Thanks for the replies from everyone, sadly the moment you invoke the Poser5 context I am SOL because, as stated, I'm on a Mac. Ronstuff, thanks for a more direct look at how I might solve my problem, other than buying a PC, upgrading to P5, learning C! : ) Yes, can't rely on preview. Yes, "the bowl" does NOT cast shadows. Yes, the camara is inside and not just zoomed in. I will have to see about the lights being inside. What seems odd about the whole thing is that rendering a single frame achieves the desired result. Rendering an animation does not. I have yet to try rendering the animation out as a series of frames, maybe "tricking it" and later compiling them into a movie. Thanks again to all for taking the time to reply. deci6el