I have just purchased PP2010.  I am having a problem with renders of products I have bought appearing washed out or faded.  For example when I render with the default render settings I am getting images that look like the above.

I would like to be getting something more vibrant such as in the promo renders for Tazacafe - Bikini BasicWear which is the texture set I am trying to use.

If someone can suggest what I am doing wrong or point me to a tutorial that would help I would really appreciate it.

Many thanks in advance for your help!

Paul

You should search and read on the subject of gamma correction.

Short (very short) explanation:

The numbers that represent colors in digital images are not linear. Double the number does not double the brightness of a color.

For years people either ignored this, or just did crazy compensations for it, such as setting reflection coefficients at inaccurate but compensatory values, i.e. 100%, using extra lights, etc. Many compensations are in shaders and rely on non-linear math. Such things work well in one set of lights, but not in another, for example.

Poser Pro (and 2010) introduce gamma correction - a direct compensation based on the mathematics of digital media, not based on guessing. The lighting equations become linear. As a consequence, they can be much more realistic and accurate with very little tweaking.

Compensations built into products, combined with the accurate compensation provided by gamma correction, result in over compensation. One of the common symptoms is a washed-out appearance.

Your choice - drop the gamma correction and render like you're using Poser 6 or 7, for which most of the content was made. Or - fix the content to behave.

Fixing usually involves ripping out things and simplifying shaders (materials) as well as simply putting in realistic instead of stupid values, such as Diffuse_Value = .8 instead of 1.

If you decide to use the Pro feature you bought, you are in for some significant amount of material work to bring your old-world content into the new world.

Or you can just pretend you spent half the dough and shut off GC.

You said: "I used the default render settings??
I think in default the min shading rate is at 1.00?

Try something like this, and as IDL is selected, use BB's sfere in his freestuf (and read the instructions) and only one pure white Infinite light to start with.

Put some colored props around your figure to let the IDL interact with.

PP2010?? It is a mat room, and a light rebirth.

For IDL you always need more then 1 Raytrace bounce (IDL starts from 2 and more)

Afterwards you can take IC up.
Play with increasing ILQ
Pixel samples to 5 - 7 - take your pick

But remember that all these will increase render time.
For real sharp?
Take Min shading rate even further down => at increasing render time cost... :-)
Nothing is free :-(
Point 1 is common for real sharp close ups. (0.10)

I use the above settings for almost 90%, perhaps even more.

Think light, be light.
Everything reflects (more or less)

bagginsbill and vilters,

Thanks for your suggestions.  I will read up on gamma correction and try the settings suggested.

Paul