BRYCE RENDERING CHALLENGE Inaugural Challenge NEW BEGINNINGS.
Chohole
Posts: 33,604
OK here we go, let's see if we can get this on the road, so to speak
So the first ever DAZ 3D Bryce rendering Challenge
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Theme for this month is "New Beginnings"
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This thread is the WIP thread, so you can post here to show us how things are coming along before transferring the render to the actual Contest thread for judging.
Rules
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All renders must be new renders.
You can enter up to 3 renders.
You must abide by the DAZ 3D forum TOS
Imported content is allowed, but the render must be obviously a Bryce render.
Post Work permitted, but please keep it to a minimum.
Rules may be changed for subsequent Challenges, depending on the theme and the person who has selected it.
The winner of the April Challenge will get the chance to name the theme for the June contest.
This will then continue with subsequent winners choosing the theme for the next but one contest, which will enable a new contest to start with the
minimum of delay between contests.
Whoever nominates the subject for the Challenge can modify the rules to suit that challenge.
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Challenge ends on 28th April Midnight DAZ 3D time.
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A $20 DAZ 3D gift certificate will be given to the person whose render is selected as the best, by a judging method which has yet to be clarified.
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Comments
Here's my first WIP. I recently returned to working on my island scene, which ended in the worst way a while back, when Bryce crashed and corrupted my project file, which contained thousands of instances.
So I started from scratch and this is the result so far. Quite a bit of work ahead, but it's very near what I want in the end:
Wow. I mean seriously....I'm highly impressed. Well worth the effort you have put into it and it works magically. Also love the look of the lighting. I assume it may be TA due to the noise, it looks very nice. Splendid work!
Thank you :)
And yes, it was rendered with True Ambience, but with very low RPP as you noticed given the noise. With the intended RPP (I was targeting 64) it was going to take almost a day to render! Since 4 RPPs were too noisy, I went with 9 for a "quick" look (still took almost 3 hours).
Oh MrSilus, I do so sympathise with you over the corrupted file, having just had a similar and yetr completely different thing happen, with 3 working files all corrupted in a mysterious way.
Thanks for kicking this thing off.
Yes, it was very frustrating to lose the original project file. But I learned enough about IL and with all the advice given in the "Show us your Bryce renders" thread, I started working on this one. IL still crashes a lot, but it's much more manageable.
The original project had just over 50 million polygons. This new one is just over 30 million...I hope Bryce doesn't kill this one. I've become paranoid to the point of saving and opening the just saved project to check it everything is ok, for each instance session :)
I'm finished with instancing to populate the island! 51+ million polygons and no crashes! Phew :)
(I have all instanced groups shown as box of course, but for the purpose of the screenshot I selected their normal view)
The mountains in the foreground had been sitting around for some time because, frankly, landscapes are not my strong suit. And how to set them up stills seems foreign to me. But I pulled it out today, and added three copied terrains, repositioned on existing terrain, and repositioned the camera in the second image. I'd appreciate comments from those of you who do marvelous landscapes.
I like the top image better because I can see the reflections of the peaks in the terrain, but that's just me.
It sort of looks like your foreground terrain is floating above the water though; look at the curled reflection and what is casting it just left of center right where the water meets the terrain; they don't touch at the shoreline. (unless that's supposed to be half of a stone arch and is intentional.)
What problems are you having with setting up landscapes?
Bryce April 1
@Sean: What I have tried to create is the last of a few mountains being covered by water in the creation of a lake. I'm not quite sure which area you are referring to but what I tried to create is a bit drop from the plane portions of the foreground mountains to the water. And a little of that foreground mountain already under water. As to what problems I have with setting up landscapes, composition, pure and simple. I can create bang up mountains, but getting a pleasing arrangement, along with accessories, escapes me.
@bigH: I find your image interesting. It looks like a feeding frenzy is taking place in the water, or a localized rain storm.
Update on judging this at the end of the Month.
bigh has already volunteered to be a judge, and I now have a 2nd volunteer in Szark.
Or would people prefer it to be judged a different way, like a poll or something.
I through the same thing - when I saw it too :lol:
the part circled in this attached image. It appears to be part of a stone arch, but the part over the water doesn't connect with it's shadow, so it's not a complete arch going into the water. I wasn't sure if it was intentional or not that it didn't touch it's shadow at the waterline.
Whatever you guys choose for a judging method is fine with me.
I, on the other hand, really like doing landscapes and still life scenes, because there's so much to reference from. And it's always a challenge to try and create something that is photo realistic. So much so, that when visiting sites like cgsociety, I love seeing those renders that people ask for the wireframe view, because there's some doubt that that render might actually be a photo. That right there, is IMO, the 3D artist best response :)
As for your scenes, the first one looks better mostly due to the water reflections. I like the lighting, the chosen colors for the sky and water material, But the terrain would benefit from a more complex material, like something found on an actual island. But it all depends on your point of reference for what you intended to create.
Simple but nice. That menacing cloud seems to want to disturb an otherwise calm and relaxing setting :)
Whatever is chosen is fine by me.
Simple but nice. That menacing cloud seems to want to disturb an otherwise calm and relaxing setting :)
thank you :-)
I'll chuck my hat in the ring with this WIP.
@Sean: Ah, I now see where you're referring to. I must be blind in one eye and can't see out of the other. See if the image below has better appeal.
@Mr Silus: Thanks for the comments. The material, or what I had in mind, is sandstone material, which weathers easily, in an area that filling is with water because of a dam built further upstream. When these type of projects occur low lying areas are covered first, followed by higher structures. Hence the foreground and rounder background mountains. Because how the light and sun position turned out, it's either early morning or late afternoon, viewer discretion. See the following image.
@Dave: Besides the little critter being cute, the rest looks great. But you're sort of putting all your eggs in one basket, er, rocks aren't you?
I initially had a large drop at the front of the foreground mountain. But as things go, I reduced that drop off, lowered the water slab a bit, raised the foreground mountain a bit, and repositioned the camera. Again, comments are gladly welcomed.
I'd volunteer as judge, but since I'm easily awed by work I see here I wouldn't be very objective. Where are we posting the images we are entering?
cute, just one little point, you have a couple of stray polys casting shadow on his left eye (right side of image)
Thanks Pam.
Still working on it, have reshaped the bit of shell on his head, altered the lighting, introduced IBL and changed the mat on the terrains.
Just trying a version with some greenery on it now... but it's not working at the moment... may post it later.
Maybe, but I'm not counting my chickens... errr, reptiles before they've hatched.
@Dave: Being able to see both critters eyes makes it all that much cuter. IMHO, either material on the terrain works well, but adjusting the light in the second one has giveen the foreground more depth and definition. That image looks a lot better.
This is how the version with greenery on it turned out. Not sure it needs it, I think I prefer the bare rock one, but it's more complicated by me altering the camera to a lower angle... I'd need to customise the sky.
@Dave: The greenery adds significant character to the image. Both images are great, given the environments they portray.
Here's the final render of my first WIP.
Rendered in Bryce 7.1 Pro
64 RPPs, True Ambience (TA Scattering Correction) and Soft Shadows
Took almost 16 hours to render @ 1280x800
Everything was done and set up in Bryce, with the exception of the balloons which are models from archive3d.net with some slight changes.
I call it "Taintless Paradise"
Ah cute one! I prefer this one since it almost seems like someone is behind the grass making a video or taking a photo as the creature gets out of the egg. The color and material used for the creature's skin is the only point I don't particularly like. I would expect something less uniform and a more darker tone, but this is a WIP after all :)
Looks better. I would adjust the color near the horizon. That blue seems a bit out of place given all the surrounding colors.
@Mr Silus: Final image looks real good, but the beach chairs are missing. :-) Yeah, I noticed the horizon color wasn't quite right. What I was trying to do at the horizon was obscured too much.
General question: For the past couple of days when I've tried to submit a post I've been getting another window saying Login Requested to Access this page. It usually takes 2-3 tries before the post is submitted. What gives?
OK I'll play.
Model from here http://graphics.cs.williams.edu/data/meshes.xml
Lit like this Bryce 7.1 Pro Experiments - Hyper Surface Scattering - by David Brinnen
With Horo's GarageOpen_3840.hdr that came with this http://www.daz3d.com/practical-bryce-7-1-pro-volume-1
And an impossible one sided box shape made according to the tutorial here Bryce Mentoring DVD it an inside and no outside!
All viewed through one of the new wide angle lenses from this http://www.daz3d.com/new-releases/bryce-7-1-pro-lenses-and-filters - currently on special offer along with other things too!
Adjusted haze color and settings, and think I'll stick a fork in it.