Quote - There is obviously more that we can learn about how to set up IDL to get the best results, we just have to mess around with it and find what that is.

That's the problem, I don't want to mess around. I want to get some work done.  All this experimenting is getting old. I want a solid workflow & methodology so I don't have to worry about this crap and just focus on content creation.

Smith Micro is fail.

I expect IDL at the most basic of levels to just look great, then from there if I want to tweak stuff so be it.

Quote - Just to clarify the lighting, there are 2 lights in this scene. a spot light just outside the windows, and a point light in the floor lamp. The rest of the light is emitted from the cieling, both bounces are set at 2.

See that is confusing. I would expect a directional light instead of a spot light no? You've achieved great results but the methodology is unorthodox isn't it? Letting a ceiling light your scene?  Why can't it be simpler?  Having to go through each item in your scene is too time consuming.