View Full Version : help......i need a renderer to use with sketchup
Dear all.......
I am a month from my final presentation of my portfolio for my last year in education and am wanting my stuff to be bullet proof..........cos if i don't pass my long suffering girlfriend will definatly dump me if i don't get out and start earning money soon.
I have designed a modular housing system and want to show as many different exteriors and interiors that the system would allow.
My tutors said the external examiners that will assess us can be superficial and said that i could do with some visualisations that are different to sketchup to compliment those in Sketchup.
Now, i'm not interested in learning complicated programs but i do want to convert a few of my sketchup model views into
1 a couple of photo realisting exteriir and interior
2 A couple of more artistic exterior and interior views
3 a couple that look model like......ie plastc-y or cardboard-y
Bearing in mind i am on a seriously tight schedule (i'm not finished designing the modular system and i am still writing several papers) what render(s) could i concievably use in this short timeframe?
Any help/advise that anyone can offer would be gretly appreciated and reduce my considerable stress levels
Anyway back to my dissertation :(
Thanks
Manc
I would suggest you look at the renderers section. You will get understand which renderers does wht.
Second all these softwares comes for a cost except for Kerkythea, thats a free renderer and etremely effective. you will notice it in the renderers section.
As for me I use arlantis and i feel it is the easiest and the most effective renderer around. Thats my point of view.
thanks, how long would i need to produce good visuals from artlantis from my sketchup model?
Mark Timms
02-05-2006, 12:54
I'm NOT a render expert, but I've had a go on the artlantis r demo and found it very easy to use. The renders are also very quick to produce once you have set it up, unlike some others which take hours and hours to render...
Burkhard
02-05-2006, 13:09
...unlike some others which take hours and hours to render...
:D i think i know which one you ....;)
Andrew B
02-05-2006, 14:58
Are all your face oriented in the right manner? I.E. did you apply the materials in SU to the front face? An easy test would be to change the render to monochrome and take a quick peak. I know in the few render packages I have tried, one has to do so, otherwise, it will not render correctly. You probably already know this, but just in case you don't, you will need to spend some time fixing your model before rendering. :)
naught101
02-05-2006, 15:00
POVRAY! it's free, and there's a sketchup plugin for it. or there's a POVRay exporter fro sketchup.
povray.org I think. it should be easy to find.
so pov ray or artlantis? :) question is can i do the artlantis stuff witth the demo in time i got? :) ps is there artlantis plugin?
Andrew B
02-05-2006, 17:03
When it comes to freeware, I really like Kerkythea. But I also have not tried povray.
so pov ray or artlantis? :) question is can i do the artlantis stuff witth the demo in time i got? :) ps is there artlantis plugin?
No, you can't do that stuff in artlantis demo, because you'll get a huge artlantis banner in the middle of the picture. I don't know about povray or kerkythea well.
Anyways if you do sketchup output and enhance the images with photoshop you should be getting good enough results. Most times I prefer that last option over artlantis, wich looks very plastic if you are not proficient with materials and lighting.
Andrew B
02-05-2006, 17:23
The dennis technique is awesome, not to say he is the only one who has ever done it. People pay thousands of dollars for that hand rendered look. Often that look is more desirable.
thanks cacapis, didn't think of photoshop......i only know basic stuff though....any quick to learn tutorials on how to turn my images from sketchup into whizz-bang visuals?
Andrew B
02-05-2006, 17:30
http://photoshopgurus.com/
http://forum.sketchup.com/showthread.php?t=47101&highlight=up+for+review
siliconbauhaus
02-05-2006, 17:36
if you want a hand to render some stuff then pm me mate....it'd be easier than trying to learn a programme in the timeframe you have
BruceWalker
02-05-2006, 21:34
if you want a hand to render some stuff then pm me mate....it'd be easier than trying to learn a programme in the timeframe you have
Now there's an offer!!!! :rock on:
Thanks siliconbauhaus!!!! you're a life saver, might have to take you up on that offer.....will pm you over the weeknend
i just got back from my crit and now they want me to present the project to the external examiners like a car website....where you can spec up or down features colours etc.....anyone know how to do that? HELP :)
siliconbauhaus
05-05-2006, 23:21
Oooh
How much time have you got to do that? I saw something similar to that done by a guy on the vray forum. It's certainly doable though if you have the time.
cobberman
05-05-2006, 23:48
Wow, that seems to be a pretty big undertaking, but then again it depends on how much time you have for presentation production. Our thesis students just finished and a few of them had computers doing animations and flash websites.
I dont know about the different styles of renders your professors are suggesting. I always prefer the same "uniform" style for presentation boards. Process sketches are an exeption. Keep with a certain render or style otherwise it gets hard to read. For time constraints hand rendering is almost always faster, but this often depends on your abilities with a pencil or certain rendering software. I would suggest that you learn more in photoshop than rendering programs, you'll benefit more and you can jazz up alot of not so great images in a few minutes of ps work.
I learned to use 3d MAX at university.. but.. sometimes it's too complex when it could have been easier to use.. so, (in my opinion) the most intuitive one is the EOVIA CARRARA.. really cool software.. easy to use, with a couple hours of practise you can get good results! (it comes with shaders, objects, materials, etc..) EASY TO USE!
Get Vue 5 Easel for $89.00, export from Sketchup as OBJ, import that file into Vue, then click the button at lower left of the screen which "drops" the object onto the ground plane. Pick an atmosphere, drag and drop a few of the amazing trees and plants, and start rendering...it's literally THAT easy (check out these new home renderings (http://www.up3d.com/3d-architectural-renderings.html)). On that page I also posted examples of multi-step PhotoShop actions which simulate hand-sketched renderings, oil paintings and watercolor architectural renderings (http://www.up3d.com/watercolor-architectural-rendering.html), but I like the photorealism and the drag and drop plants, atmospheres and lighting (including global illumination) included with Vue.
motorhead
27-08-2006, 02:39
mushroom cloudwhats up
motorhead
27-08-2006, 02:42
:puke: this things sickkungpow2themax@yahoo.com
Manc
Mate I prefer to use rather sketchy models to produce quick and exciting images. I've posted several here previously here are a few examples.
Sketchup / Photoshop
thiago7000
28-08-2006, 06:29
Well, 3ds max works pretty good for me... Besides Richard and the Central American guy which the name I forgot, I don't know many people who handles Artlantis that well... I mean, the program is cool, easy, but the result, always very plastic.
There´s a tutorial (http://http://suwiki.org/suwiki/index.php?title=3ds_Clay_Render) which teaches how to make a great "clay render" on 3ds max. With a couple moves you get a great result!
that's some projects with clay rendering
thiago7000
28-08-2006, 06:33
other one
thiago7000
28-08-2006, 06:34
the last one
I mean, the program is cool, easy, but the result, always very plastic
same thing can be done very easily with sketchup/artlantis, and this was done using an older render engine of artlantis r.
Well, 3ds max works pretty good for me... Besides Richard and the Central American guy which the name I forgot, I don't know many people who handles Artlantis that well... I mean, the program is cool, easy, but the result, always very plastic.
I think the plastic look can be avoided with a little practice. Here are a few renders from a recent project of mine, and I think I´m getting somewhere in eliminating the plastic look.
Thiago7000:
the link of the tutorial dont work.
can you share the tutoials in pdf format?
thanks
thiago7000
28-08-2006, 15:17
Thiago7000:
the link of the tutorial dont work.
can you share the tutoials in pdf format?
thanks
I'm not sure if there's a version of this tutorial in pdf... anyway, I posting the link again. I don't know what happened before, but here it is:
http://suwiki.org/suwiki/index.php?title=3ds_Clay_Render
If it don't work again, go to suwiki.org and look for the tutorials!
thiago7000
28-08-2006, 15:20
I think the plastic look can be avoided with a little practice. Here are a few renders from a recent project of mine, and I think I´m getting somewhere in eliminating the plastic look.
Wow, that's exatly the kind of renderings I like! Can you share your billboards?! How about the materials, what tips can you give?! I suck in bump mapping in artlantis... anyway, congratulations :clap:
Wow, that's exatly the kind of renderings I like! Can you share your billboards?! How about the materials, what tips can you give?! I suck in bump mapping in artlantis... anyway, congratulations :clap:
thanks man. I don't use bilboards, but add the people in photoshop. I would use bilboards if I could figure out how to make them transparent:bang head
The main thing with materials i have figured out is that EVERYTHING needs a texture and bump. If you leave anything at all with just a plain color, it will look very fake. So Even if a wall is plane white, make a white wall texture and turn up the bump value. Also, use plenty of radiosity, even for exterior scenes, it will make the ligting much nicer.
thanks man. I don't use bilboards, but add the people in photoshop. I would use bilboards if I could figure out how to make them transparent:bang head
The main thing with materials i have figured out is that EVERYTHING needs a texture and bump. If you leave anything at all with just a plain color, it will look very fake. So Even if a wall is plane white, make a white wall texture and turn up the bump value. Also, use plenty of radiosity, even for exterior scenes, it will make the ligting much nicer.
Exactly what I've been saying for ages, even just some minor texture to add some discontinuity to surfaces otherwise they become so clean.
By the way mate stunning work, I love the design and presentation style. Might I suggest you post that to the projects forum! Or have you done so already?
thiago7000
29-08-2006, 04:01
By the way mate stunning work, I love the design and presentation style. Might I suggest you post that to the projects forum! Or have you done so already?
I think he could make a case study of this presentation on the artlantis section... I´d love to hear about the sky (I can't configure a good background image of a sky yet... =~~) and how to do mapping on artlantis.. Richard tryed to explain me, but it´s very complicated... I mean... I have three bitmaps: a bump, a specular, and a diffuse... how to combine them?!!
ps: can you post the high resolution image of this sky? I just loved it!
Exactly what I've been saying for ages, even just some minor texture to add some discontinuity to surfaces otherwise they become so clean.
By the way mate stunning work, I love the design and presentation style. Might I suggest you post that to the projects forum! Or have you done so already?
Thanks mate. I will post the project as soon as I have time, I'm just busy as hell at the moment.
I think he could make a case study of this presentation on the artlantis section... I´d love to hear about the sky (I can't configure a good background image of a sky yet... =~~) and how to do mapping on artlantis.. Richard tryed to explain me, but it´s very complicated... I mean... I have three bitmaps: a bump, a specular, and a diffuse... how to combine them?!!
ps: can you post the high resolution image of this sky? I just loved it!
Actually, the sky image is a google image search for "sky". I'm not at my own computer at the moment, but when i have a chance, I'll see if I still have it.
About the mapping, I only use a single one map per, the texture map. Then I just tweak the bump value and and the reflection until I'm satisfied making lots of low-res test renders.
I'm not even sure if it is possible to use a different image for the bump? Richard?
Yes mate it is possible to use a different image for the bump map. Just go to the texture edit page and add new material (assuming your bump and colour maps are the same size / res) inserting here your bump map image, then up the bump for that map and set it to full transparency, well actually I find to get best results set it at almost full transparency. this will actually keep just a bit of the black and white bump map showing in the shader adding to the shadow effect the map produces.
thiago7000
29-08-2006, 14:27
Yes mate it is possible to use a different image for the bump map. Just go to the texture edit page and add new material (assuming your bump and colour maps are the same size / res) inserting here your bump map image, then up the bump for that map and set it to full transparency, well actually I find to get best results set it at almost full transparency. this will actually keep just a bit of the black and white bump map showing in the shader adding to the shadow effect the map produces.
ok, I´ll try! thank you very much!
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