Actually, I kind of expect a sudden explosion of anti-Poserism.

Why?

Latest version: we finally get weightmapping to add to the existing rigging options. One of the biggest betrayers of poseritis....joint issues....have just been potentially eliminated (and yes, you will see those who just use them, and those who use and tweak, then create new, to get the effects they want. And considering some of the mutterings Diogenes aka Phantom3d has been making, we might be seeing some incredible things in facial rigging before long. Hopefully some insane geek who knows Python 2.7 and the WX front end gets inspired to create the kind of interconnecting controller that does some of the tricks that Maya's does, to allow ganging of those potential new bones and maps into coherent facial animation.....)

We get true SSS. Use it correctly, and no more plastic skin look. Things like marble, plastic, granite, some kinds of fabric become possible (and texture makers are going to have to learn to stop burning in specular highlights, as with true SSS the lighting itself and a specular mask are all you need....and artificial highlights look =bad= when used. But Bagginsbill is working on some tricks, apparently). Can't do optically correct obsidian due to its effect being refraction and density changes, but oh well.

 

With just those two features, the potential for output quality has shot up. Considerably. Yes, there is a learning curve; and those who won't budge past P4 level functionality are out of luck. But more and more people are finally dipping into the dynamics end of things (and as the new 2012 version is fully 64 bit and multithreaded, speed is less of an issue).

More importantly, I think this will shift the focus from the two main blasphemies of poseritis to the more subtle ones of lighting and compostion, where a lot of the magic of CG imagery occurs. (yes, I know that we have lots of people who can't even be bothered to focus the eyes properly; I'm not talking about them, but the folks who have that image in their heads and have chosen this medium to get it out).

 

Silly idea? Look at Vue. Version 10 is about to come out. Version 4 was considered nothing more than a 2 bit Bryce wannabe in the day. Then they added Mover; suddenly there was a way to fly over your terrains, as Philippe Bouyer showed. And you could suddenly use Poser as the animation plugin, and natively import a pz2 file. Vue pro added the ability to have a renderfarm....and actual animation was suddenly quite possible (having the wind effects in there was inspired). Then they added instancing, and you could create forests. Then continents. Then entire planets. ILM noticed the quality possible, and suddenly that Bryce wannabe became a professional level application. Ask Philippe if he is an artist, he will say he is a skilled technician; which is true. Working any CG program is an excersice in technology, not art....something that gets forgotten over at Certain Other Places. The 'A' word comes into it when you apply those techniques.

Poser will never be real competition for the animation portion of a Hollywood level pipeline. However, as Tim Vining has shown, it can hold its own in a one man studio environment (and imagine what Aurora would have been if he'd had weightmapping from the get-go). It also still has its function as an artist's Woodie; or the nude model you simply lack the cash and space to hire. Is there too much sameness in Poser renders? Unfortunately, as there are too many who either can not or do not use the tools to their capacity (take a furniture set you buy; change the textures slightly, as light ages finishes depending on exposure and the finish. Dropping the global 'chair' texture and using one for each chair, smaller and tone shifted to allow for varied aging, and suddenly that 'eveyone uses this prop' set isn't quite so common. Add unique bump or displacement maps, and each chair suddenly has a personality, as one was the cat's favorite post; one was gnawed by rugrat #1 instead of a teething ring. One has scars from all the metal #2 daughter has attached to her jeans, etc. All of that can also be done strictly with shaders and the same reduced, bland base texture). CG is, and always has been, nothing but sheer trickery. The art is in making the tricks real enough that the viewer is so busy going 'woooooww' that they forget all they have picked up about the process. Most here could take the forest scene in 'Avatar' and reduce it to its component CG elements and techniques....and have a mess of formulae and mesh that has no relationship to 'art'. Put it back together, and you have that alien world at night. Same bits and pieces, but the synergy creates the image...and it it creates emotion, it has entered the realm of art.....