from my upcoming material set for P12 :background lighting and speculars.

ghostship2 posted at 1:08 PM Fri, 12 November 2021 - #4430349

from my upcoming material set for P12 :background lighting and speculars.

Wooow 😍

@ghostship2 I have always LOVED your renders and wish I could be half as good as you. Really love your work and look forward to seeing more.

La Femme: Ravena, by a friend: Silverwind 😍

Y-Phil posted at 8:47 AM Sun, 14 November 2021 - #4430503

La Femme: Ravena, by a friend: Silverwind 😍

WOW, I love this.

I found lighting figures with the background very difficult as Poser shows only a restricted image of the background in preview,  so I have tried another way.   Render the scenes with the selected background and use an AI background remover to mask the image.  Replace the background with the image but as a .jpg suitable adjusted, which should get you back to square one but now you have a layer of each which can be moved and adjusted accordingly.   It will only works for figures and I suspect the same could be done with two renders, one for the figure and one for the background.  Anyway this is what I achieved in about thirty minutes using an existing render.

Jerri (Sasha-19/Vic4) + Afrodite-Ohki's Kalla Hair

hornet3d posted at 1:07 PM Sun, 14 November 2021 - #4430524

I found lighting figures with the background very difficult as Poser shows only a restricted image of the background in preview,  so I have tried another way.   Render the scenes with the selected background and use an AI background remover to mask the image.  Replace the background with the image but as a .jpg suitable adjusted, which should get you back to square one but now you have a layer of each which can be moved and adjusted accordingly.   It will only works for figures and I suspect the same could be done with two renders, one for the figure and one for the background.  Anyway this is what I achieved in about thirty minutes using an existing render.

No problem if I am using the background with an image but I was using the set up in the tutorial for using background lighting.

When set up like this my preview windows is shown like this.

and renders like this

I can change the rotation and of the back ground to change the position in relation to the figure but none of this is reflected in the preview.

It is unfortunate that such a feature doesn't exist in preview.  The next best solution is to use the Raytrace Preview window to give you an idea of what the background scene will look like instead of using the render engine.  I usually have that window available in the material room when fine-tuning adjustments.

It is unfortunate that such a feature doesn't exist in preview.  The next best solution is to use the Raytrace Preview window to give you an idea of what the background scene will look like instead of using the render engine.  I usually have that window available in the material room when fine-tuning adjustments.

As you say the Raytrace Preview window is a help and I also did a few low sample renders when I was getting close but it does mean that the process is more difficult than using a dome for lighting.  Just not sure at the moment if the extra work when lighting from the background gives me anything better than a dome.

Lit by an HDRi on the background node + the round Groundplane in shadow catcher

hborre posted at 10:20 PM Mon, 15 November 2021 - #4430607

It is unfortunate that such a feature doesn't exist in preview.  The next best solution is to use the Raytrace Preview window to give you an idea of what the background scene will look like instead of using the render engine.  I usually have that window available in the material room when fine-tuning adjustments.

As you say the Raytrace Preview window is a help and I also did a few low sample renders when I was getting close but it does mean that the process is more difficult than using a dome for lighting.  Just not sure at the moment if the extra work when lighting from the background gives me anything better than a dome.

Y-Phil posted at 4:47 PM Tue, 16 November 2021 - #4430636

Lit by an HDRi on the background node + the round Groundplane in shadow catcher

Greetings

Bastep posted at 11:24 AM Wed, 17 November 2021 - #4430654

Y-Phil posted at 4:47 PM Tue, 16 November 2021 - #4430636

Lit by an HDRi on the background node + the round Groundplane in shadow catcher

Looks great. Especially the shadow on the bottom. Could you possibly answer a question about the shadowcatcher from EZDOME?

Greetings

Ahh Okay! Then I have misunderstood something. I thought you were working with the Shadowcatcher from EZdome. I already knew the other one. But thank you! There is a picture for that:

Ahh Okay! Then I have misunderstood something. I thought you were working with the Shadowcatcher from EZdome. I already knew the other one. But thank you! There is a picture for that:

As I'm still on Poser 11 I'd love to know if there are any visible improvements in the Cycles/Superfly render engine in Poser 12. So far I understand that pixel-based displacement (as in Firefly) is still not possible. :( 

Is there a difference when you render the same scene with the same render settings in Poser 11 and Poser 12? If so, a side by side comparison picture would be greatly appreciated.

I can show you my own, humble experience. I'm not an expert with the Material room, that's why the 3rd picture doesn't look exactly the same as the 1st and the 2nd.
The first two are based on EZSkiin3, using the Cycles plugin, with a slight difference: we have to lower the gloss effect with Poser12, for the rest both are 100% the same.
The lighting: a clamshell + one light above, all three are area lights, nothing around the scene except the backdrop.
My computer: an old Intel Core i7 at 4.3Ghz, the computations done using my RTX2080ti, each time using the official "Ultra NonBranched (GPU)" setting.
Don't forget that Poser12 has a new optimization system that is not present in Poser11

Each picture has been computed at 459x800px

Poser 11: 60"
Poser 12, using its default GTX mode: 34"
Poser 12, using its new RTX mode: 19"
Poser 12, using my shader (I'm using a second layer for the anisotropic/gloss effect): 32", and it takes longer without the second layer...

I don't have any side-by-side comparisons at this moment. There are some differences as they used an updated version of cycles for Poser 12. They added a few nodes. The sensitivity of the roughness of the various glossy nodes is different so some shaders may look too shiny. The shadow catcher now sort of works. It can be used with a background, but not with a skydome. The speed has improved and they've added adaptive sampling and a denoiser which can both help reduce time more.

Is there a difference when you render the same scene with the same render settings in Poser 11 and Poser 12? If so, a side by side comparison picture would be greatly appreciated.

Some things have already been mentioned here. What convinced me to use the Superfly renderer exclusively is the rendering speed of Poser 12. In Poser 11, the SF renderer was a lame duck and I only worked with the Firefly renderer. Since Poser 12, I have not used the FF renderer. Add to that the use of the Cycles nodes. Since I have worked a lot with Blender, I see this as a big advantage for me. To which there is a wealth of information and examples of Cycles material on the internet. Well, not everything can be implemented yet, because nodes are still missing, but I think the Poser developers are on the right track here.

Greetings

Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)

Thanks a lot for all the responses to my question.

Before Poser 11 came out, I was desperate because of the limitations of Firefly. Superfly really opened up a whole new world for me and I haven't used Firefly ever since, except when I need some shadows for a photo background.
I understand that the speed of Superfly has doubled in Poser 12, which is a good thing, because all I could do to speed it up was throw more processing power at it. I also see the improvements on the different nodes, but I think unless pixel based displacement is introduced in Superfly, I will stay on Poser 11 for a while. Man, I really miss that feature. A lot.

Thanks a lot for all the responses to my question.

....... but I think unless pixel based displacement is introduced in Superfly, I will stay on Poser 11 for a while. Man, I really miss that feature. A lot.

I think that you're not alone: a lot are still missing this feature,and hope is allowed, for this and for a preview that's able to use the Cycles nodes: a kind of Blender's Evee for Poser: they've enrolled a true Cycles expert, who used to work for Poser long time ago.

I don't remember his name but it looks like he's back

To say microdisplacement doesn't work at all with the superfly engine isn't exactly true. It depends on your root node. It works with the poser root node and the physical surface root node. It doesn't work with the cycles root node. Here is a sample. Each is the primitive ball (not the hi-res one). Each has poser's original noise node as the displacement map. The first is the poser root node, then is the physical surface, then cycles and cycles with the subdivision cranked up.

An up-close render of the 4th ball shows there is actual displacement going on, but I see no way of controlling the strength.

To say microdisplacement doesn't work at all with the superfly engine isn't exactly true. It depends on your root node. It works with the poser root node and the physical surface root node. It doesn't work with the cycles root node. Here is a sample. Each is the primitive ball (not the hi-res one). Each has poser's original noise node as the displacement map. The first is the poser root node, then is the physical surface, then cycles and cycles with the subdivision cranked up.

An up-close render of the 4th ball shows there is actual displacement going on, but I see no way of controlling the strength.

RedPhantom posted at 7:53 AM Mon, 22 November 2021 - #4430760

To say microdisplacement doesn't work at all with the superfly engine isn't exactly true. It depends on your root node. It works with the poser root node and the physical surface root node. It doesn't work with the cycles root node. Here is a sample. Each is the primitive ball (not the hi-res one). Each has poser's original noise node as the displacement map. The first is the poser root node, then is the physical surface, then cycles and cycles with the subdivision cranked up.

An up-close render of the 4th ball shows there is actual displacement going on, but I see no way of controlling the strength.

Even with a multiplicator or something like that?

RedPhantom posted at 9:38 AM Mon, 22 November 2021 - #4430766

Y-Phil posted at 8:38 AM Mon, 22 November 2021 - #4430763

RedPhantom posted at 7:53 AM Mon, 22 November 2021 - #4430760

To say microdisplacement doesn't work at all with the superfly engine isn't exactly true. It depends on your root node. It works with the poser root node and the physical surface root node. It doesn't work with the cycles root node. Here is a sample. Each is the primitive ball (not the hi-res one). Each has poser's original noise node as the displacement map. The first is the poser root node, then is the physical surface, then cycles and cycles with the subdivision cranked up.

An up-close render of the 4th ball shows there is actual displacement going on, but I see no way of controlling the strength.

Even with a multiplicator or something like that?

That I don't know. I'm not good with math when it's just numbers. Add colors and images, and I'm totally lost.

>To say microdisplacement doesn't work at all with the superfly engine isn't exactly true. It depends on your root node. It works with the poser root node and the physical surface root node.

Are you sure about that? And it's not just that your spheres have more polys than you think? Because I have used displacement with PhysicalSurface and I needed to raise the subdivision level a ton to get it to work on some props. I would have preferred not to because it cost a lot of render time.

>>An up-close render of the 4th ball shows there is actual displacement going on, but I see no way of controlling the strength.

Yes, all you have to do is take your displacement source (e.g. an image map) and plug it into a Math node, and then plug that into the Displacement input of the Cycles root node. I generally use Multiply. You can then raise or lower the amount of displacement by multiplying by more or less.

I did some more work on the background shader. Especially the use of radians instead of the usual degrees. The Firefly math nodes do not offer a solution here. But the Math Node from Cycles does. It has a much wider range of functions. And here we also find two functions to convert the rotation direction from radians to degrees and vice versa.
I have also uploaded the whole thing as a free item. This should be unlocked soon.
The whole thing now looks like this:

And here are a few more pictures.The only lighting is the background HDRI and a small point light (intensity 8%) in the left corner of the room.

I did some more work on the background shader. Especially the use of radians instead of the usual degrees. The Firefly math nodes do not offer a solution here. But the Math Node from Cycles does. It has a much wider range of functions. And here we also find two functions to convert the rotation direction from radians to degrees and vice versa.
I have also uploaded the whole thing as a free item. This should be unlocked soon.
The whole thing now looks like this:

This is great! Thank you 😊

ChromeStar posted at 11:33 PM Tue, 23 November 2021 - #4430826

>To say microdisplacement doesn't work at all with the superfly engine isn't exactly true. It depends on your root node. It works with the poser root node and the physical surface root node.

Are you sure about that? And it's not just that your spheres have more polys than you think? Because I have used displacement with PhysicalSurface and I needed to raise the subdivision level a ton to get it to work on some props. I would have preferred not to because it cost a lot of render time.

>>An up-close render of the 4th ball shows there is actual displacement going on, but I see no way of controlling the strength.

>Even with a multiplicator or something like that?

Yes, all you have to do is take your displacement source (e.g. an image map) and plug it into a Math node, and then plug that into the Displacement input of the Cycles root node. I generally use Multiply. You can then raise or lower the amount of displacement by multiplying by more or less.

I'm not saying the displacement is perfect. It still has a long way to go. I was only trying to say it's not completely missing and you don't always have to subdivide the item to ridiculous degrees to use it. And yes, I'd like to see it work fully too.

Bastep posted at 4:26 AM Wed, 24 November 2021 - #4430829

I did some more work on the background shader. Especially the use of radians instead of the usual degrees. The Firefly math nodes do not offer a solution here. But the Math Node from Cycles does. It has a much wider range of functions. And here we also find two functions to convert the rotation direction from radians to degrees and vice versa.
I have also uploaded the whole thing as a free item. This should be unlocked soon.
The whole thing now looks like this:

Bastep posted at 4:26 AM Wed, 24 November 2021 - #4430829

I did some more work on the background shader. Especially the use of radians instead of the usual degrees. The Firefly math nodes do not offer a solution here. But the Math Node from Cycles does. It has a much wider range of functions. And here we also find two functions to convert the rotation direction from radians to degrees and vice versa.
I have also uploaded the whole thing as a free item. This should be unlocked soon.
The whole thing now looks like this:

The shader is now unlocked in the Free Items: Free Background Shader

Thank you from me as well. 

I'm onboard with this.  Thank you very, very much.

Oooh thank you - gonna try this soon!

Thanks for that! The rotation was very unclear before.

I have some further comments about subdivision but I think it would be better to put it in its own thread. See you there in a minute!

Very far away from La Femme: an old Aiko3 character: Liana (2007) 😊

Naturally, I couldn't help but buy Ghostship2's last material set, and I'm just loving it 😍😍😍

The picture looks good!

Greetings

PS: Where do you get the Superfly logo?

Bastep posted at 11:45 PM Thu, 2 December 2021 - #4431205

The picture looks good!

Greetings

PS: Where do you get the Superfly logo?

Here is the original that was be downloaded, and I slightly modified it to add a "12". It should be a png with transparent background

Bastep posted at 11:45 PM Thu, 2 December 2021 - #4431205

The picture looks good!

Greetings

PS: Where do you get the Superfly logo?

Honestly: I don't remember, it's dated February 18, 2016.

Here is the original that was be downloaded, and I slightly modified it to add a "12". It should be a png with transparent background

The way of the Nunja! Was watching the Simpsons and this came out of the blue. Yeah, they probably practice the ancient art of Nunjitsu, scribed in the Nunja Scrolls. Figure is V4, outfit by me. Rendered in Poser with Cycles OptiX.

Bastep posted at 2:01 AM Fri, 3 December 2021 - #4431210

Y-Phil posted at 1:19 AM Fri, 3 December 2021 - #4431209

Bastep posted at 11:45 PM Thu, 2 December 2021 - #4431205

The picture looks good!

Greetings

PS: Where do you get the Superfly logo?

Honestly: I don't remember, it's dated February 18, 2016.

Here is the original that was be downloaded, and I slightly modified it to add a "12". It should be a png with transparent background

Thank you very much.
Have a great day!

Have a nice day, too

Ken1171_Designs posted at 2:29 AM Fri, 3 December 2021 - #4431212

The way of the Nunja! Was watching the Simpsons and this came out of the blue. Yeah, they probably practice the ancient art of Nunjitsu, scribed in the Nunja Scrolls. Figure is V4, outfit by me. Rendered in Poser with Cycles OptiX.

It's always to see you around, Ken 😊

@ Bastep downloaded your background shader. Great stuff! I'm no good with math so this helps.

@ Y-Phil Nice! looks like folks are enjoying  the new shaders.

@ Ken1171 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sqkowVU5mZI

@ Bastep downloaded your background shader. Great stuff! I'm no good with math so this helps.

@ Y-Phil Nice! looks like folks are enjoying  the new shaders.

@ Ken1171 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sqkowVU5mZI

experimenting with lighting and render settings. In this image I'm using TrekkieGrrrl's Render Room prop and 4 copies of a lamp from one of Santuzi's room models. I have placed one point light inside each lamp (set to inverse square and 4% intensity). The lamp shades have an inner mat and outer mat. The inner mat is set to ambient of 1 and the out mats are set to translucent (PBSDF node). Originally I had the inner shade mat set to transparent and the lamps looked f**king fantastic but there was too much noise being thrown out by this setup.  The lamps are placed in the corners of the room and then I added 1 mesh light (a sphere) stuck into the middle of the ceiling like it was a ceiling lamp. That mesh has an ambient setting of 20. I kicked up diffuse bounces to 16 and set clamping to 0. The extra bounces brighten up the enclosed space a lot. There are still a couple of stay fireflies but that could be fixed in Photoshop.