I keep hearing that renders in DAZ get better with IBL, specifically when using Uberenvironment. Before I spend any more money -- I went overboard with outfits before I realized I needed more tools -- I'd like to know exactly what the effect of Image Based Lighting is and how it differs from the lights that come with Daz.

The other pricey thing I keep hearing about is HSS. I don't have any idea how this works. I already have a pretty realistic skin that I'm using from Pureskins (that was worth it). If I use HSS, does it augment that skin or render it worthless? In other words, is the Human Surface Shader supposed to be used on existing skin, or does it provide new skin? I'm so confused.

IBL does a fairly good job of faking ambient lighting - the way, in reality, things are lit not only by direct lights but by the light that bounces off other things. However, anytime you take aphoto you are using an even better approximation to ambient lighting ( :D ) and the results aren't always well lit, so having uberEnvironment doesn't guarantee good results - and it may not suit your image style at all.

HSS offers several options that the default DS skin shader (and especially the Skin lighting model in the default shader that is used if you don't set another) lacks - some can be used simply by setting vlaues, some need things like specular maps which you may or may not have with the sets you use (and which you will most likely have to set up for yourself). Again, it can add to your renders but it won't do so by simply applying it and hitting render, and it may not suit your style (though by the sound of it you do want realistic looking skin).

Before buying new shaders I'd advise grabbing the scripting SDK and using the upgrade lights script, which will give you new lights with slightly more controls than the defaults, and looking at the Default DS shaders in the DAZ free archive or the free shaders by Joe Le Gecko and Pendragon in the DAZ forums.

 Thanks for your help. Where can I get this "scripting SDK"? Please tell me you don't mean the $200 SDK plug-in on the Daz website.

 I'm befuddled. I installed the SDK -- after I figured out what it was -- and downloaded the upgrade lights script. But  now I'm stuck. This a quote from the posting of the script on the DAZ forums to illustrate how far I've gotten:

"This script allows you to access new light parameters in DAZ|Studio 1.4.16. 

To use: 

1. If you have not already, you must install the DAZ|Studio Script Development Kit. CHECK!

2. Place Upgrade Lights.dsb into a DAZ|Studio content directory. CHECK!

3. Launch DAZ|Studio. CHECK! 

4. Execute Upgrade Lights by double-clicking it from your content tab. CHECK!

5. You can now create more complex lights by running one of the scripts from the Studio/Lights/DS Defaults content folder. (The scripts in that directory were originally created by DAZ.) UGH! 

First of all, how do I do this? I assume I'm supposed to run the scripts from the newly created DAZ Script IDE tab in the view menu since that's the only way I can reach that folder. But there are only three scripts in that folder -- the standard lights: point/distant/spot. Should there be more?  And also, what's supposed to happen when I run them, because all I get is an error message at the bottom of the IDE pane.

Help?

Hmm - which version Windows (or MAc OS) are you running? I haven't used the script for a while as I have some of the paid-for lights which do an equivalent job but are easier to use, but I know it did work.

 Thanks for responding. I actually, sort of, got it working last night after reading through an entire forum and jiggling things around. It's not working perfectly -- there seem to be some bugs -- but at least now my Daz3d seems to think it's working.

You know, the whole problem stemmed from content management and/or file organization -- as almost all of my problems with Daz3d seem to do. (I'm working on a Mac.) The script kept telling me to browse to the DS Defaults folder in my CONTENT/LIGHTS folder. In the end, part of the problem was, there was no LIGHTS folder in my CONTENT folder. I simply had to create one to put the DS Defaults in. This is endemic of my frustration in general: My content never seems to be set up like the content in the tutorials, or in the readme files, or whatever. Everything seems scattered and therefore confusing.

Perfect example: In my DAZ STUDIO  folder, I have several folders: CONTENT, DOCS, SCRIPTS, SHADERS, UNINSTALLERS, etc. However, within the CONTENT folder, in addition to the requisite RUNTIME folder, several of those folders are repeated, namely SCRIPTS, SHADERS, and UNINSTALLERS, but with different content.  I feel like I should be able to consolidate those folders with identical names inside the CONTENT folder, but I'm afraid to touch anything because I didn't set it up like this. It was just sort of in this disarray when I unzipped it. 

Any advice?

I have come to the point where I prefer using DAZ|Studio over Poser6, but Studio not having Ambient Occlussion was killing me, until I found the ahEnvironment light set on DAZ.  I suppose it is a plug in, but what it does is a lot more than I expected.  It includes complete new lights for DAZ, and keeps the original ones,  each of the new ones has extended options and parameters, for example shadow color on an ahSpotlight.  But it also has an IBL light.  and a new one on me: an ILT light.  The only hitch so far, is using an image on the IBL light, requires moving the light itself around to  unexpected positions to match the highlights for the render, i.e. the highlights from the ibl come from a different direction than the light is pointing...bottom line I got the AO I wanted and a ton of other exciting rendertoys in the package.

here is a before and after

(This is a laboratory file I made in DAZ to directly compare different shader settings, in this case specular strength and specular glossiness.  all the spheres have the same settings except for those two.  the values from bottom left to top left and bottom right are 0%, 25%, 50%, 75%, 100%)

full size view: http://artzone.daz3d.com/azfiles/gallery/bc/i1/89925f5ehkbv75ja0dyi4oomj5onur-full.jpg

 Wow, that looks impressive. I'm going to try and get ahEnvironment working tonight.

Quote - Perfect example: In my DAZ STUDIO  folder, I have several folders: CONTENT, DOCS, SCRIPTS, SHADERS, UNINSTALLERS, etc. However, within the CONTENT folder, in addition to the requisite RUNTIME folder, several of those folders are repeated, namely SCRIPTS, SHADERS, and UNINSTALLERS, but with different content.  I feel like I should be able to consolidate those folders with identical names inside the CONTENT folder, but I'm afraid to touch anything because I didn't set it up like this. It was just sort of in this disarray when I unzipped it. 

Any advice?

No, that's as it should be - the scripts in the ContentScripts folder are scripts you can run yourself, while the Scripts folder directly in the application folder holds scripts that are used by DS itself (such as setting the available parameters for a shader in the Surfaces palette) or are attached to commands (such as the Zero commands in the Parameter palette option menu) which must be in the right place for DS to find them. Similarly the ContentShaders folder holds scripts for applying shaders, while the Shaders folder in the application folder holds the code that the renderer uses. In general you should not move the folders that are outside the Content folder, but you can safely move and renanme the fodlers (except Runtime and data) that are inside the Content folder.

I have all three light packages for sale at Daz. 1)AhEnvironment 2.0  2) UberEnvironment 3)Light dome Pro 2...after tinkering with all three for a couple of weeks ive found that AhLights are very good all around indoor and outdoor for ambient light and realism...for outdoor scenes there is nothing better than LDP2, its my favorite hands down, but its not well suited for an interior scene. Uber environment is ...well ...the cheapest of the bunch..but it seems to be pretty good for portrait work in close up shots. I recommend any of the three as good advanced light lighting pachagesl, but if I had to do it all over again and only had the $$$ for one package I would go with AhEnvironment 2.0 as the best one. Pendragon has a free package as version 1 you may want to look into, combined with the free Environment shaders and Render controls its not bad!!

 Thanks. I downloaded the free AhEnvironment, but to be honest, I don't know how to use it. I need to spend some time with it. 

Also go get the Stonmason inspired lights in Daz Studio Freepository  forum- its a good little package for free!