Playing around with some mountains and clouds testing out some alternate rendering settings. This render was done at 0.5 detail, AA 4, GI 1/2 with Ray Trace Everything on. Other than the appallingly long time it took to calculate the populations, the actual render only took a little over an hour at 1920 x 1080.
*V2 on bottom of page 1: http://forums.planetside.co.uk/index.php?topic=12177.msg123028#msg123028 (http://forums.planetside.co.uk/index.php?topic=12177.msg123028#msg123028)
*V3 on page 2: http://forums.planetside.co.uk/index.php?topic=12177.msg123128#msg123128 (http://forums.planetside.co.uk/index.php?topic=12177.msg123128#msg123128)
*V3 huge version on my website here: http://www.archer-designs.com/zp/index.php?album=digital-art/terragen-2&image=mountain-lenticulars-v3-large.jpg (http://www.archer-designs.com/zp/index.php?album=digital-art/terragen-2&image=mountain-lenticulars-v3-large.jpg)
Here is an alternate black and white conversion of the same render. I really love the shading on the lenticular clouds in black and white.
Nice. I especially like the black and white version. The clouds overall (not just the lenticulars) seem a bit too soft and "insubstantial", if that makes sense, but it's a subtle thing. I guess I'd say in a sense they look like post work because they appear softer than the rest of the scene and somehow not "integrated". But again it's not a jarring thing, more of a dreamy effect.
- Oshyan
I like the black and white version , Ryan .
I would like this without the lenticular clouds maybe more .
Looks really cool, I do agree on the clouds though. They do look a bit soft. Both pictures look like they're old photographs - just the quality of the image. (that's a compliment :))
i like them mountains and the thicker snow cover going down just to the right, a less denser cloud on top of the peak and a bit whispier perhaps?
Thanks for the comments, working on a bit of an update now. Will redo the background clouds for sure. The lenticulars I am trying to get a bit more lens shaped with the outside edges bent downward, but I definitely want to keep them on the slightly odd side. When you see them in nature, they always lead to a bit of a double take because they are so unexpectedly strange and not really normal.
The first image posted is really stunning. Love that whole mountain scene.
As for the cloud effects, it looks really cool too. I´ve seen quite a few photographs around the internet with such
a natural phenomenen, so your creation is very well created and its spot on.
One of the photographs that comes to my mind everytime I see these types of clouds is this
real-life scene...
http://amazingdata.com/mediadata6/Image/amazing_fun_featured_2183851340103830173S600x600Q85_200907231420561295.jpg
Check out the main website for some really extraordinairy photos and something that might give you some
new ideas... http://amazingdata.com/30-creepiest-clouds-on-earth/
Your second image posted is also very good too, but I personally like the first one created. That´s a winner!
Congratulations on all the hard work!
Max, that lenticular cloud you just posted is much easier to do now with the relatively new cloud control parameters.
Here's my idea on how to do it.
Basically you generate a heightfield from your terrain and convert that to a greyscale image.
Make a cloud layer at the altitude of the top of the mountain and set depth to 50% of mountain height (so 25% above and below mountain top).
Localize the cloud layer and set the radius to the desired disc size of the lenticular cloud.
Squeeze/flatten the cloud by feeding the "centre 0...1" with a value of ~0.2 (using a constant colour node) + set "centre 0...1" to something like 0.8 (the flattened cloud will be lifted up to 80% of the max height possible, determinded by cloud altitude/depth settings) and use that greyscale image as altitude offset function and enter as value the altitude of the mountain peak + the amount of metres you'd like it to have float above your mountain.
Test this setup with a constant colour @ 1 as cloud density shader for optimal control.
You can find more about this in my tutorial available here:
http://www.planetside.co.uk/content/view/61/99/ (http://www.planetside.co.uk/content/view/61/99/)
From this topic:
http://forums.planetside.co.uk/index.php?topic=11219 (http://forums.planetside.co.uk/index.php?topic=11219)
Cheers,
Martin
the black and white version is great, nice postwork on it Ryan !
Thanks Franck. I've got a second render going right now and I think the clouds/lighting should be better, but if it doesn't work out I'll definitely be using your method next Martin.
waiting for the next one.
I found the lighting already very nice on this one.
I've made a quicky, not perfect, but not too bad either and pretty easy way of setting up...
That looks pretty damn nice Martin. The version I have rendering right now is a little more UFO shaped. ;D
Version 2. Much happier with the clouds this time, far more lens shaped and certainly very odd! Still going to play around with Martins "Proper" way to do things instead of just stuffing the cloud on top of the mountain.
Bing! Nailed it. That's a really excellent lenticular.
- Oshyan
This looks magic. You are a Terragen 2 magician!
Incredible Ryan! No, credible actually, very credible.
great stuff, dude !
Looking great Ryan!
My example has much worse density shader settings. Yours is spot on I'd say.
Perhaps a combination of your density shader settings and my major shape control method could give even more realistic results.
It's a pity you can't stack more than 2 or 3 of them as >2 or 3 cloud layers (can't remember exactly) give problems with GI (at some point the bottom cloud don't receive GI anymore).
Awesome work Ryan, very beautiful image!
Thanks very much! I have a larger render that I will post once I am home from work (3840 x 2160) that is less contrasty. Also running a test render with a different pixel filter to see if I can get some of the edges on the mountains a bit sharper than they are in the last one I posted.
I think your method will be very interesting Martin, especially if viewed from an angle lower than the current viewpoint. That way you should be able to see up into the cloud where it bends around the top of the mountain.
There are currently 4 cloud layers being used on the lenticular cloud area. The bottom layer is the fuzzy clouds underneath, and then three layers of overlapping clouds to form the main shape. Hard to say if GI is having any issues since there isn't really much detail to be gained or lost due to the smoothness of the clouds.
Great work Ryan! :o
Quote from: RArcher on April 28, 2011, 11:16:46 AM
There are currently 4 cloud layers being used on the lenticular cloud area. The bottom layer is the fuzzy clouds underneath, and then three layers of overlapping clouds to form the main shape. Hard to say if GI is having any issues since there isn't really much detail to be gained or lost due to the smoothness of the clouds.
Oh really?? That's weird, but maybe it was a bug in the alpha-version. Frank and I were trying to build a tornado with a "rim"/"skirt" but couldn't get it to work beyond 3 cloud layers, because the bottom cloud did receive any lighting and looked like it was lighted with a fill light rather than GI.
Great to see it works here, makes me feel I should have another try with that tornado :)
Looking forward to your new high res version! And yes, my method could provide a nice shape for lower POV's facing upwards. Nice idea!
Cheers
Martin
Version 3. Rendered at 3840 x 2160 with slightly higher settings. Much less contrast and a different colour tone. 1920 x 1080 compressed version is attached but the huge image can be viewed here (click on image):
http://www.archer-designs.com/zp/index.php?album=digital-art/terragen-2&image=mountain-lenticulars-v3-large.jpg (http://www.archer-designs.com/zp/index.php?album=digital-art/terragen-2&image=mountain-lenticulars-v3-large.jpg)
Very impressive, Ryan!
looks spectacular, serene. :)
amazing as usual, ryan.
i like a lot the pink mood in the last one.
well done.
Just yesterday I was experimenting with clouds over mountain tops, and used a simple shape to blow the center of the circular cloud upwards. That worked fine. Did you use that method as well?
Spectacular render, Ryan !
great job ^^
Hi Dune, That is a very clever idea to use the simple shape shader. Sadly no, I did not use that method. I simply stacked a few localized cloud layers on top of each other until I had the shape I wanted, then added another fuzzier cloud layer at the bottom to hide the ugly edge where the cloud intersected the mountain. It works for this particular viewpoint but anywhere else and it looks terrible.
I've been working on Martin's method to properly get the clouds flowing over the terrain and it works well, but I haven't yet managed to get anything that actually looks good.
Version 3 with the new colors takes the Prize! That looks awesome!
A very fashionable Mountain Cloud-Hat if I ever did see one! ;D Very cool image 8)
Awesome! Very convincing lenticular!
Simple shape cloud.
Nice feeling of vastness in the last one. Even the slightest graininess damages the feeling of space and atmosphere in TG2 renders.