FREE Maxwell Render for Sketchup (free version).
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There is a brand new FREE plugin just released by Next Limit (makers of Maxwell Render) that will allow you to render with realtime feedback within the regular free version of Sketchup (versions 6,7,8).
Check it out here: http://www.maxwellrender.com/index.php/home/maxwell_for_sketchup
Edit - There are now tutorial videos showing the basics of using the new plugin available at the link above.
Best,
Jason. -
Interested to see what Brodie and Davidh make of this. They're the only members I know that are maxwell users.
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I know for a long time one of the big roadblocks to getting Maxwell for alot of users was the fact that Maxwell required Sketchup Pro -- that is no longer true, as the plugin now supports a Ruby exporter in addition to it's C++ exporter (which is faster in Sketchup Pro and supports a few additional features).
Also a nice touch to this new version of the plugin is there is no need to have the Maxwell Render Suite so it's pretty easy to use and learn.
I still run the full version of Maxwell and Sketchup Pro and have no intention of changing that because I definitely fall under the heading of "power-user" and I would miss the advanced features of the full version... but I can definitely see a large market segment who don't want to spend any money (or very little) for SketchUp rendering but want a top quality engine and this new plugin delivers in spades on those counts.
Best,
Jason. -
@unknownuser said:
Interested to see what Brodie and Davidh make of this. They're the only members I know that are maxwell users.
nope, i'm a maxwell user too.. see
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dunno, it might be ok for quickie jobs like that.. it might be especially nice for clay renders as you'd just have a file set up with all the clay setting and push GO...
one thing i didn't like is that i couldn't draw in another sketchup file while rendering..
and i had to install some other software in order to use this one
but the free version watermarks didn't show up
i don't think i'll be using it but i can see where this might become popular..
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@unknownuser said:
dunno, it might be ok for quickie jobs like that.. it might be especially nice for clay renders as you'd just have a file set up with all the clay setting and push GO...
There's a material override option that will allow quick clay renders without losing your material assignments.
@unknownuser said:
one thing i didn't like is that i couldn't draw in another sketchup file while rendering..
and i had to install some other software in order to use this one
but the free version watermarks didn't show upYou can set the number of cores you want the engine to use in order to keep the machine responsive to other applications if need be.
No watermarks because this isn't a demo -- no expiration and full usage rights free of charge into perpetuity... can't get a better deal than that.
I'm wrapping up a short free tutorial video series for the new plugin which should be posted soon, let me know what you think if you watch it.
Best,
Jason. -
@unknownuser said:
... They're the only members I know that are maxwell users.
I'm on maxwell since v1 alpha - anno 2005
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Well, looks like my remark is bringing the aficionados out of the woodwork. Maybe I should pay more attention to the gallery
It does look pretty sweet for a plugin. Gonna give it a whirl.
Thought you were Indigo only
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@unknownuser said:
Thought you were Indigo only
yes, i am.. my ' nope, i'm a maxwell user too ' comment was meant as a joke.. i just made this one render with the new SU plugin so i wouldn't really consider myself a maxwell user
from the quick go i had with it, it seems pretty neat..
@jason_maranto said:
There's a material override option that will allow quick clay renders without losing your material assignments.
nice
@unknownuser said:
You can set the number of cores you want the engine to use in order to keep the machine responsive to other applications if need be.
ahh.. ok... that makes sense.
mine was set to 4 on a dual-core i7@unknownuser said:
No watermarks because this isn't a demo -- no expiration and full usage rights free of charge into perpetuity... can't get a better deal than that.
ok.. that isa good deal
@unknownuser said:
I'm wrapping up a short free tutorial video series for the new plugin which should be posted soon, let me know what you think if you watch it.
cool.. i'll look out for it.
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@unknownuser said:
but the free version watermarks didn't show up
Just to clarify, the download page originally indicated that there would be a watermark, but that was never the case, and the web people have since corrected this.
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@jd hill said:
@unknownuser said:
but the free version watermarks didn't show up
Just to clarify, the download page originally indicated that there would be a watermark, but that was never the case, and the web people have since corrected this.
ok.. thanks for that.. i pretty much thought i lost my mind when i went back to the d/l page to show jason about the watermark..
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I really like the tone and ambient occlusion!
MAX:
TWI:
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Here's a clay render I did with it from a recent thread in the gallery section (http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?f=81&t=40998)
This is one of those models where it was really useful to be using a 64-bit operating system since SketchUp 8 supports more RAM under those circumstances
I've run the most high-poly models I can through this new plugin and it can handle them all (including the "eye candy" models from Silvershadow).Best,
Jason. -
Great news! It's really working very good. Thank you Next Limit.
And now It's your turn Thea render...Just what Thea needs to be perfect...it's already has faster IR... -
when I try to save the render I get < " is not a valid type. Do you wish to choose another? >
Is this normal ? -
png files are good. I like png. They can always be converted to TIFF at a later date.
Unless of course you happen to be IE5!
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@gilles said:
when I try to save the render I get < " is not a valid type. Do you wish to choose another? >
Is this normal ?on mac, the save as dialog is blank (there's no file extension pre-selected so you have to include it in the save as name)..
for instance, naming the file " my_render.jpg " will save properly
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Well, Jason beat me but his opinion is similar...
@tfdesign said:
@unknownuser said:
Resolution limit 800 pixels
Hmm.... not so good.
Well, a free product. They also need something to "encourage" sales of the pay version. Actually, 800 pixels is quite enough for most web presentations (i.e. websites) so hobbyists, bloggers and such can be happy with it.
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Yep, the $95 version is capable of output up to 1920 pixels -- but the free version is limited to 800 pixels. The idea being this limit is perfectly usable for people looking to just put Sketchup renders on the web, but for professional production you would want to move up to the $95 license (or the full Maxwell Render Suite which has unlimited resolution and many advanced features).
This is certainly only intended to be something that will give regular Sketchup users who are looking into rendering a excellent free option to use while they hone their skills and see if it is really their "thing"... I would find it hard to believe somebody selling their renders would want to limit themselves in any way since it will impact their ability to compete.
I started out years ago with the free version of IDX renditioner and this plugin has many times more power... I wish something like this was available when I was learning.
Best,
Jason.
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