Guest rzito Posted February 3, 2009 Share Posted February 3, 2009 Hi all, I've been trying to render polished chrome finish on a model with poor results. Tom, You posted some great renderings of chromed cylinder heads on June the 7th last year. This is the result I hope to achieve. If possible can you post the settings you used to render these models. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Best Regards Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cary OConnor Posted February 3, 2009 Share Posted February 3, 2009 I think a lot of it depends on the background used. You need to select a good 3D Environment to really show the reflections well. Do you have a scene and the parts that you wish to show the effect? Send it in and maybe we can offer some suggestions. Cary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rzito Posted February 3, 2009 Share Posted February 3, 2009 Thanks Cary, I uploaded a file to your ftp site typevlo5.ics last night. Please have a look. All the metal parts in that i have dropped reflective chrome surfaces on. and only got a white blue finish. That model is for a Luminaire I'm designing for a 100 year old private school chapel, there is an array of 4 luminaires I'd really like to dazzle the architects with a high quality render. PS what time is at your location, its 10:45 AM daylight saving time here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cary OConnor Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 At first glance.... (By the way - your upload is missing a few linked files). Don't use the old Chrome material that is an image in the reflection (this was a fake way to get realistic renderings in the old rendering). Assuming you are in V11, Open the Metal catalog (not metals). Drop the Chrome that is this catalog onto the parts that need to be chrome. Next, place a 3D Environment in the background (I have attached a free one from the web that will give a dark goldish type of reflection). These 3D Environments are key in getting the desired look for chrome. You need to have an environment to reflect to really show chrome. So you either need to build a real 3D Environment of 3D models or you need to use these environments to be used in the reflection (or a combination). The partner CD has a few free ones as well that can reflect data. However, you can find many on the web that are free (search HDRI). There are many sites like Deviantart.com ( High-Res HDRI Map Pack 2 . ab) that have free ones that are good from reflection and lighting. SM_HDRI_Pack2_06.hdr Using the free one above. Using one from the partner cd (mall environment). I'm sure if you find the right HDRI, you will get the image you are looking for. It starts to become an art in getting the correct environment. Note: you can turn off GI (global illumination) unless you are using the background to light the scene. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rzito Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Cary That is exactly what I'm looking for, I'll try your recommendations. Also how do you ensure that the files that are linked to the model are saved along with or within the current version of the model? Many thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rzito Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Cary / Kevin Here are a couple of attempts a) with standard back ground and high super sampling, around 40min to render notice loss of definition around LED pucks. with window 3d environment for back ground, super sampling none, some emission on the white pendants 29min render really poor. thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IronKevin Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Ralph, I get this result after adding the 3D Environment file Cary suggested above: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cary OConnor Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Open the file. Do a Save As and pick a new folder to place the file. Select the option to copy all the linked files. Then zip the folder and upload the zipped folder to FTP site. The rendering should not be much longer than 5min. First, turn down the Raytracing settings. You have it set to 9 which is only needed if you really have glass and real high light bouncing needs. The number should be 4 or 5 for your case. The higher the number the higher number of bounces the light rays will compute. The sampling probably can be medium for starts (for setting up the environment). I assume you turned off GI? If you use emission, it will take a long time to compute. It has to create many lights to achieve this. It may be easier to add a point light with glow to achieve the settings (or some variation). Send the extra files and we can take a look. Cary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cary OConnor Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Here are a few samples.... I took out the emission and it renders much faster. If you look at the big lights, I used a point light with a glow and a transparent glass house to get the effect. It renders much faster than trying to use emission. You can do this on the top lights as well (I did't have time to try it out). There is no GI and the AA is set to medium. Here is a full screen version with a slightly modified 3D Environment (took out the black in the original). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cary OConnor Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Here is the top with point lights as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rzito Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Thanks Guys, I'll have to do a lot experimenting, you have demonstrated its all possible. IC will have to work at making IC rendering as as easy to use as IC modeling! Whats the best way to quickly test rendering settings, is it quicker to zoom in on small area of model to check the result. What graphics card would IC recommend for GI stability, high speed, and high quality rendering? Or have I just made contradiction on terms! Regards Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cary OConnor Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 The best way to test the rendering is with lower settings and avoid things that increase rendering times if they are not needed (Emission, soft lights, many ray bounces, high settings for AA or GI shadows for starters). Rendering is really an art. You need to find out what you are after and then try to build something to give a realistic look. If you are looking for basic reflections and lighting, then 3D Environments are key (similar to the quick renders out in the market - they use material and environments for fast good looking results). If you need specific lighting and shadows, caustics, etc, then it is just not a plug and play type of capability since it can all vary depending on the object, viewing direction, material, etc. That's why there are many many rendering system on the market. You can get really good quality rendering out of IRONCAD if you set it up for that and understand where to minimize time. You can also get very good quick renderings out of IRONCAD that will met the needs of most by using basic materials and 3D Environments. We can try to put a tips and trick document together that can help in this area. Plus I think we have a few new template in V11 that have a good starting point. You can find them under the studio tab in the new scene dialog. Drop the geometry into some of these new template and size and render as a starting point is a option. Cary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rzito Posted February 12, 2009 Share Posted February 12, 2009 (edited) Cary I'm looking forward to those tips & tricks. They will at least give us bench mark to improve on. I've attached my latest attempt its getting better! As you can see the cylinder is sitting on a timber base how do I get that to look more realistic, it looks like a block of ice. I tried turning off the reflection on that surface but to no avail. The mounting bracket has a gun metal finish but looks like chrome? Regards Edited February 12, 2009 by rzito Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tlehnhaeuser Posted February 12, 2009 Share Posted February 12, 2009 (edited) Hi Ralph, didn;t read therough this thread. But I have attached a scene and image I use to create my chrome finishes. Yu can adjust the brightness of the chrome by simply adjustin the diffusion. Hopw this helps. Tom RalphChrome.ics Excuse the typos, I rush throught hsi stuff Edited February 12, 2009 by tlehnhaeuser Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cary OConnor Posted February 12, 2009 Share Posted February 12, 2009 Can you attach the file so I can look at the material settings. Tom - That chrome image you attached I think is ok for real-time and the old rendering in my opinion. If you really want realistic chrome, use the Chrome in the Metals catalog and create a real environment. This will give the best look if setup correctly. Adding the image to the reflection as you are doing is ok, but not really giving the real reflection of the environment. Cary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tlehnhaeuser Posted February 12, 2009 Share Posted February 12, 2009 Can you attach the file so I can look at the material settings. Tom - That chrome image you attached I think is ok for real-time and the old rendering in my opinion. If you really want realistic chrome, use the Chrome in the Metals catalog and create a real environment. This will give the best look if setup correctly. Adding the image to the reflection as you are doing is ok, but not really giving the real reflection of the environment. Cary 23563[/snapback] Hi Cary, yup I agreem however getting the right settings on every scene is tricky. Using my old way is a bit of a time saver for quick renderings. If/When the need for a High end rendering is needed, I will take the time to get the settings correct. Thanks tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rzito Posted February 13, 2009 Share Posted February 13, 2009 Thanks Cary & Tom I'll post that file over the weekend Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.