Attached Link: http://www.renderosity.com/messages.ez?ForumID=12400&Form.ShowMessage=2448076

I've finally tried Onyx Suite and I'm impressed. The weeping willow, the flowers and the rush leaves all came from it. The tree is completely polygonal and looks much, much better than the Bryce weeping willow. You can also use alphaed image maps, if you export the tree like that. You can have several groups of leaves, which can be textured differently. The leaf plates can be differently sized. For another pic, see the link, which will bring you to the Cinema forum, where's also a link to the Onyx Computing site.

I'm impressed as well. That is an outstanding willow IMHO. I'm curious as to the poly count of this tree. I keep hoping that someday an upgrade of Bryce will make it possible to use "instancing" so we can populate our scenes with thousands of high-detail trees such as this.

Well, that's what you get when you spend $495. I think Bryce does a pretty decent job for the price. I wish I could afford it, but all my money's been going to Poser content lately.

<strong>bandolin</strong><br />
[Former 3DS Max forum coordinator]<br />
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<p><em>Caution: just a hobbyist</em></p>

402536 polygons. But it's to be expected. I could have a) reduced the number of polygons when exporting, b) not use some parts of the tree. That is, I didn't have to use the twigs where the leaves are growing. I didn't use leaf stems, as they would have added several hundred thousands by themselves. But if you want a hero tree, you get a hero tree. :-) You can also get a lower level of detail if you increase the angle of curving. Or you can render the tree in Onyx, export it as TGA and use it in on a 2D plane the background, together with the shadow. Unfortunately, only simple colours for texture then. As to the $495, that's for five programs. Xfrog, which is much, much harder to use, has only alpha maps and doesn't have wind, costs $299. Plus $149 for every plant library, while you get about thirty models for every Onyx program - broadleaf, conifer, bamboo, palm and flower. Bamboo has automatic grove creation. That bamboo over there in Cinema forum was created by the program, every stalk is randomised. Flower has beds, also with randomised individual flowers, and pots. The pot in the pic is an Onyx Flower one. Did I say I was impressed? :-) BTW, a single program from the suite is $195.

That is a very impressive tree.

I am quite impressed as well....

Yeah, Onyx is really great! About 2 years ago I purchased the broadleaf-version - and never regretted it. As a tree-fan just like me it was a 'have-to'. With good leaf textures you can get wonderfully natural trees with it, I love this prog.

I heard they don't allow distribution of models made with it, though. IMO that makes the price way too high. Why would anyone pay $450 for something if you don't own any of what you make with it?

Errr, to use it in your own pics? Zenstar doesn't allow for the distribution of the models created with Tree Druid either. Meski asked for a special permission to give out a couple of freebies.

Then I would never waste money on Tree Druid either. If I am going to pay that much for sopmething, I should ahve the right to distributer models I make with it. I can understand having that kind of restriction of a free program, or in an academic version, but it is a bit unreasonable to have a no distribution restriction on something that costs that much. (If 3ds Max, Poser C4D or Rhino had that kind of restriction how many people would bother with them?)

Well, on one hand, I can understand you. But I can also understand them. I mean, they created a program that's so easy to use and creates such great models that if they allowed it to be used just as a modeller, they would be out of business very soon. I would draw your attention to the ease of creation of models in max, Cinema nd Rhino... They are far from being as easy as Onyx Suite. And then, they don't give you a set of ready-made models to change, you create from scratch. Also, you cannot create a scene in Poser with existing Poser models and then sell it. If Onyx wasn't so easy and if it didn't have so many ready models, maybe people would be allowwed to sell models created with it. But now that you mention it, I don't remember seeing Xfrog models for sale either. For free distribution, yes, but not for sale.

Iagree about not distributing modelsmade by modifying the ones that they provide (no application allows that), but if you make one yourself from scratch, (regardless of how easy it is) you should have the right to do whatever you want with it. AFAIK, X-frog allows sale or free distribution of models you make yourself with it, (but not modifications of their models). Ansd, although you can't distribute a scene made with the models included in Poser, you CAN distribute or sell a model made from Poser primitives. In either case the point is, if you make it yourself you should be able to disrtibute it.