Hey Andy -

Not sure what a "linear" .ies file is, but .ies is one of my requirements.

I'd also like to see this kind of tabular comparison across a lot of features. I notice that several renderers have .ies compatibility, but only once upgraded to the "pro" versions.

I also like Twilight's material editor (at least, as much as I've experimented with it in the demo) but then I see things like this texture for Maxwell http://resources.maxwellrender.com/news_scripts.php?t=1#page=2&mode=1&id=5540 and wonder what other renderers can do "that".

Another biggie is subsurface scattering - or, at least, proper handling of light through transparent and translucent materials. For example, a "Japanese screen" that properly transmits illumination when being hit on one side with either bright ambient illumination, sunlight through trees (shadows), or a small bright spotlight. I don't know how to look this feature up comparitively.

[edit] perhaps a good way to create a tabular comparison is to create the categories and ask the companies who make the renderers to fill in the details. Not sure what the best way to create the categories would be, but I assume a group effort may actually pay off in this case...

cheers,
Andrew

Thanks!

Yeah... it's 2 years later. Not sure what happened there.

I actually was in the middle of searching again... for the same thing.

Anyway - Believe it or not, I'm back around the circle and looking again. I tried finding a "clearinghouse" or listing of all current renderers for SketchUp but didn't find much.

I tried running Kerk this morning but it won't run on my Mac anymore - not sure why. Looking at Maxwell, it may be good but no .ies.

I also tried Twilight over the weekends, but a) it's PC only (not a deal killer) and 2) it doesn't seem to be moving much, meaning, it looks like people have been expecting a new one for some time now.

So... my apologies for taking so long to respond, I was... ah... out.

cheers
Andrew

Hi all-

I'm new here but have been using sketchup for various things for a while now... anyway, renderers really seem to be coming into their own, and I'm looking for suggestions for your favorites.

I do see some very capable ones including RenderPlus, which I just looked at tonight and seems to properly implement translucency but I don't see a reference to .ies.

Capability to use .ies is necessary. I also love the idea of the price of some of the low-cost renderers! I understand there are some pretty good ones for $500, $700, or whatever - but those are out of the range I can really justify at this time.

I have been playing around with Kerkythea, LightUp, Podium demos, and am getting some feel for them but figured I'd ask here since undoubtedly some of your longer-term use of renderers may have revealed some plusses and minuses that short-term use will not.

Last... would love for it to be mac-capable if possible.

Any help/suggestions appreciated!

thanks,
Andrew