Here's you basic Droid- this one from DAZ. Most people will encounter models that are "too bright" when first loading in DS, so going into your Surfaces, Advanced Tab and setting DIFFUSE and SPECULAR Down - like about 40% for both (select ALL the body parts with the mouse using SHIFT-CLICK)- then you will see the Strength Levels turn from 100% (or whatever) to "Multiple"- then delete whatever is in that using the RIGHT-CLICK and enter an amount. Just entering 40, and hitting RETURN on the keyboard will enter 40% for ALL the parts.

Obviously, an exact amount will depend on the lighting and other factors, so doing some test renders with DIFFUSE COLOR and SPECULAR COLOR will help you determine what sort of balance looks best.

In this render I've changed some of the lighting colors to more Pastel shades, like light green, light blue, pink, etc. I personally like to see some subtle color effects, especially if you are dealing with grey shades like these Droids.

In setting SPECULAR all to BLACK- this can sometimes be the answer to getting Poser to look more "normal" in DS, but be certain you aren't setting anything like glass or other semi-transparent items to black, or they won't look right.

The DAZ Dragon here with Traveler's Sky Dome. I set the DIFFUSE way down to about 30%, but the SPECULAR up to 90% and used the "SKIN" Lighting Model in the Advanced Surfaces menu. You definately should check out these lighting models, as the looks are sometimes subtle, but ARE different. The default is always PLASTIC.

This is an example of setting the DROID Diffusion and Specular very low, about 25%, then adding a spotlight over HELIX with his Diffuse about 10% but Specular about 80%. This sets up an obvious CONTRAST between the two characters, which- since they are metal characters of different styles looks better than if they were REAL PEOPLE (as in Mike or Vicky).

Since HELIX is an "Ancient" character from Poser, I thought that it was fun using him in Daz Studio in 2004.

Oops! Got the characters wrong. THIS GUY is HELIX, the previous character was BRAINSTEM! Both are checking out the Droid Mouse which had a slight import problem, causing his nose and ears to separate.

Daz Droid and Helix are checking him out so they can file a DAZ BUG REPORT about this!

Aside from the beautiful and high-end looking renders you can get in Daz Studio- DS also has one heck of a wide-angle lense! While you can also do this Poser (as well as other software, obviously) it is OFTEN the case when you first load models like the DAZ Dragon, Dinosaurs, etc. In seems to happen to other Poser models also, but not all of them.

I happened to like the wild effect this wide angle view has so kept it for its somewhat Toon-like" quality.

Concluding, as the sun sinks slowly in the West, with the DAZ Dragon heading back to his lair. I had never done one of him from this angle and liked the weird effect I was also getting from the sky dome.

Having used Bryce, Poser and Vue for years, I am getting better looking renders from Daz Studio in just the one week I've had it, than from the years of using the other programs. NOT- that I can't get good renders from the others- but somehow DS makes this process much easier and better looking.

Good Lighting and effects are MUCH EASIER to get in Daz Studio and while I'm sure some Poser users are not convinced yet- I think DS will actually bring over LOTS of Bryce and Vue users! Realize that you can get (I think) better renders in Daz Studio with LESS render times, plus Bryce-Vue ray-trace looks with FULL POSER IMPORTS- ALL Poser files, not just Pz3, and with full Posing adjustments available in OpenGL! No more Back-and-Forth between software
trying to get poses right.

I think Daz Studio is a HUGE break-through and delivers a LOT of long-time Wish List features. Obviously this is an ALPHA version (hard to believe) so a LOT MORE tweaks and improvements are coming!

Daz Droid and Helix are checking him out so they can file a DAZ BUG REPORT about this!

You crack me up. ;)