What renderer do you use? [Archive]

bakbek

03-08-2005, 02:57

In Order to get a feel of the current renderers scene I've started up this poll, to see who uses what. Please share with as all also your experiences with the application you vote for, some pros and cons you have observed during the use of the software.

If the apllication you use is not on the list, choose other and write down in a post what it is.

This will help in navigating the section of the forum to better address all our needs.

jparchitectus

03-08-2005, 03:50

I know I am in prehistoric times, but I am very happy with sketchup and a little photoshop CS. There has been nothing to really convince me to do other yet.

trogers

03-08-2005, 03:54

I know I am in prehistoric times, but I am very happy with sketchup and a little photoshop CS. There has been nothing to really convince me to do other yet.

Actually, I'm in prehistoric times w/ VIZ4 and the native renderer...time to upgrade, no?

JP, we still use Pshop 5.0...

All that matters is SU though!

tr

sigue2000

03-08-2005, 15:21

I'm trying to get back to using Cinema 4D. I liked it for it's easy 'straightforwardness' and especially the soft light. It tends to make renderings look less flat. It has a fast renderengine too.
I used to like to use the Sketch and Toon renderer.

cacapis

03-08-2005, 15:45

I used VIZ + brazil, but it takes a lot of time. Results are very good though.
Kerkythea is too akward to use. Interface is really bad so I didn't give it much of a chance.
I'm trying Artlantis R now, but the materials it brings suck. I'll have to make mine.

admin

03-08-2005, 16:09

ronen, you might consider increasing (editing) the number of applications as it is pretty limiting poll

MICHEL

03-08-2005, 16:23

Sketchup does a geat job already... maybe some photoshop post editing and that's it. Not a Artlantis king yet :D

bakbek

03-08-2005, 16:56

ronen, you might consider increasing (editing) the number of applications as it is pretty limiting poll

I can see i left Brazil out, this is a mistake... but what more to you think i should add?

admin

03-08-2005, 17:02

piranesi, cinema4d, vue d'esprit, straight max/viz, accurender, shade...

bakbek

03-08-2005, 18:27

Added more options... and moved the votes from "other" to MAX/VIZ, Brazil and Cinema 4D after seeing your posts

bakbek

07-08-2005, 13:20

Can some of you Yafaray voters post information about the workflow when you use it... do you use blender as the platform to start the render? We don't have a dedicated section for it yet, but this is why we have this general section for.

We can all use some info about apps from the Open-Source field.

philb100

08-08-2005, 00:00

I use bryce. I've been using it so long I just find it easy though it tends to have a love it or hate it interface, I'm in the love it group!

cobberman

12-08-2005, 21:51

Where's the photoshop vote button? Does PS count as a renderer?

MICHEL

12-08-2005, 22:05

Where's the photoshop vote button? Does PS count as a renderer?
Hmm :wondering , I wouldn't call PS a renderer...

cobberman

12-08-2005, 22:19

PS is not really a rendering engine, but you can achieve the "water color effect" pirensi is commonly known for in addition to several other techniques.

It depends on what a person's opinion of "render" is. Is it a glossy photographic picture using algorithms, bitmaps, and light sources.. or is it an artists portrayal of a design?

bakbek

13-08-2005, 00:35

In the term renderer we commonly refer to an application that does the actual translation from a 3d dataset to a 2d pixel based image automatically. When using application such as Photoshop (and even Piransi, but it has many automatic features) the user is the actual renderer- you!

poliobomb

13-08-2005, 00:44

artlantis r, brazil plugin for max, and photoshop/ illustrator, sketchup

flino

13-08-2005, 01:42

VIZ with Vray,Maxwell or finalrender; Sketchup

lobegnome

13-08-2005, 02:19

I'm surprised that not many people have noticed Kerkythea.
I think its great and works well with SU files.

I hope to post some work in Kerkythea soon

CHeers :cheers:

fatNjazzy

13-08-2005, 06:27

I'm surprised that not many people have noticed Kerkythea.
I think its great and works well with SU files.

I hope to post some work in Kerkythea soon

CHeers :cheers:

i would love to use Kerkythea, but the gui is annoying, I'm going to whit for future versions.

lobegnome

13-08-2005, 17:55

Here is an straight export from SU5 to Kerkythea
only thing I had to do in K was to adjust the glass material and set the sun location..

I think it's pretty good. (render time:15mins on Pentium D 3Ghz)

torlai

13-08-2005, 23:02

Sketchup fills my needs for the moment, anyway, I´m learning Artlantis R, the lighting effects are nice, and sometimes I miss making some night scenes in SU.

I Actually didn´t know of all those renderers, I´ll take a look at them.

I know the thread isn´t about "new renderers" but this seems to be the best place for this comment:
One of the professors at my school told me about an open-source software called "Radiance". It generates some information and graphics about lighting levels, and isolux curves.
More Info at:
http://radsite.lbl.gov/radiance/HOME.html

Hemma

15-08-2005, 09:03

Max seems to do the trick for me in most cases. I mean, I've tried VRAY, Finalrender, Integra Insight... they're all good, but just the availability in offices is always a problem.... so the Radiosity option in MAX seems to be ideal in my situation... although there's an annoying factor of having to recalculate if you make any changes, but it seems to work quite well... previews look ok.... i mean, you can always go down the fakiosity route if all else fails.....

bakbek

06-10-2005, 07:28

We have 911 (arrrr...) users now (about 240 are active and posting) so i'm calling for help here... please, all non voters, cast your vote as to what render solution they use/like etc...

this will help us finetune the render section for better information flow.

so :cheers: to all and happy new year !!!

3DogKnight

27-10-2005, 22:39

Anyone using TrueSpace?

http://www.caligari.com/

imasayer

27-10-2005, 23:16

ryo

27-10-2005, 23:46

Before my firm recently got SU, we(actually one guy in the office) did hand renderings over half-assed ADT models. So for now we use SU only but they are pushing me to learn viz. I want to use a renderer that plays nicely with other applications such as SU. Autodesk products are not known for that. What do you guys think is the best/easiest to use with SU? ( I am sure this has been answered in several places, you can just point me to those if you wish)
artlantis R and Piranesi are the only two that full support su output for the moment. Vray, very fast and nice, must become standalone (for now you'll need 3dsmax or viz to use it) but chaosgroup still has to develop bridges (export plugins) with su... povray is free but the learning curve is sometimes steep... maxwell is promising but slow and buggy...

jake

27-10-2005, 23:54

half-assed ADT models.

You said it all there.

wizum

28-10-2005, 00:01

good old sketchup and a little Photoshop magic does the trick for me... but I am sure I will try out some of these renderers sometime in the near future...

regards,

Scott M

franjayo

28-10-2005, 00:30

3DogNight,

I will check Truespace, they have a good special now for $89. Do you use it? If so have you used it with SU, or how could it transfer files?

imasayer

28-10-2005, 17:21

You said it all there.

Is there any other kind of ADT model?

imasayer

28-10-2005, 17:24

artlantis R and Piranesi are the only two that full support su output for the moment. Vray, very fast and nice, must become standalone (for now you'll need 3dsmax or viz to use it) but chaosgroup still has to develop bridges (export plugins) with su... povray is free but the learning curve is sometimes steep... maxwell is promising but slow and buggy...

Ryo, can you tell me what artlantis R runs? ($$$, I searched one post that said about 600$, but wasn't sure if that was US $) Does anyone know if Artlantis the the renderer that comes bundled with Archicad? My firm looks as though they are making the switch.

Also, what is the learning curve on Artlantis? After doing a search, it seems that a couple of people have found it fairly simple to use, but I would like to hear more.

digdoi

28-10-2005, 18:20

Also, what is the learning curve on Artlantis? After doing a search, it seems that a couple of people have found it fairly simple to use, but I would like to hear more.

You can download a demo version in the ARTLANTIS WEBSITE (http://www.artlantis.com/index.php)

ryo

28-10-2005, 18:39

Ryo, can you tell me what artlantis R runs? ($$$, I searched one post that said about 600$, but wasn't sure if that was US $) Does anyone know if Artlantis the the renderer that comes bundled with Archicad? My firm looks as though they are making the switch.

Also, what is the learning curve on Artlantis? After doing a search, it seems that a couple of people have found it fairly simple to use, but I would like to hear more.
http://www.objectsonline.com/customer/home.php?cat=1026
595$ for one seat
829$ for 2 seats
ask kevin for ease of use. I tried it, was very easy indeed but I haven't dig so far...

firmanhadi

03-11-2005, 02:57

...povray is free but the learning curve is sometimes steep... maxwell is promising but slow and buggy... I use POV Ray, it's definitely not for the faint-hearted!

imasayer

03-11-2005, 06:11

http://www.objectsonline.com/customer/home.php?cat=1026
595$ for one seat
829$ for 2 seats
ask kevin for ease of use. I tried it, was very easy indeed but I haven't dig so far...

I am sorry Ryo. I meant to thank you for the info. Better late than never right? :cheers:

ryo

03-11-2005, 08:15

I am sorry Ryo. I meant to thank you for the info. Better late than never right? :cheers:
you're welcome! was the info useful, anyway?

homer

05-08-2006, 19:07

I was an avid Artlantis user.
I used SU and Artlantis R to produce the images for my final university project but somehow felt it was lacking something so, inspired by your courtyard renderings babek, I have taken up the "Maxwell Challenge" (not the coffee but the renderer).
I found Artlantis very easy to use and similar in workflow to Sketchup so I would recommend it to any one comfortable with the SU interface.
Maxwell studio looks to be a whole other beast with a somewhat unintuitive interface IMO. Patience is the key and now my degree is out the way I have all the time in the world (apart from work, PPB, chores, games, more PPB, music, the wife, etc, etc........) anyway I digress.
My 2 cents worth: If you are going for photorealism (and and you are not in a hurry) you cant beat Maxwell but Artlantis gives you reasonable results with half the effort and in a third of the rendering time.

zebedak

05-08-2006, 19:47

Vray!!!! :D

badja

05-08-2006, 20:23

Maxwell is the first renderer I've ever tried to use and am really impressed with it so far, even considering I barely know how to use many of its functions yet. The only issue I have had with it is with glass/transparent materials from sketchup when doing a direct render from sketchup...some work and some just don't. Have also tried editing materials in Maxwell Studio and have got a little success but in my own opinion it is well worth the patience and effort to learn Maxwell if you are looking for an impressive renderer!:)

Andrew B

05-08-2006, 22:23

Kerkythea.

gorgon

19-04-2007, 09:12

I'm trying out Indigo 6.0 (on Richards recommendation :not worth ) which is great so far, free, intuitive (well as much a renderer can be) and seemingly very powerful and best of all, it's all done through sketchup interface. I got a useable image off the bat which means it beats kerkythea :)

Was wondering if anyone else was using Indigo on ppb and if we could start a subesction for it in the renderers section (admin?) The bad thing about the Indigo fourm is there is very little Sketchup feedback (mostly from other modellers) and discussion
It's mostly ppb users, Richard and Kweistenbeibel over there...

NigelJooren

19-04-2007, 09:22

modelling in cad most off the times, lightning and settings with max/vray and some tweaking in photshop and sometimes alot off postwork ;) I'm curious though for SU vray, it looks promising..

A_Minima

19-04-2007, 09:37

Indigo, definitly.

gorgon

20-04-2007, 05:45

Indigo, definitly.

So is three a concencus? we need an indigo thread in the renderers section so that we can spread the love?

nyl

05-05-2007, 20:01

im currently trying indigo 6.0 also maybe a thread for indigo would be great!

kannonbal

07-05-2007, 04:47

Sketchup to Cheetah 3D to photoshop.

I use use Cheetah 3D for my organic and vector modeling, too. It is really a fantastic program and has to be one of the best software deals ever.

Sorry, Mac only.

Cheers, Chuck

Richard

07-05-2007, 04:53

So is three a concencus? we need an indigo thread in the renderers section so that we can spread the love?

Yeah I'll second that, or third it, or fourth - oh let's just say I'll back you up!

kwistenbiebel

09-05-2007, 21:57

Yeah I'll second that, or third it, or fourth - oh let's just say I'll back you up!

Seperate indigo section? Yep, got my vote as well.

ryo

09-05-2007, 22:21

Ditto!!!
does anybody remember pc-ditto on Atari St?:wondering

Richard

10-05-2007, 05:04

Ditto!!!
does anybody remember pc-ditto on Atari St?:wondering

Mate you definately need a hobby!

Metcalf

10-05-2007, 05:39

Indigo is the way to go for me, although I dont know how to add lights? Should I do it in Sketch up or Inidigo. Im using sketch up 6 and indigo 6, but also have indigo 7, any ideas?

Richard

10-05-2007, 05:53

Mate you kust need to create a surface, paint it and apply an emitter to the material. In SU.

Metcalf

10-05-2007, 06:01

ok great, thanks Richard, Im assuming you only create a small surface, I guess you wouldnt make a whole bench top with an emitter. What I mean is I should create a small surface where a light would be located in a space then apply the emitter?

aussiesnow4

10-05-2007, 08:25

Mate you kust need to create a surface, paint it and apply an emitter to the material. In SU.

:rock on: :rock on: :rock on:

Once again...Richard to the rescue.

admin

11-05-2007, 03:08

Indigo forum created.

TCKNUDSEN

18-08-2007, 21:35

I have been trying I-Render....trial version. It's not bad....but, I'm not ready to get married yet. Before I "take the plunge" I would like to know which product is the serious contender. I'll be reading on to learn what I can.

donatoya

11-12-2007, 16:28

Smart Render Graphics is not in the list. I really appreciate it for its interactives possibilities.
Don

Umlungu

09-08-2008, 15:09

I use to use Archicad with artlantis, i hate archicad though. So now i use Autocad's 3d modeling with photoshop cs3.

what is a good 3d rendering program that i can export my cad files to?

KurtS

15-09-2008, 11:33

I use Microstation with Maxwel Render and Luxology Render. Luxology is currently in Beta.

Some Maxwell test renderings (http://s152.photobucket.com/albums/s177/kurtks/?albumview=grid)

Richard

15-09-2008, 13:28

jake

15-09-2008, 17:13

Mclaren

15-09-2008, 17:52

jake

15-09-2008, 18:10

I finally bought Modo 302, I'm starting to like it a lot. next software for me to buy if my boss ever gets around to the paycheque is Maxwell Render. Video Tutorials are quite good, funny too.

THANKS JAKE! :not worth:D

Check out this person's Modo work. I really like the look, especially the first one.

Jastki_1 (http://forums.luxology.com/discussion/topic.aspx?id=24336)

Jastki_2 (http://forums.luxology.com/discussion/topic.aspx?id=26037)

I think you can only take software so far. Hyper-realistic stuff with Modo is not easy. But, I see it as a great tool for developing a "style" that I find more interesting than most photo-realistic stuff. Modo now has a plugin for Piranesi (epix) export. I use to use Cheetah to Piranesi but as great as Cheetah is, Modo is a lot faster to use and setup. With export the to epix the fun is back again!

KurtS

15-09-2008, 18:38

If Luxology Render the same render engine in Modo, and I assume it is, then it doesn't come close to Maxwell. I use it a lot and it works fine for most everything, but it's takes some work for architecture, especially interiors.

It's not the same engine that is in Modo 302. That's all I can say - it's still in the alpha/beta stage.

KurtS

15-09-2008, 18:45

KurtS - How you doing?
Mate I've followed your test lab thread in awe! Stunning stuff!

How are you finding Lux? It looks to have promise once developed! I'm interested in anything that has Maxwell quality without the time lag resulting from displacement!

I'd actually be excited if NextLimit could develop an inbetween Dsiplacement / Normal mapping! Something that doesn't cost the earth in render times! In fact I'd be happy if they would get normal mapping working with Physical sky! Seems from all my testing all bump gets pretty much washed out under phys sky!

Hi Richard, thank's a lot :)

about displacement: - have you tried to experiment with subdivision (rather dense meshes) and really low precision values? You can get great displacement results in a fraction of the time if the mesh and the material settings are optimized.

jake

15-09-2008, 19:02

It's not the same engine that is in Modo 302. That's all I can say - it's still in the alpha/beta stage.

Well, there has been a little discussion at the forum about an overhaul that might be in Modo's next release, but it's been pretty quiet from Luxology. I'm cautiously optimistic.

Richard

15-09-2008, 19:43

@ Jake

I think the LuxRender is an open source is it not?? I could be way wrong! I did check it out the other day and was darn impressed by the docs I saw! Will have to check it out again.

@ KurtS

Mate thanks for the tip! I will try that out! I must say my pc power is pretty low so any time costs on rendering are a pain particularly given the render times already.

BTW mate I haven't yet got to play with that water MXM you posted to me from the Maxwell forums. Will need to soon so I'll see what I can come up with! I'm lucky enough to have a 15m indoor pool just outside my door and it gets plenty of Natural light during the day and artificial light at night to make good comparisons!

Cheers!

ThiagoBeck

15-09-2008, 20:15

I use vray for sketchup, never really tried anything else, I'm happy with it's results and not so happy about render time....

jake

15-09-2008, 20:40

@ Jake

I think the LuxRender is an open source is it not?? I could be way wrong! I did check it out the other day and was darn impressed by the docs I saw! Will have to check it out again.

@ KurtS

KurtS is calling it Luxology Render. The real name is LuxRender. Luxology is the company that develops Modo, so I plead temporary insanity.

Luxology Render does not exist and is actually LuxRender and not at all associated with Luxology, the company that develops Modo.

Clear as mud.

KurtS

15-09-2008, 23:00

Luxology Render does not exist

whatever floats your boat, man... (http://www.bentley.com/es-MX/Corporate/News/Quarter+3/Luxology.htm)

jake

15-09-2008, 23:10

whatever floats your boat, man... (http://www.bentley.com/es-MX/Corporate/News/Quarter+3/Luxology.htm)

Alright.:bang head

So what we are talking about are two different renders with VERY similar names.

Thanks KurtS. There is a Luxology Render . . . for Microstation. Forgive me. My boat does not need floating.:cheers:

Richard,
and there is a LuxRender, you are correct sir . . . and it is open source.

Wow . . . that was confusing. LuxRender renders do look pretty nice. Thanks for the heads up.