion for me.  At this point I can get decent results, but I'm still wondering if I'm getting the best I can out of the textures.

Anyway, here's what I do with each map...maybe somebody who knows more than I do could critique?  I'd be very grateful.

Basic settings:

IOR to 1.4 (based on forum posts I've seen)
Reflection Level to 1.0 (PBR workflow, right?)

Color Map > Diffuse slot
AO Map > Sometimes layered on top of Diffuse as a 'Multiply' layer if I want more contrast
Depth Map > Displacement slot (not a modifier, just plugged into the shader)
Roughness Map > Inverted and placed into the Glossiness slot
Bump Map > Bump Map
Normal Map > Ignore if using displacement?
Gloss Map (Low\Hi) > Ignore?

All maps have a gamma of 1.0 except Diffuse.

I also set all maps to a blur of .01, not sure if this is too sharp...comments on that would be great as well.

As for Displacement Height and Real World texture size I just go trial and error...not sure if there is guidance on that as well?

Anyway, sorry for all the questions - just trying to use these properly.  Thanks!
Daniel

35

[Max] Resolved Bugs / Forest Pro items disappear during IR

« on: 2017-09-13, 21:38:26 »

Hi all - Just wondering if there is a way to keep Forest Pro items visible in the viewport (point clouds, etc) during interactive rendering?  I'm guessing this is expected behavior but just thought there might be a way to tweak it.

Thanks!
Daniel

36

[Max] I need help! / Shortcut to start IR?

« on: 2017-08-24, 06:54:38 »

Hi all - I was just curious if there is a way to bind a key (or maybe create a shortcut button) to start the Interactive Renderer?  My process is usually to hit F10, and because the window is already open I have to hit F10 again, and then search around for Start Interactive.  Just wondering if there is a slicker way...

Thanks!
Daniel

37

[Max] I need help! / PBR Marble Material (carrara, calacatta)

« on: 2017-05-02, 07:49:08 »

Hi all,

I'm new to SSS in Corona.  I was wondering if anyone had any tips regarding creation of marble (carrara or calacatta) which have that subtle depth\softness?  So far my best results have been by creating a decent non-SSS material and then raising the Translucency value to .4-.5 or so.  Is that my best bet?  Or would I be better off tweaking Refraction and volume absorption values?  I've poked around a bit but just see documentation on skin\wax\milk.  I'm not really sure where marble falls.

For this preview image my Reflection IOR is 1.48, Reflection Glossiness .75 and Translucency is .4.  I'm reasonably happy with the result but would love additional insight into proper material creation.

Thanks for any feedback!
Daniel

38

[Max] Resolved Feature Requests / Distributed Render File Caching

« on: 2014-07-04, 07:41:09 »

Hi all - I've been super impressed with the quality of Corona and the development path.  As someone who renders larger archviz scenes one thing that has been a bit of a stumbling block for me in adopting Corona is the lack of network file caching.  That's a great new feature in VRay 3.0 that has been super helpful.  It not only cuts down on the time it takes for the nodes to start but also prevents missing files.

Anyway, it would be an awesome feature to add!

Cheers,

Dan