Env Box with GI Cache - how?

[pokoy]

I need to render out a spherical panoramic environment. I'm doing this rendering 6 90° tiles which I later stitch to a full spherical panorama, no problem.
However, there are visible seams between the tiles in the composed panorama.
I understand that GI caching is meant to help avoiding those seams but I cannot figure out how to render the GI cache that will be used to render the final tiles.
My understanding is that I would have to render the GI cache within a view that 'sees' the whole environment - but how does one do that if there's no 360° camera available? I haven't found any info on this...

[pokoy]

Never mind, got it!

[Oshyan]

Just in case anyone else finds this topic while searching in the future and wants to know the answer:

Start by rendering the GI cache files for each tile separately, being sure to put sequential numbering into the cache file names. Then do primary rendering for each tile using the cached solutions and use "equal blend within range", setting the number of blended files equal to the number of tiles (and GI cache solutions) you have.

- Oshyan

[rcallicotte]

Good to know.  Seems like a saw a tutorial on this (or an explanation) somewhere in these forums or in the Wiki.

Just in case anyone else finds this topic while searching in the future and wants to know the answer:

Start by rendering the GI cache files for each tile separately, being sure to put sequential numbering into the cache file names. Then do primary rendering for each tile using the cached solutions and use "equal blend within range", setting the number of blended files equal to the number of tiles (and GI cache solutions) you have.

- Oshyan

[pokoy]

Well, there was a step by step description of the procedure needed to render animations in the Wiki but I haven't been able to find anything about rendering tiles for still images with GI Cache.

Thanks for the explanation!

[dandelO]

Just set up your GI render the way you want it, this is great because you can use lower sampled GI by reducing quality for the GI cache file, or 'mega-sample' it by increasing the render/GI/detail/ray detail multiplier for the GI pass. Once you have written the GI cache, select 'read from file', choose the GI cache in the dialogue and set the dropdown to 'one file'. GI will now be calculated from the saved cache and you don't need to render the prepass each time. Readjust your render settings to where you like again for a final render and the GI will always be the same, whether rendered in crop tiles or not.

* Don't change GI settings midway through an animated sequence's GI cache, the frames can't be blended if they use different sample quality etc. You will get a warning popup but TG will continue to render, just without GI.

[bigben]

Oshayn was right about the search      Catching up on the upgrade while having a break from digitisation.

Once you have written the GI cache, select 'read from file', choose the GI cache in the dialogue and set the dropdown to 'one file'.

Using a single frame isn't a good idea even if it is appealing as a shortcut. Screengrabs below of a quick test

[Oshyan]

Oh my lord, is that Bigben? Hey there! Welcome back. Yes, a GI cache file for each camera position is really what you want, and then "equal blend within range". Single cache files are a better fit for crop rendering of large images, for example.

- Oshyan

[bigben]

The Long Stranger is back for a little while    Dusting of some cobwebs

[Oshyan]

Well it's a good time to be back what with GI caching, new animation tools, animation-specific render settings to reduce detail popping, and other good stuff on the way. You in particular will like 2.5 I think.

- Oshyan

[Tangled-Universe]

Is that....Big...Ben....is that Big Ben!?
Welcome back dude Looking forward to your stitching/gluing and terrainwork.

[dandelO]

Of course, thank you Bigben. I missed that the original post was a question on panorama rendering. I wrote instructions for simply crop rendering with a cache file. My apologies, hopefully nobody has been hindered by that.