Hello Mark . i don't have the render times in mind, so i can't say for the previous images . So i've rendered this pic . My system : AMD 1400, 512 RAM, WinME, no swap when rendering . The scene : lightning comes from a skydome and from a distant light with 2048x2048 soft shadows ( yep ! ) . 42736 facets in the scene, and a bunch of texture maps . I've rendered with good settings (fast GI with 10000 photons, best AA, all effects turned on) Render time : 29 min @ 800x600 Not bad at all, i don't know how it compares with other softs though . I've found that Carrara slows down where there is transparency and reflection together (the eyes) . We're used to that, aren't we ? Later, litst