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General => Terragen Discussion => Topic started by: jritchie777 on November 20, 2009, 04:24:57 PM

Title: Bug with object placement in renders???
Post by: jritchie777 on November 20, 2009, 04:24:57 PM
I'm not sure if I'm doing something wrong or what but here is the problem.  I imported a single object and placed in my scene.  On low resolution render (i.e. Quick Render) my object shows that it is placed correctly sitting on top of the plateau.  I did the same scene with high resolution (detail ~ .875, anti-alias 9) and now the object is clearly not even touching the plateau any more.  Nothing changed as far as placement, both renders are on the same render camera.

If I understand correctly, quick previews should be the same as a final render just less detail - only aesthetic view changes not placement.  So am I doing something wrong or is this a bug in T2?

Attached are the low res & high res images and the T2 files.
Any help with this is greatly appreciated!!
JR
Title: Re: Bug with object placement in renders???
Post by: Henry Blewer on November 20, 2009, 04:59:47 PM
This may not help. Check to see where the object center is in the modeling program. If it is too high, the object will be partially underground. If it is too low, the object will float above the landscape.
Also, let the preview window finish its drawing before you click on it for coordinates. I think this may be what is happening here.
Title: Re: Bug with object placement in renders???
Post by: jritchie777 on November 20, 2009, 05:12:56 PM
That is actually part of the problem, both of these renders are complete.  Only difference is one is set a higher detail and anti-aliasing; yet, there is the same object shown in two different places depending on the render detail.  Increasing detail should not float my object higher in the scene.

Hope that makes sense...
JR
Title: Re: Bug with object placement in renders???
Post by: Henry Blewer on November 20, 2009, 06:14:05 PM
It's hard to tell where the object is actually placed. It would be neat if there was a grid on the landscape and the object center represented in the b-box preview.
Variation in the terrain can make the object appear to float. The object center usually hits the highest point of the landscape. I end up entering values into the y input of the object coordinates, until a crop render shows that it is placed correctly.
Title: Re: Bug with object placement in renders???
Post by: jritchie777 on November 20, 2009, 06:41:16 PM
It does not matter where the object is, look at the two images.  Clearly the placement of the mech battle suit is placed higher in the high detail render.  If the render camera does not change then the two images should be EQUAL, but they are not.
Title: Re: Bug with object placement in renders???
Post by: Henry Blewer on November 20, 2009, 07:04:58 PM
Well, I am out of ideas. Have you tried a different object in the same location? It may be something strange about the mech object itself.
Title: Re: Bug with object placement in renders???
Post by: jritchie777 on November 20, 2009, 07:22:28 PM
Interesting idea.  I have used other objects successfully, but have not put them in view where the actual bottom of the object connects with the terrain.  I'll try a generic object like a sphere and see if I see the same problem.

I don't like the final rock column either, I need to change that anyway.
Thanks.
JR
Title: Re: Bug with object placement in renders???
Post by: jaf on November 20, 2009, 08:47:52 PM
Sometimes you can utilize the lighting (usually sun) to check if there's a shadow under the object (meaning the object is not touching the terrain.) 

Also, if you can position the camera where you can get the cursor on that surface the object is supposed to stand on you can get the height (y value) from the preview window to use as a guide.  Of course it helps if you know if the base of the object was built with a "y" value of zero.

I notice the scale of the object is 1300 and the aspect of the low versus high resolution examples were different.
Title: Re: Bug with object placement in renders???
Post by: cyphyr on November 20, 2009, 08:57:30 PM
I don't think this has anything to do with the object placement but rather the "cut off" that seems to happen occasionally with extreme displacement. Looking at the platform the object is standing on it looks too sharp in its top termination, it looks like it's not finished rendering that bit. Try changing some of the settings of the platform, dropping the roughness of the displacement, lowering the octaves of the Power fractals used to make the displacement, just a bit, you should be able to maintain its shape but get the missing part to render.
:)
Richard
Title: Re: Bug with object placement in renders???
Post by: jritchie777 on November 20, 2009, 09:01:49 PM
You are correct Cyphr, it was the plateau that was not rendering correctly giving the illusion that my object was sitting on the plateau on lower resolution.  I've eased back on the power fractals and that helped.  Thanks for the solution!! :)

JR
Title: Re: Bug with object placement in renders???
Post by: TheBlackHole on November 20, 2009, 09:45:44 PM
IMO, the "mech object" looks like an AT-ST.
TBH
Title: Re: Bug with object placement in renders???
Post by: jritchie777 on November 20, 2009, 10:42:22 PM
Figured out the real problem.  The Quick render is set at 800 x 640 detail .5 anti-alias 6, then a Full render set at 1440 x 1000 with detal .875 and anti-alias 9. 

Stumped - I was.  I unlocked the aspect ratio on the Full render and reset the height of the image - which changed the aspect ratio, thus elevating my object in relation to the new aspect ration. Doooohhh!

Important safety tip boys and girls - use the same aspect ratio between Full and Quick render otherwise the results could be unpredictable.

JR
Title: Re: Bug with object placement in renders???
Post by: Henry Blewer on November 20, 2009, 11:21:51 PM
You had me good and stumped. Thanks Richard!