August 2020 - Daz 3D New User Challenge - Open Render Challenge

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  • DAZ_ann0314DAZ_ann0314 Posts: 2,847

    This is my Intermediate entry. I've been really working on creating my own distinct style with DAZ character creation. Hope you like it!

    Very cute, I like her. I would maybe add something behind her (rather than just the white) but then again that may be what you want. If you do add something, maybe try playing with DOF to blur the BG you choose. I really like how she looks though. Nicely done smiley

  • DAZ_ann0314DAZ_ann0314 Posts: 2,847
    edited August 2020
    HenryHo said:

    I will try to get this finished on time this month. The last two months I lost track of time and before I knew it the competition was closed.

    This is for the intermediate challenge, the poses and expressions could do with some fine tuning.

    I really like this one. I think it does what you wanted it to and I like the lighting etc. I have no real brilliant advice here LOL Nice job smiley Some rim lighting on the characters may look nice (coming from the back) but really that is more just if you wanted to play. I think its effective as it is. 

    Post edited by DAZ_ann0314 on
  • DAZ_ann0314DAZ_ann0314 Posts: 2,847

    Really nice job so far everyone. Honestly, I really loved all the images so far. Most of the thoughts were just "hey this could be fun" All of them were really nice as they are. I really enjoyed looking at all of them so far! heart

  • sueyasueya Posts: 832
    edited July 2021

    Girl on a swing v1

    This is probably going to end up as a portrait, though I want to keep the landscape. I used an IBL Light, Advanced Distant Light and Spotlight. I have used instancing for the flowers. I may add more flowers.  I would welcome some constructive feedback.

    Post edited by sueya on
  • Daedalus-7Daedalus-7 Posts: 198
    edited August 2020

    @DAZ_ann0314

    I completely agree with you...and as it turns out I already did it (it's on the first page).laugh

    I had to refocus the camera entirely on the action and add depth of field. The skull is cool and everything but maybe it's more for a longer shot.

    Post edited by Daedalus-7 on
  • Alias52Alias52 Posts: 296
    edited August 2020

    Ok, thought I would add the latest of my storyboard ideas for my elven story here  for the beginner challenge.

    The Pursuit Arrives

    Eleniel hid. Safe in the knowledge that no ordinary foe would follow her here. The eerie feeling hanging over the site dissuaded most from entering. Most of her folk felt a sadness when they came near here. A sadness for lives cut tragically short by being all too mortal. But some felt something else. A sense of a candle that burnt so bright precisely because it lasted so short a time. These mortals lasted no more than a blink but they did so much. Eleniel was an elf of the Sylvan realm but more than a touch of human blood lay in her veins for her people had lived alongside the Edain for so long. Maybe that was why she had more than a little reckless spark in her. Her people were content to remain in the woods and watch - but not her. Maybe that accounted for her second name. Fire hair could also be taken to mean hot headed - as her parents reminded her all too frequently. Right now, Eleniel thought they might have a point. This Orc chieftain was no ordinary foe. If only she had brought her bow...

     

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    Post edited by Alias52 on
  • Version D here, adding in a bolder that was thrown at my friend and I as well as some sparks from where it 's hitting.

     

    @DAZ_ann0314, Thanks for your feedback, the reason that I changed the color of the shirt was the options I had on the shaders, so I'll see if I can find something close to the origional color. Would have sooner, but the render was done before I saw your post.

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  • Daedalus-7Daedalus-7 Posts: 198
    edited August 2020
    Alias52 said:

    Ok, thought I would add the latest of my storyboard ideas for my elven story here  for the beginner challenge

    I love this image, very well made. 

    The only thing I would like you to consider is the intention and pose of the three orcs: 

    1. Once is croucing, like someone following a trail and near the enemy. All good with this one.
    2. One is behind a tree (the dark skinned one, very manacing!). Also, good. 
    3. The third has his weapon up. This one I don't understand his motive. Why is the weapon up, is he ready to strike? At what exactly? It's not very clear. 

    Well, that's from me :) 

    Post edited by Daedalus-7 on
  • Alias52Alias52 Posts: 296
    edited August 2020

     

    The only thing I would like you to consider is the intention and pose of the three orcs: 

    1. Once is croucing, like someone following a trail and near the enemy. All good with this one.
    2. One is behind a tree (the dark skinned one, very manacing!). Also, good. 
    3. The third has his weapon up. This one I don't understand his motive. Why is the weapon up, is he ready to strike? At what exactly? It's not very clear. 

    Well, that's from me :) 

     

    Thanks for the input. Yes, the 1st Orc is indeed meant to be a tracker/sniffer, with the second trying to look generally menacing whilst walking towards the scene. Yes the third is trickier. He is  the leader and is actually pointing the direction he thinks they should be going, but I realise that the point is slightly lost behind the willow leaves. I kind of wanted to show off the outrageously crazy weapon he had from the Orc armour set, which led to a kind of odd waving in the air encouragingly pose... The beauty of this background is occasionally a curse when posing figures, as I found the weapon got lost if carried in a more practical and less fantasy hero pose. I will have a look at tweaking it to see if I can find anything I like better, but it's a bigger investment in time, as this is one of the few scenes I render that fully tasks my computer and slows it down as a result.

    Post edited by Alias52 on
  • Daedalus-7Daedalus-7 Posts: 198
    edited August 2020
    Alias52 said:

     

    The only thing I would like you to consider is the intention and pose of the three orcs: 

    1. Once is croucing, like someone following a trail and near the enemy. All good with this one.
    2. One is behind a tree (the dark skinned one, very manacing!). Also, good. 
    3. The third has his weapon up. This one I don't understand his motive. Why is the weapon up, is he ready to strike? At what exactly? It's not very clear. 

    Well, that's from me :) 

     

    Thanks for the input. Yes, the 1st Orc is indeed meant to be a tracker/sniffer, with the second trying to look generally menacing whilst walking towards the scene. Yes the third is trickier. He is  the leader and is actually pointing the direction he thinks they should be going, but I realise that the point is slightly lost behind the willow leaves. I kind of wanted to show off the outrageously crazy weapon he had from the Orc armour set, which led to a kind of odd waving in the air encouragingly pose... The beauty of this background is occasionally a curse when posing figures, as I found the weapon got lost if carried in a more practical and less fantasy hero pose. I will have a look at tweaking it to see if I can find anything I like better, but it's a bigger investment in time, as this is one of the few scenes I render that fully tasks my computer and slows it down as a result.

    I see it now, he seems to be pointing ...but it's very hard to see. Can I make a suggestion? Put the head of his weapon on the ground while he is holding the handle (in this way it would look as if he is wating for the tracker), and if you want him to point, he could do it with the other hand. Maybe that way would be make it more visible. --- Just a suggestion :)

    Also, rendering takes almost 100% of most computers, so it should be done while not using it wink

    Unless, of course you have a super multi-core CPU, in which case you can do some other stuff as well.

    Post edited by Daedalus-7 on
  • Alias52Alias52 Posts: 296

     

    I see it now, he seems to be pointing ...but it's very hard to see. Can I make a suggestion? Put the head of his weapon on the ground while he is holding the handle (in this way it would look as if he is wating for the tracker), and if you want him to point, he could do it with the other hand. Maybe that way would be make it more visible. --- Just a suggestion :)

    Also, rendering takes almost 100% of most computers, so it should be done while not using it wink

    Unless, of course you have a super multi-core CPU, in which case you can do some other stuff as well.

     

    I will have a play and see what I like best - your suggestions do make sense and I could certainly see about making the pointing element clearer.  The machine is not too bad - but I could only afford the 6 core CPU and a mid range Nvidia GPU. They generally chug along at taking about 20%-40 % of CPU depending on render settings. Occasional very complex and detailed scenes go higher, but all of the ones with this have so many elements it maxes out - though I can still run Gimp at the same time, so not a waste. 

  • Daedalus-7Daedalus-7 Posts: 198
    edited August 2020
    Alias52 said:
     

    I will have a play and see what I like best - your suggestions do make sense and I could certainly see about making the pointing element clearer.  The machine is not too bad - but I could only afford the 6 core CPU and a mid range Nvidia GPU. They generally chug along at taking about 20%-40 % of CPU depending on render settings. Occasional very complex and detailed scenes go higher, but all of the ones with this have so many elements it maxes out - though I can still run Gimp at the same time, so not a waste. 

    Well, I invested in a strong CPU, so I'm doing my renders CPU (Ryzen 3950X which is 16 cores/32 threads) + GPU (GTX 1060 6GB) and most of the work is being done by the ... CPU. My render took 20 minutes in IRAY, but I'm also hiding anything that can't be seen in the shot. 

    I cannot imagine what would happen if I also had strong GPU's. 

    Post edited by Daedalus-7 on
  • Alias52Alias52 Posts: 296
    Well, I invested in a strong CPU, so I'm doing my renders CPU (Ryzen 3950X which is 16 cores/32 threads) + GPU (GTX 1060 6GB) and most of the work is being done by the ... CPU. My render took 20 minutes in IRAY, but I'm also hiding anything that can't be seen in the shot. 

    I cannot imagine what would happen if I also had strong GPU's. 

     

    Yes, the extra cores and threads do help for sure. Thing is, I bought the machine just before getting into Daz. If I had known what I was getting into, I would probably have found a few more pounds from somewhere to get the best I could. As for asset hiding, I do make sure that I hide as much as possible. The Willow Creek has so many instances lurking that it takes ages to find them sometimes! Ah well, going to keep persevering!

  • Daedalus-7Daedalus-7 Posts: 198
    edited August 2020
     

    @Alias52 There is something that can help:

    Camera View Optimizer

     

    Post edited by Daedalus-7 on
  • Alias52Alias52 Posts: 296

    Thanks! Will definitely have to look out for that one in a sale maybe - already went mad with my purchases this month and it's only week 1!

  • Version E here, trying to adjust my shirt so that it's somewhere between how it looked in versions B and C.

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  • Daedalus-7Daedalus-7 Posts: 198
    edited September 2020

    Ok, so I took a break from my picture, and thought everything that wasn't "the best", or that could be improved somehow.

    So, I added some more details, changed the mechanics of the barbarian, gave him a sword, added some realism (lightning burns).


    Entry #1 Intermediate challange: Challenging the Undead Wizard  [Final Version] 

    Made in DAZ Studio - Iray. 


    EDIT: Removed some elements from the background since they were interfering with the lightining's color. Changed color toning.

    EDIT (18-08): Rotated and cropped the image for better compositional balance.

    EDIT (31-08): Color Correction.

    Lich vs Barbarian (close) 3.2 [FINAL].jpg
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    Post edited by Daedalus-7 on
  • AndyAkinsAndyAkins Posts: 42
    edited August 2020

    So, still working on my "Nix in the hallway with a gun" action shot, but as I mentioned, it really taxes my computer... so I decided to do a smaller, more modest pic that would let me practice some more with lighting. This takes about 15 minutes to render, once I used scene optimizer (which occurs to me, that maybe I didn't do that on the action shot... hmmm). It's also smaller.

    So here's a true portrait shot of Nix. In true cyber-punk fashion (my favorite genre), he's got some cybernetics and some implants. I wanted the right side of his body to be fairly dark, to really make the emissions stand out. My lighting is a pair of spots: a key light that is focused on his left side, a little high and a little to the front; and a fill light that is much dimmer on the right, up higher and pointing down. Both lights are reasonably dim (100000 for the key, 20000 for the fill) and warm (3000K). I like the pic so far - but as always, would love critique.

    Now - to go work some more on the action shot...

    ~ Andy

    NixThe1st.png
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    Post edited by AndyAkins on
  • Here's one of my character renders that I'm very happy about. This is an intermediate entry. Feedback welcome!

    Capture.JPG
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  • Alias52Alias52 Posts: 296

    Ok, so I took a break from my picture, and thought everything that wasn't "the best", or that could be improved somehow.

    So, I added some more details, changed the mechanics of the barbarian, gave him a sword, added some realism (lightning burns) and went for an "old, grainy film" look.

    Hopefully I didn't mess is it up :)

     

    Really liking the changes. The barbarian flying backwards from the hit is a huge improvement in my eyes. I do also like the grainy look. I must admit I had to take a second look to see the sword, as it seemed to get lost a little against the body. I think adding it is a great idea but maybe a slightly different location? You could probably get away with him still clutching it as he flies back - lightning being essentially DC would cause a grasp reflex (though as it's magical, it could be AC!)

     

  • Alias52Alias52 Posts: 296
    AndyAkins said:

    So, still working on my "Nix in the hallway with a gun" action shot, but as I mentioned, it really taxes my computer... so I decided to do a smaller, more modest pic that would let me practice some more with lighting. This takes about 15 minutes to render, once I used scene optimizer (which occurs to me, that maybe I didn't do that on the action shot... hmmm). It's also smaller.

    So here's a true portrait shot of Nix. In true cyber-punk fashion (my favorite genre), he's got some cybernetics and some implants. I wanted the right side of his body to be fairly dark, to really make the emissions stand out. My lighting is a pair of spots: a key light that is focused on his left side, a little high and a little to the front; and a fill light that is much dimmer on the right, up higher and pointing down. Both lights are reasonably dim (100000 for the key, 20000 for the fill) and warm (3000K). I like the pic so far - but as always, would love critique.

    Now - to go work some more on the action shot...

    ~ Andy

    I really like this version of the character - are you going to incorporate that into the action shot? 

     

  • Alias52 said:

    I really like this version of the character - are you going to incorporate that into the action shot? 

    I hadn't thought about it... maybe. The current pose in the action shot would hide the arm emissions...

    but maybe.

    ~ Andy

  • Daedalus-7Daedalus-7 Posts: 198
    edited August 2020
    Alias52 said:

    Ok, so I took a break from my picture, and thought everything that wasn't "the best", or that could be improved somehow.

    So, I added some more details, changed the mechanics of the barbarian, gave him a sword, added some realism (lightning burns) and went for an "old, grainy film" look.

    Hopefully I didn't mess is it up :)

     

    Really liking the changes. The barbarian flying backwards from the hit is a huge improvement in my eyes. I do also like the grainy look. I must admit I had to take a second look to see the sword, as it seemed to get lost a little against the body. I think adding it is a great idea but maybe a slightly different location? You could probably get away with him still clutching it as he flies back - lightning being essentially DC would cause a grasp reflex (though as it's magical, it could be AC!)

     

    Thanks for the input. I guess I did get lost in my ideas at first. That's why I took a step away, to regain some objectivity (also I forgot that I should always go with the "flow" of the action). 

    Regarding the sword: well, it has to be in a place where it doesn't draw too much attention (there is already a lot going on in the image) so I think it needs to be in a relatively "neutral" position.  I'll play with it a bit and see if anything comes up in an interesting way.

    Post edited by Daedalus-7 on
  • Daedalus-7Daedalus-7 Posts: 198

    @AndyAkins You mentioned taking many hours to render the "action" shot, while only a few minutes for the close up. Have you considered "hiding" all elements of the environment that are not visible? It should speed up things considerably.

  • @AndyAkins You mentioned taking many hours to render the "action" shot, while only a few minutes for the close up. Have you considered "hiding" all elements of the environment that are not visible? It should speed up things considerably.

    I think you might be right... but I'm not sure what to do about it. I'm using an environment called SF Apartment - it a round room with a hallway jutting off to the side. I removed all the loose props in the round room... but the overall structure and walls and some "in place" furniture is still there - but completely out of site because I'm staging my scene in the hallway. But the "apartment/hallway" are one component. The renderer must be processing the room, even though it's empty and can't be seen.

    So, I can either 1) just suck it up and suffer, 2) try to use the editing tools to "slice up" the room, or 3) not use the environment at all, and come up with something else to stage it in.

    ~ Andy

  • Daedalus-7Daedalus-7 Posts: 198
    AndyAkins said:

    @AndyAkins You mentioned taking many hours to render the "action" shot, while only a few minutes for the close up. Have you considered "hiding" all elements of the environment that are not visible? It should speed up things considerably.

    I think you might be right... but I'm not sure what to do about it. I'm using an environment called SF Apartment - it a round room with a hallway jutting off to the side. I removed all the loose props in the round room... but the overall structure and walls and some "in place" furniture is still there - but completely out of site because I'm staging my scene in the hallway. But the "apartment/hallway" are one component. The renderer must be processing the room, even though it's empty and can't be seen.

    So, I can either 1) just suck it up and suffer, 2) try to use the editing tools to "slice up" the room, or 3) not use the environment at all, and come up with something else to stage it in.

    ~ Andy

    There is another solution, you could either use an HDRI, or a background image instead. 

  • AndyAkins said:

    There is another solution, you could either use an HDRI, or a background image instead. 

     

    Yes, but wouldn't I lose any potential lighting effects/shadows on the walls?

    ~ Andy

  • Daedalus-7Daedalus-7 Posts: 198
    AndyAkins said:
    AndyAkins said:

    There is another solution, you could either use an HDRI, or a background image instead. 

     

    Yes, but wouldn't I lose any potential lighting effects/shadows on the walls?

    ~ Andy

    Well, if you get creative, you can use a "shadow catcher" a primitive that you can't see but catches the shadow. 

    An example: Iray HDRI Toolkit

  • HenryHoHenryHo Posts: 11
    edited August 2020
    HenryHo said:

    I will try to get this finished on time this month. The last two months I lost track of time and before I knew it the competition was closed.

    This is for the intermediate challenge, the poses and expressions could do with some fine tuning.

    I really like this one. I think it does what you wanted it to and I like the lighting etc. I have no real brilliant advice here LOL Nice job smiley Some rim lighting on the characters may look nice (coming from the back) but really that is more just if you wanted to play. I think its effective as it is. 

    Thank you DAZ_Ann for your nice comments.

    I have made a few changes and I am really happy with how it turned out.

    Entry for intermediate challenge.

    Title: Girls Chatting

    Rendered in DAZ Studio, no postwork.

     

    Chatting.jpg
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    Post edited by HenryHo on
  • Hi everyone.

    Intermediate.

     

     

     

     

     

     

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