Sample Model for Rendering - Loft w Telescope

Al Hart · 6 Sept 2012, 13:32

Rachel from Shaderlight has placed a model on the 3D Warehouse for us to use to make rendering samples using various rendering products for inclusion in the Sample Renderings section of SketchUpRendering.com : Loft with Telescope

It is OK to change materials, add a background, add lights, and make other rendering settings – but do not add to or change other geometry.

Render it with your favorite rendering package, post the results here, and I will place them on SketchUpRendering.com . Check out the Sample Renderings section to see what people have done with the previous models.

Besides seeing samples of various rendering packages, the purpose of this thread and/or the SketchUpRendering.com site, where we will post these images, is to show SketchUp users the value of using add-on rendering packages to improve the quality and value of SketchUp models and images for internal or client presentations.

Also, check out these previous Sample Rendering Threads to see what people have done with the previous models: Interior , Water , and Exterior at Night .

chedda · 10 Sept 2012, 13:08

A couple of things stand out, the harvest moon has an orange glow, the scene does not. Also the window frames do not meet the wall. The shadows are not really that realistic either. Being a loft and the fact you are looking up to me means that you wouldn't really see the top of the trees either. I've never use Irender nXt it looks like it renders fast is there anyway to increase the quality ?

Al Hart · 10 Sept 2012, 13:19

First try with IRender nXt

Placed a background image outside the window, made the telescope body reflective and made the window itself a light source.

Al Hart · 10 Sept 2012, 13:26

@chedda said:

A couple of things stand out, the harvest moon has an orange glow, the scene does not. Also the window frames do not meet the wall. The shadows are not really that realistic either. Being a loft and the fact you are looking up to me means that you wouldn't really see the top of the trees either. I've never use IRender nXt it looks like it renders fast is there anyway to increase the quality ?

Thanks for taking a look and for your comments. (I am always amazed how artistic people can see things that I do not see when they view a rendering.)

I just wanted to get a quick version out - hopefully to inspire some other people to render it with their own favorite rendering engine.

IRender nXt is a multi-pass renderer - meaning that the longer you let it render the better it gets. The image below was rendered for 500 passes and about an hour. To get better and better resolution of the shadows I could let in render overnight.

I liked the trees - so lets assume our loft is in a valley near a hill.

I could have placed the background on an actual surface - further outside the window - and then made it a light. I will do that for my next version.
Even better would have been an actual HDRi sky - which would have then used all the actual objects in the sky as light sources. But it is always a challenge to find a good night sky as an HDRi.

Also, I made the window itself the light source - which means that the shadows are all coming from the point of the window. Using the moon as a light source would make them more realistic.

chedda · 10 Sept 2012, 13:50

Yes Al Night sky HDR's are hard to find, however i believe you can make your own using hi res images. I make mine with Maxwell but i expect photoshop or some other editor can also do this.

Roger · 10 Sept 2012, 15:07

Here is a night sky photo I took in Sonoita, Arizona. You are welcome to use it as a sky source. Let me know if you need a larger image.

pilou · 10 Sept 2012, 16:57

The best guy for astronomic photos!
Robert Gendler
Totally amazing!

Roger · 10 Sept 2012, 17:21

Here is how I would visualize that scene. Keep in mind you could never have a view like that unless the moon was about 10 times closer and then the tidal forces on earth would be wreaking all kinds of havoc.

Bryan K · 10 Sept 2012, 21:39

@roger said:

Keep in mind you could never have a view like that unless the moon was about 10 times closer and then the tidal forces on earth would be wreaking all kinds of havoc.

Picky, picky.

Very nice render. I like the softness. I might try this tonight.

david_h · 10 Sept 2012, 22:56

I dunno . .. I think I have done something wrong. . .

Bryan K · 10 Sept 2012, 23:32

Who you gonna call?!

Bryan K · 11 Sept 2012, 01:09

What a pain. Took me an hour. I couldn't get the starscape to show after 8 tries. Couldn't get the light right. There was something wrong with the window and I had to delete it altogether.

However, it rendered in mere minutes.

Kerkythea.

You really need to view it on a dark/black screen/border background for the full effect.

As usual, click on each image for the bigger stand alone picture.

david_h · 11 Sept 2012, 01:53

well I see your problem right off the bat. . .you've got draco where andromeda should be. . .Ursa Major in your first house, and Capricorn in your seventh house. . ..

I'd move into an apartment.

Bryan K · 11 Sept 2012, 02:33

@unknownuser said:

well I see your problem right off the bat. . .you've got draco where andromeda should be. . .Ursa Major in your first house, and Capricorn in your seventh house. . ..

I'd move into an apartment.

DOH! I knew something was wrong!

Al Hart · 11 Sept 2012, 14:55

@roger said:

[attachment=0:kp2w2k8m]telescope_room.jpg[/attachment:kp2w2k8m]
Here is how I would visualize that scene. Keep in mind you could never have a view like that unless the moon was about 10 times closer and then the tidal forces on earth would be wreaking all kinds of havoc.

Do you want to mention which rendering engine you used so I can put the result on SketchUpRendering.com ?

Roger · 11 Sept 2012, 15:26

@al hart said:

@roger said:

[attachment=0:6kvfnt10]telescope_room.jpg[/attachment:6kvfnt10]
Here is how I would visualize that scene. Keep in mind you could never have a view like that unless the moon was about 10 times closer and then the tidal forces on earth would be wreaking all kinds of havoc.

Do you want to mention which rendering engine you used so I can put the result on SketchUpRendering.com ?

I did not use a rendering engine. All were Post Production modifications of your render done in PhotoShop.