Always render to image files, regardless of the app you're using. In fact, you might consider rendering in passes (which means running a seperate passes for things like shadows, diffuse, specular, reflection, ambient, and a host of other things). Reason being, if the project is important, you have MUCH more control over how the final output will look if you can manipulate all of these elements individually as layers in a video fx editor. Max has a ton of options for rendering in passes (as does Maya, Lightwave, and many other apps). The mistake of many novice users is to assume rendering in multiple passes for compositing is a waste of time. Actually, it can be a real time-saver!

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Tools :  3dsmax 2015, Daz Studio 4.6, PoserPro 2012, Blender v2.74

System: Pentium QuadCore i7, under Win 8, GeForce GTX 780 / 2GB GPU.