The Melt - V3

[RArcher]

I really like the shape and details in the snow, especially around the tufts of grass.  The way the snow bends around them is really fantastic.  A few of the bigger dirt clumps bug me a little bit but that could most likely be solved easily.  I'm not sure whether it is your lighting, or my monitor, but the snow is just slightly too yellow to my eye.  Perhaps a postwork white balance adjustment would fix that.  Great work all around!

[Saurav]

This is looking great now, you can see what looks like specular highlights.

[Tangled-Universe]

TU, I'm sure that you just took a picture of some snow 

Thanks Jeff

I really like the shape and details in the snow, especially around the tufts of grass.  The way the snow bends around them is really fantastic.  A few of the bigger dirt clumps bug me a little bit but that could most likely be solved easily.  I'm not sure whether it is your lighting, or my monitor, but the snow is just slightly too yellow to my eye.  Perhaps a postwork white balance adjustment would fix that.  Great work all around!

Thanks Ryan, I know where the yellow comes from and let me explain:

First of all: the speculars are created using a small clip Moodflow created. I barely had to adjust it so it is very good Thanks a lot!
The speculars are being lit by a seperate sun which is placed at the zenith and has a strength of 0.2 (or 0.1, can't remember exactly).
This sun only casts specular light and no shadows or what so ever. I gave it a slight yellow tint and that's probably what you see.
I'll make it white again and try to see a difference. Since I'm a tad color-blind I can have difficulties seeing slight colordifferences, though I can see contrasts very well

Could you please post my image and point me the spots which you don't like? I think I'm very close to a "perfect" setup (if that exists anyway) so I really would like to sort out everything on this one.

I also would like to add that the grasses etc. are just to illustrate for myself how this snow looks in a "natural environment" instead of a dull test-scene.

Martin

[Tangled-Universe]

This is looking great now, you can see what looks like specular highlights.

Thanks Saurav. In crop-tests this looked even better, more crisp and brighter.
So somehow at full res it looks different, probably some GI issue.

[Mohawk20]

I'm not sure whether it is your lighting, or my monitor, but the snow is just slightly too yellow to my eye.

That yellow colour gives life to the image, because snow is never pure in the forest.
I'm sure it was just a deer that had to let go of some fluids...

[Tangled-Universe]

Thanks! Ghehe, you've a lifely imagination lol

[rcallicotte]

My God, TU.  This is a lot better.

[Seth]

marvelous !
you did great improvements Martin !

[arisdemos]

TU the edges of the snow patch are looking so much better and the highlights almost sparkle. The yellow tinge can be easily disregarded as a matter of individual site influences. Most of the people who look at this progress would probably like to see a clip file or screen capture of the final work node structure, at least I know I would.

[rcallicotte]

I'm interested in either a file or an image of the nodes and / or some explanations.  This is very, very useful.  Its uses could go beyond snow - oil spills, blood flow, water flow, gunk droppings...and other more imaginative uses.

[Tangled-Universe]

Thanks for the positive feedback guys!
I'm rendering a new version of this and it should look even better

I'll be making this snowsurface available soon, once I've figured everything out and wrote a proper description of how this works.

Martin

[Tangled-Universe]

Here is the render I promised

As you can see it is loaded with shadow-errors...will have to check what causes this.

[kaisersuzuki]

That is freaking awesome snow.

[old_blaggard]

Great work, T-U .

[Mahnmut]

I don´t know if its that what you mean by shadow-errors, but to me it looks as if your plants where floating above the surface and throwing correct shadows.
otherwise very snowy.
Best regards,
Jan