Hello all!
I'm currently experimenting with creating good godrays. I will use this thread to post the results: test renders, WIPs but also final renders.
Let me explain: 9 years ago, when I first began to create 3D landscapes, my ultimate dream was to create a misty forest with godrays, like this one (http://www.driever.nl/foto/achtergronden/glenwood.jpg) from Digital Blasphemy (http://www.driever.nl/foto/achtergronden/glenwood.jpg) (this picture was made in 2001!!)
But I had a slow computer (pentium 233Mhz), and I didn't know any software able to create it (or I didn't have the knowledge - I was 15).
During these years I tried Bryce, Vue, World Builder, ... but my computer was still terribly slow, I didn't have the patience to learn to use them enough to create my dream picture. The only software that was fast enough for my computer to create landscapes was Terragen 1, and believe me, I made a lot of renders with rays (first rays in late 2001 (http://terrafgen.free.fr/Galerie.php?idGal=tg&nbStart=25#25))... But no vegetation :(
Annnnd... Came Terragen 2. Which had the Power. But that was not the case of my computer (a Pentium 3 1.7Ghz), so my alpha tester years were not productive at all -_-
Now I am no more a student, and I have a work. It allowed me to buy a new computer four months ago and to be back to TG2, with the knowledge level of an almost-newbie.
But I still wasn't able to create those damn rays :P
I knew from the forums that I needed a low cloud to use it as fog, with raytraced shadows in it, but I couldn't manage to make object shadows to form visible rays in this fog.
A few days ago I saw the Moonmagic renders from cyphyr, and asked him some advices... With his help (thanks again cyphyr), and during the frenzy trance caused by an insomnia and a dicease, I managed to create my first f***ing forest god rays \o/
And a few tests later, here is the first test render that I want to show. The sun is a bit like disco lasers, but hey... It's only the beginning :)
Excellent :)
You got it
It doesn't have the subtility of the Digital Blasphemy inspiration but this is an excellent start, Texture and rough up the ground, work on maybe some translucency on the pine needles (not much if at all), and experiment on "texturing" your fog.
Did you use soft shadows and what were the final settings, atmo and cloud quality, render detail etc ?
:)
Richard
Thanks :)
No soft shadows, strength 10 for the sun (which is very orange), almost no atmosphere...
1/1 GI, 9 AA, Detail 1, 1680x1050 for the original render (I didn't note the render time -_-)
Oh, and quality 4 for the clouds (58 samples only). I wonder if increasing the atmo quality would have removed the graininess... Because atmo is almost not present in the scene, I kept the default 16 samples.
I'm planning to use another type of trees... One with longer trunks, but I'm afraid to copy the Digital Blasphemy pic, so I don't know. Anyway, longer trunks would mean bigger rays and would remove this "disco" effect. As for the decoration of the ground, I don't know ^^
Maybe some grass, but I never planned on bringing much detail on it. After all these years of hoping to make this type of pictures, I always thought about the trees and the rays, never about the ground :D
No way you'd be copying the Digital Blasphemy pic, well you could but what would be the point? Be inspired by an image you love and create something in homage to it. I'm sure what ever you create will have more of "Rhalph" in it than "Digital Blasphemy".
Increasing the atmo quality may help with the grain as would raising it in your cloud but really this is one of the least grainy "God rays" pictures I've seen in a long time.
:)
Richard
Cool rays, very well done!
I know a nice forest with grasses and bushes etc. where these rays would look great ;)
Cheers,
Martin
excellent rays..love it!
As the image from years ago inspired, so does what you do! It is looking good and I'd like very much to see how it continues to develop. I fear these things are always a matter of give and take, seems that you can't have everything. So you have to choose where to focus. And the discussion about the settings is very interesting. I never would have guessed about the low atmosphere for instance.
testing on some forest from mine, i had less "laser results" with deeper atmosphere Rhalph.
but, of course, it is harder to have good contrast with deep atmo...
As I don't know your settings, I don't know if it will do something good to you.
I get great godrays from setting the atmosphere samples to 128. The key is to get the sun behind an object or cloud. Do a small render at 0.5 quality, 320 x 200. Look where the halo of the sun is. Move the sun so it just clips the edge of the clouds/objects, you'll want the halo partially obscured. Now render at the same settings. When the 'look' is what you had in mind, do the full render. For the godrays to really 'shine' the render quality should be 0.9 or 0.95. I never go for more than that.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2669/3867244825_8c8a7d7047_o.jpg
You can see the light rays spilling from around the clouds in this pic.
Quote from: njeneb on September 26, 2009, 02:09:00 PM
I get great godrays from setting the atmosphere samples to 128. The key is to get the sun behind an object or cloud.
this is not the same technique used by Rhalph. And you can try to put your sun behind an object, i am not sure you'll get rays.
you can have good godrays with low atmo sample but using clouds as fog...
My way works without fog and I usually get them by accident.
errr... can you show me your rays caused by objects using your way ?
I'll see if I can find the tgd. One I did recently with the free edition is here
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3467/3765638110_6d3742e591_o.jpg
and here
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2552/3797705323_c270fc30f7_o.jpg
Come to think of it, I can't think of any I did using objects, except one through some trees. It was some time ago. These are both sky effects. If I can find one I'll post the link.
Edit: Just looked quickly through my Flickr stuff. Not one through objects. This will be the next experiment! Ah, inspiration...
that's what I said, no rays with object without clouds :)
I may be wrong though, so if anybody has another way to do it...
Rays are cast in two ways, from clouds and onto clouds. If they're cast from clouds you don't need raytrace shadows enabled. If they're cast onto clouds (or clouds pretending to be fog as in our case) then you'll need ray trace shadows enabled.
:)
Richard
Rays can also be cast in the atmosphere if raytraced shadows is enabled there.
- Oshyan
Crepuscular Rays is the word. They have nothing to do with gods of any variety except possibly Thor or Zeus.
I'll have to seriously think about what render I want to do, cause RArcher just made *the* render I dreamed of. Except the rays, which should just be a matter of a parameter to check...
Quote from: Rhalph on September 28, 2009, 02:00:14 AM
I'll have to seriously think about what render I want to do, cause RArcher just made *the* render I dreamed of. Except the rays, which should just be a matter of a parameter to check...
;D
Quote from: himalofa on September 27, 2009, 08:02:46 PM
Crepuscular Rays is the word. They have nothing to do with gods of any variety except possibly Thor or Zeus.
mmmh... very interesting comment...
Quote from: Seth on September 28, 2009, 02:00:43 AM
Quote from: Rhalph on September 28, 2009, 02:00:14 AM
I'll have to seriously think about what render I want to do, cause RArcher just made *the* render I dreamed of. Except the rays, which should just be a matter of a parameter to check...
;D
That's not funny ;D
I have to find a way to create an original render that I'm proud of, without feeling that it's a copy of RArcher/Digital Blasphemy renders ^^'
Aaaargh.
I wouldn't mind that too much. If the idea is appealing to you and if it is also a challenge, why not?
Probably along the proces of design you might run into "original" ideas anyway.
Martin
It will be your work, your slant. If you want to do it, do it. I will look forward to seeing it. 8)
I think your rays render is great. The beams are crisp and fantastic. Some additional trees, grasses and details and this will be your own unique beast. Lots of rendering in a community like this one is going to be similar and goes in cycles. Someone will create a great canyon scene and then for the next few weeks everyone tries their hand at it, but they all end up different and unique in their own ways. I really wouldn't worry that your render is not perfectly unique (as I really don't think this is possible) and instead focus on what you want it to be, it will be no less spectacular for being "just another forest render with rays."
Keep going with your concept, I for one am very much looking forward to seeing it.
Or make a blend of rays within forest canyon, like I'm doing now :)
Though my rays are very subtle (softshadows of radius 1 is the reason probably).
Okay, I'll try to make my own one, thank you for your encouragements :)
RArcher, I'm still looking forward to see your render with rays :P
Quote from: Rhalph on September 29, 2009, 06:24:22 AM
Okay, I'll try to make my own one, thank you for your encouragements :)
RArcher, I'm still looking forward to see your render with rays :P
Looking forward to both yours and RArchers render :D
I have been keeping up with this Topic and thought I would give it a shot.
I used the suggestions and recommendations and found them to work well. I needed to make small tweaks and preview renders to finally get what I wanted.
Marc
I this case raytraced shadows in the cloud layer would help. The sun is cutting through your cloud.
Except for that, it is pretty good. I think I would increase the edge setting on the cloud layer.
I made some experiments a long while back when I was trying to get shafts of sunlight to shine through the windows into a room. It is definitely possible to get rays from objects using just the atmosphere but the atmosphere samples required and hence the render time is prohibitively high. The thin cloud layer method is much quicker and produces much better results.
here's my try :)
(http://th08.deviantart.net/fs71/150/f/2010/222/c/9/The_Cloud_Sea_by_nethskie.jpg)
Full View (http://nethskie.deviantart.com/#/d2w339e)
Nice work, particularly on the clouds.