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Novica & Invited Guest Contributors Tips & Product Reviews Pt 4

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  • NovicaNovica Posts: 23,887
    edited December 1969

    The Magnificent Sunflower (Nikkelah Ghaz)
    http://www.daz3d.com/the-magnificent-sunflower

    The sunflower is also featured in the sale (Nikkelah's store) and I also got http://www.daz3d.com/moroccan-lamp-bundle

    Here's the sunflower- amazing detail. This would be fun for a country render- my grandparents had a garden full of giant sunflowers, and we had them in Texas and the entire neighborhood got a kick out of them growing taller thanour 6 foot privacy fence.

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  • NovicaNovica Posts: 23,887
    edited December 1969

    Did you see DAZ_Jareds comments? The summer promotion..."Each punch gets you the following 1% off of other punchable items, 2% off of Aiko 6 (to be released some time in June), 4% off either the Dark Sisterhood or Gated Courtyard products (to be released in June as well)."

    So here comes Aiko 6.
    And a punch thingy again.

  • KeryaKerya Posts: 10,943
    edited December 1969

    Novica said:
    Did you see DAZ_Jareds comments? The summer promotion..."Each punch gets you the following 1% off of other punchable items, 2% off of Aiko 6 (to be released some time in June), 4% off either the Dark Sisterhood or Gated Courtyard products (to be released in June as well)."

    So here comes Aiko 6.
    And a punch thingy again.



    Items bought to receive punches, as well as items bought with your punch discount are ineligible for return.
    If you wish to opt-out of this promotion please contact support here.

  • NovicaNovica Posts: 23,887
    edited December 1969

    Yeah, here we go with the "can't return it / opt out" again too. I'm hoping more of the offerings will be poses, hair, and characters rather than sexy outfits (other than swimwear for summer of course!) but not counting on it. I want more variety.

  • NovicaNovica Posts: 23,887
    edited December 1969

    Setting Up Favorites In Top Menu Bar (Slosh)

    I didn't know about this video and it's SO nice of Slosh to share his expertise. Want to have Favorites at the top of your studio? Aka, you can just click and load any figure without scrolling through menus at all? Here's how!

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z6-0VllFWZU

  • Serene NightSerene Night Posts: 17,651
    edited December 1969

    Novica said:
    Did you see DAZ_Jareds comments? The summer promotion..."Each punch gets you the following 1% off of other punchable items, 2% off of Aiko 6 (to be released some time in June), 4% off either the Dark Sisterhood or Gated Courtyard products (to be released in June as well)."

    So here comes Aiko 6.
    And a punch thingy again.

    Interesting. I was told they were alternating genders of new figures being released. I didn't much believe it since they started out with mostly female characters and now seem to be reverting back into the female figure onslaught.

  • MelanieLMelanieL Posts: 7,398
    edited December 1969

    Luci45 said:
    Thanks, Novica, Jindi and Tarina Kivi. The May RRRR was really exceptional and so much fun. And so many excellent renders. Tarina Kivi, your win was well-deserved - elegant, silly and whimsical. Who could ask for more?

    Novica, I liked WineWalk a lot too and I loved Scott's Game of Thrones, and most of Totte's, barbult's and and MelanieL's (what a wacky sense of humor she has.) And of course gopherus and Zawarkal.

    I just noticed Tarina Kivi's post about a new RRRR contest thread, so I must look for it as I am having terrible withdrawl issues. I'll be back when it's over... ;-P

    Thanks, Novica, for posting the Vault Rustler. I do like those pants! :-)


    "Wacky" eh? Yes, I'll take that :) Congrats on your winning entry too - that was one of yours I voted for (and not the only one).
    By the way, thanks for the Wood God on Genesis post - it looks really good - unfortunately I didn't see it until that sale had ended, but I'll bear it in mind for the next time it's on sale.
  • MelanieLMelanieL Posts: 7,398
    edited December 1969

    @Novica - I love those dotty pics, what a shame you lost the originals. The Olympia Cityscape posts were interesting to see too.
    And congrats on your RRRR win (another one I voted for).
    @TarinaKivi )
    @barbult ) - and I can't fail to say now, as I know you both drop by this thread: congrats on your RRRR wins - guess what? Yes, that's right, I voted for those too!

  • Tarina KiviTarina Kivi Posts: 488
    edited December 1969

    Luci45 said:
    Thanks, Novica, Jindi and Tarina Kivi. The May RRRR was really exceptional and so much fun. And so many excellent renders. Tarina Kivi, your win was well-deserved - elegant, silly and whimsical. Who could ask for more?

    Novica, I liked WineWalk a lot too and I loved Scott's Game of Thrones, and most of Totte's, barbult's and and MelanieL's (what a wacky sense of humor she has.) And of course gopherus and Zawarkal.

    I just noticed Tarina Kivi's post about a new RRRR contest thread, so I must look for it as I am having terrible withdrawl issues. I'll be back when it's over... ;-P


    Thank you Luci! It means a lot coming from you. : ) I admire your talent and loved all of your entries. I'm already looking forward to seeing what you will come up with during this RRRR. ^^
  • Tarina KiviTarina Kivi Posts: 488
    edited May 2014

    MelanieL said:

    @Novica - I love those dotty pics, what a shame you lost the originals. The Olympia Cityscape posts were interesting to see too.
    And congrats on your RRRR win (another one I voted for).
    @TarinaKivi )
    @barbult ) - and I can't fail to say now, as I know you both drop by this thread: congrats on your RRRR wins - guess what? Yes, that's right, I voted for those too!
    Thank you MelanieL! I voted for your winning entry too. I really liked the concept of that one, very original. I love underwater renders in general and yours was excellent. : )


    So here comes Aiko 6.
    And a punch thingy again.


    To be honest I'm a little sad we are going to get another female figure. I was counting on a male. Thought they were alternating...
    Post edited by Tarina Kivi on
  • IndigoJansonIndigoJanson Posts: 1,100
    edited December 1969

    That sunflower's pretty, Novica -- and affordable too. I don't think I've seen it before. It's amazing what's lurking in the corners of the store. Are you going to post renders of the Moroccan lamps? They look gorgeous in the promo, I'd love to hear how you find them to use.

    Well, I'll have a bit more time I hope so I'm in this time on RRRR!

    Going back to the one just finished, I too had another favourite that didn't place, and that was Barbult's Animal Husbandry. I loved that one, funny and lovely at the same time. Melanie's blue underwater guy was another that stuck with me, so I was glad to see that place. (Congratulations Melanie, it had my vote!) :)

  • NovicaNovica Posts: 23,887
    edited December 1969

    Jindi said:
    That sunflower's pretty, Novica -- and affordable too. I don't think I've seen it before. It's amazing what's lurking in the corners of the store. Are you going to post renders of the Moroccan lamps? They look gorgeous in the promo, I'd love to hear how you find them to use.

    Well, I'll have a bit more time I hope so I'm in this time on RRRR!

    Going back to the one just finished, I too had another favourite that didn't place, and that was Barbult's Animal Husbandry. I loved that one, funny and lovely at the same time. Melanie's blue underwater guy was another that stuck with me, so I was glad to see that place. (Congratulations Melanie, it had my vote!) :)

    I know, I keep thinking, "Oh yeah, and there was this one too..." Barbult always does a good job. The colors were so rich in that one, I drooled- get me a bib.

    I think that store is largely ignored because they don't put their stuff on sale very often. The sunflower had been wishlisted for a very long time- you can do closeup renders with that in the scene and it'll steal the show from the character, lol. I can load up the Moroccan lamps and see if they are ready to render, I am running errands off and on today and can't do a light setup. Let me give it a go right now, while they are still on sale (at least I think they are. Haven't checked.)

  • NovicaNovica Posts: 23,887
    edited December 1969

    Oh HEY. Nice surprise. I just loaded one of the lamps and these are great for out of the box thinking. You can use them as cages- the sides are open. 63% done by 18 seconds. Stay tuned. I want you to see this without ANY lights- just the default. No lights from inside it either. See the little bit of yellow coming through in the middle of the blue section? That's because it realistically is showing the yellow from the other side- that "metal" part is cut out. I really like these! You get three different ones.

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  • NovicaNovica Posts: 23,887
    edited May 2014

    Thinking out of the box, I wonder if you could use those nice curved arches as doorways :) (Remember, I am the one who flipped floors for backgrounds, lol)

    Anyway, this is nice- you click the light and it goes right where it needs to go. And 60% done at 1 minute 45 seconds. I darkened the background so you could see just the lights. I LOVE THESE!!! I think they would be great for pool parties.

    EDIT: Added another one.

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    Post edited by Novica on
  • NovicaNovica Posts: 23,887
    edited December 1969

    You won't find an easier to use set- each lamp is numbered, and so are the lights. Click and presto.
    This one is a different style, with the sides completely solid. (Or so I think.)

    For me, yep, I think they're worth the money, particularly at the discount. They'd brighten up your Far East renders or garden renders, and fairies/faeries (whatever) could use as a lamp. You could also translate it and make it horizontal, and use as a bugs tail :)

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  • NovicaNovica Posts: 23,887
    edited December 1969

    LOL. This was just with a two minute "plop it on" test. I think these shapes could be used for a lot of different things (of course, with more tweaking than done here.) This just happens to be from that same store, The Creeper Collection, which I have already showcased.

    Nuff said.

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  • Tarina KiviTarina Kivi Posts: 488
    edited December 1969

    The lamps look great Novica. Nice to know they are usable right out of the box. : )

  • MelanieLMelanieL Posts: 7,398
    edited December 1969

    @Tarina Kivi, @Jindi - thanks to you both :-)
    @Novica - nice job on those lamps. (I'd never noticed that store before)

  • NovicaNovica Posts: 23,887
    edited December 1969

    About a year ago, I went to Shop>Vendors and started with the A's and went through every single store. When they had really good offers like buy $50 get $10 off PLUS % discounts that overlapped (sometimes by accident, lol) I'd swoop in and shop the stores that are "hidden" (aka, rarely get mentioned) and got the "hidden gems." I've had the sunflower and lamps wishlisted for a LONG time-not urgent but cool IMO. I'll go see what else I can mention to you folks that may be "out of sight, out of mind." If you can think of anything that you considered a nice find, feel free to share.

  • NovicaNovica Posts: 23,887
    edited December 1969

    My hidden vendors are for older generations. Makes sense.

    One vendor I don't see on sale isTorinouta. Heard of them?
    http://www.daz3d.com/torinouta
    I thought this would be cute for a mini-person- think Tinkerbell. It's an Aiko 3 character.
    http://www.daz3d.com/cyber-knight

    This hair may do okay in regular light, but I had it wishlisted for more of a cartoon hair. Heard of the vendor kooknfat?
    http://www.daz3d.com/kooknfat
    http://www.daz3d.com/venom-hair

  • NovicaNovica Posts: 23,887
    edited December 1969

    http://www.daz3d.com/everyday-wardrobe-for-genesis-2-female-s-jeans-and-shirt is only $3 instead of $29.95. Not sure if it's supposed to be that price or not. It will help you get a 10% discount on the DAZ Dragon 3 and 60% off Aave's store. Scoop it up for $3. (It's 2:20am, will be curious to see if that's the price in the morning.)

  • KeryaKerya Posts: 10,943
    edited December 1969

    http://www.daz3d.com/forums/discussion/41485/
    Aave Nainen’s 1rst Anniversary as a PA at DAZ
    It's meant to be
    On the store front page to the right: you get an extra 10% off the new Daz Dragon 3 when it comes out.

  • NovicaNovica Posts: 23,887
    edited December 1969

    Kerya said:
    http://www.daz3d.com/forums/discussion/41485/
    Aave Nainen’s 1rst Anniversary as a PA at DAZ
    It's meant to be
    On the store front page to the right: you get an extra 10% off the new Daz Dragon 3 when it comes out.

    Thanks Kerya! I haven't had time to get through all the threads (not enough time in the day.) :)

  • NovicaNovica Posts: 23,887
    edited December 1969

    Wheeee! My very first 3rd party render. I bought this back in Sept 2012 before I knew there was even a difference in Poser and DAZ Studio, and the product description says it's for Poser. Definitely does the reflections in the eyes totally wrong (the eyes here have quick post work) but everything else turned out nicely. The hair came with the character as a load option. If you're curious about the character, just mouse on the image for character name information.

    I've learned three new things the past week: how to add Favorites using Customize Workplace, how to really do morphs from d-formers and save as support assets, and how to install 3rd party products. I'm going to be concentrating on the morphs and 3rd party installation- as I install, I'm recording each one as to where they installed (a big task!)

    This uses the Ruins of Angkor Wat Temple light set with a couple spots added.

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  • IndigoJansonIndigoJanson Posts: 1,100
    edited December 1969

    OK, I have got to have those lamps, I'm sold! It's just the kind of thing that appeals to me. Thanks for posting them so quickly.

    Your character is looking lovely in the above render.

  • NovicaNovica Posts: 23,887
    edited December 1969

    Jindi said:
    OK, I have got to have those lamps, I'm sold! It's just the kind of thing that appeals to me. Thanks for posting them so quickly.

    Thanks! I have almost all the Metropolitan series and I just noticed there is a MALE figure in it now too. (M4) Has the same coloring as this gal.

    Re: the lamps-You'll really like them :)
    BTW, you can also use them for backdrops if you use a good DOF to blur them out. Scale to between 2000 and 2200 will do it.

  • NovicaNovica Posts: 23,887
    edited December 1969

    It just dawned on me who the lamps remind me of. Where's Zawarkal? The pogo RRRR render had those colors (as do most of the renders, so gorgeously vibrant!) We'll have to rename these The Zawarkal Lanterns.

  • TJohnTJohn Posts: 11,107
    edited May 2014

    Invited Guest Contributor

    Product Review: Grass Shader for DAZ Studio
    http://www.daz3d.com/new-releases/grass-shader-for-daz-studio

    I used Easy Environments Greenlands
    http://www.daz3d.com/easy-environments-greenlands
    to test this new shader, just using the out of the box Grass Shader applied to the terrain, and the lighting that comes with EE Greenlands.
    I rendered before adding the shader (4min 4sec render time) and after adding the shader (4min 16sec render time).
    Pretty amazing, huh? But I expect nothing less from Age of Armour and Dimension Theory.
    John

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  • NovicaNovica Posts: 23,887
    edited December 1969

    My goodness, you'd think the render time would increase more than that- really good to know!

    So when using something like a grass shader that covers a large area, how does that work? I haven't really dabbled with shaders much. The Fabricator does everything I need for clothes, and I have used my own textures in Surfaces, etc. So need to learn about shaders after I'm done with creating my own morphs. Do you have to set the tiling to be for a large area, or just select the area and the pattern repeats?

  • Tarina KiviTarina Kivi Posts: 488
    edited May 2014

    Novica said:
    My goodness, you'd think the render time would increase more than that- really good to know!

    So when using something like a grass shader that covers a large area, how does that work? I haven't really dabbled with shaders much. The Fabricator does everything I need for clothes, and I have used my own textures in Surfaces, etc. So need to learn about shaders after I'm done with creating my own morphs. Do you have to set the tiling to be for a large area, or just select the area and the pattern repeats?


    I think the tiling is used in shaders that use image maps and the new grass and rock ones by AoA do not use them. From what I've understood they are procedurally generated which means each surface to which they are applied will look unique, without any repeating patterns...
    Post edited by Tarina Kivi on
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