rendering sftwrs

[fede]

Just a quick opinion on the programs you guys use to make renderings: learning curve,results,costs.

[archnav.de]

If you would like to act with high end renderings and animations you should look for Cinema4d or 3D-StudioMax. We are working with 3D-StudioMax, but it's hard to get high end quality there and it is only worthwhile, if you work with this software frequently.

[duluthboats]

For a reasonable price take a look at Vue from E-on. http://www.e-onsoftware.com/Products/VueIndex.php I now have Vue 5 Esprit; it renders fast and has many tools to fine-tune light and materials. I find it fairly stable and easy to use once you get use to it. Vue d’Esprit 4, at $69 is a good way to get started. It’s aimed at 3D landscapes but will render anything. Import/export is a bit limited so you will want to make sure you can import your models before you buy.

[CGN]

Hi Fede, if you just want to get started duluthboats is right vue spirit is good for the cost, is easy to use and fast in rendering.

I use before Rhinoman and BMRT, free no cost, but slow, but quality is probably better than most of low cost software around, now I use carrara Pro v4 some jobs paid for it, easy to use, reads most 3D CAD formats, and is very fast, very complete software for the cost.

if you are looking to start rendering for business then XSI foundation is your best bet, average cost, strong rendering engine and very fast, this to start taking small rendering jobs, I have the demo and the interface is not so friendly but I model everything on rhino and then export to XSI so is ok, I don't recommend flamingo I think the price is high for what it offers XSI is much more complete and better renderer even carrara is better, I read that lightwave is introducing a version called inspire 3D it supposed to be a low version of lightwave, worth to have a look.

C4D has an old version that was for sale for 150 bucks, if you call them they may sell this version, is good it works great and there is many resources on the net for the software.

And if all you are looking to start on your own as a hobby meaning that you have most of the time to learn and practice then download Blender 3D and that's it, play all you want and render all you want, the interface is not friendly at all but is free, it works and is very well supported.

it all depend what you goal is (besides nice pictures) if you want to offer some services XSI foundation will be my choice to start rendering services, then carrara Pro V4, if is only to learn but you want to start with a good program then Look for the low version of C4D, find out about inspire 3D, all this leaving the high end packages a side (or at least those with exaggerated prices).

Learning curve is not so bad in most of this packages, softwares like carrara have a wizard with all the bells and wisthles to prepare your scene for rendering so even myself can render

good luck

[marshmat]

So far I've rarely had occasion to use anything more than the Flamingo renderer for Rhino. There's also the Penguin renderer for Rhino if you want non-photorealistic. Friends who use 3DS Max say they love it, but I haven't had a chance to learn it yet.

If you're after uber-realistic rendering and are looking more towards the professional side of things, Alias StudioTools might be worth a look- it's pretty much the standard among car designers and is gaining popularity in film. Extremely powerful (it can give images that take a minute or two to distinguish from a photo) but a steep learning curve to utilize that power. It's a nice interface, easy to get used to if you know Rhino, but I still haven't figured out 95% of the program.

[Tim B]

You might want to have a look at POV-Ray. It has it's own input format, but most 3D cad packages should export to it. It is free software, multi-platform with a bit of time taken to learn how to use it, you can do very nice renderings and animations.

www.povray.org

Cheers,

Tim B.

[ABoatGuy]

My two cents . . .

3DS Max. High quality with steep learning curve. And not cheap.

Not a program to design boats with but one of the better renderers. Learning lighting is everything in any program. It can make or break a scene. There is a book out called Digital Lighting and Rendering by Birn (I believe). It isn't program specific, but it does teach you about lighting, how the mesh of the object in the scene effects the end results, shadows etc. Worth a look.

I think one of the problems people have is too much detail in background items that really don't add a lot to a scene. The render engine still has to calculate all those faces and shadows. It can really slow the whole process down. In 3DS Max it is fairly easy to take the detail down to a managable level.

Flamingo in Rhino is pretty good for the $$.

It seems you can spend as much or as little as you like. None of the programs will do it all. To get real photo realistic scenes it takes some time and dedication and a lot of trial and error.

http://www.boat-design.net/Software/Rendering/

[Sander Rave]

Hi Fede,

In our studio we use the Photoworks ad-on from Solid Works when we want to make a reasonable representation from Solid Works or UG. When photo realistic visuals or animations are needed we switch to Lightwave.

My opinion is to use the right tool at the right moment. Maybe you have to be a little bit more specific in the way you want to waist your time: Are you going to make a living out of it? Is it a hobby project? If not, keep it simple or let somebody do the job for you.
Regards,

[fede]

Thanks to all of you guys,this have been very useful up to now,earn a living or hobby? still don't know...

[Willallison]

An old thread, to be sure...but a good question that I'm surprised isn't asked more often... so... what are you guys using now?

[Mat-C]

One thing I've always wondered, was what software is used to create 2D 'renders'... the ones used to make profiles and arrangements look pretty
Often these look like they're done by hand (albeit very tallented ones!!), but I'm sure most aren't.....?

[duluthboats]

Hi Will,
I can't afford anything new so I'm using the same old stuff. I would like to hear what the rest are using now. So what works well with Rhino files? Is not too costly? And will not need a mega PC to work?

[Grant Nelson]

Yeah, this has always been a gap in my ability... never sure what was best to use.. anybody trying the Rhino 5WIP new rendering engine? Hope to get some updates and insights... thanks for asking again Wil.

[rxcomposite]

Hi Fede,

Still around huh?

I'm in an engineering firm and Autocad is heavily used. Rhino is preferred for rendering but some opt for 3D max. I guess it is where the draftman is comfortable with. Rhino is for the advanced user who really understand Marine Engineering while 3D max is used for presentation purposes by general draftsman.

Regards,
Rx

[Willallison]

Mat - I still do all my 2D sketch renders by hand
Not sure what others use....

Gary... yes - well there's no point in updating (note absence of wrod 'upgrading') unless you need to. Alas, the upgrade to Rhino4 means that all my other plug-ins are no longer compatable, so I have to udate everything else as well....(though I do recall seeing a couple of compatability installations on the tutorial CD that came with R4... perhaps worth a look...)

RX - Rhino is to a large extent, the industry 'standard' when it come to general 3D modelling. But it's the rendering plu-ins / programs that I'm interested in. There are some very talented people out there (like our own Urban Voyage) who specialise in photorealistic renders. This is a whole industry segment in itself and one that I have no real interest in getting into - far better off to use their services when they're required.
Rhino's own render facility is probably good enough for most of my applications... so it's out of curiosity that I ask as much as anything else...