How to use objects (or, How to make my renders look better)?

[iu34]

How can I make my pictures look better? Like using objects?
This is my latest render, and compared with all of the rest....it stinks. It just doesn't have that feeling of realism to it..there's no vegetation...
I know I'm relativley new at this, but how can I get that "realism" and vegetation?

[neuspadrin]

You got a really great start and a good eye. 

First of all, look at the download section and http://ashundar.com/ downloads for some nice vegetation.  One of the more popular grass models around here is by klas, over at terralights.de(For terralights, you can switch to english with a button at the bottom of the left sidebar if it ever isn't in english)

Anyways, thats two great plant locations to get some nice free stuff to get started.

As for your render, one suggestion I have is to up the atmosphere samples to 64 if it isn't.  As there seems to be some graininess and generally its when people forget to up the atmosphere samples.

A good tutorials on populations/scene management:
http://nwda.webnode.com/news/making-of-wilderness/
http://forums.planetside.co.uk/index.php?topic=63

Also just check out:
http://www.planetside.co.uk/wiki/index.php/Terragen_2_Tutorials
And the older one (some tutorials now have things missing i think):
http://forums.planetside.co.uk/index.php?board=6.0

[rcallicotte]

There are some directions around here started by Harvey Birdman (and I've done something similar) explaining how to run your Wavefront objects through PoseRay and, in particular, how to do this with trees from xFrog, for example. 

[neuspadrin]

I should quickly add that in our file download section, you will find many broken links related to posts from the member lightning.  There was legal issues with that whole thing.  But otherwise theres quite a few models there that are nice.

[iu34]

Thanks for all of the help! Here is a quick scene I came up with..didn't spend too much time on it, I just wanted to mess around and see how it worked out.