Quote - Does the item have absolutely uniform UV scale? If you put a checkerboard texture on it, are all the squares the same size?

I'm not absolutely certain. I'll be working with [url=http://www.renderosity.com/mod/bcs/1930s-collection-/62321]this gown[/url] by Tabala.

Quote - First try.

Note - this absolutely requires two coincident surfaces. One for the glass and cloth (outside), and one for the metal base (inside, under the glass).

This is one of those shaders I just cannot do as a single layer of geometry. There have to be two interfaces with space between them.

I have suggested to SM that I need a "clone" shader, where I get to use two shaders for each bit of mesh - a surface and a subsurface. This is useful for things like this and others, where there is a clear coating of some kind with its own shape and something buried inside with its own, different shape, but both follow the general shape of the mesh. Another example is wood under a thick coating of varnish.

Anyway, I despair of this working. The base of each stone needs to be flat, not curved by the mesh. I don't know how to counteract that curve.

Perhaps it could be faked? I probably won't have camera close enough to observe every single stone. The end effect I'm goiing for is something like [url=http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8QE15DjqTRE/Tl6bp4BKdMI/AAAAAAAAA1A/CLeyXbDzlDo/s1600/Diane-von-Furstenberg-Fall-2011-Red-Evening-Dress-Sigrid-Agren%255B1%255D.jpg]this[/url]--I suppose you could say I'm after the shimmering effect of a lot of small rhinestones.

Quote - re silk: Did you see this blouse? Right direction or no?

http://www.renderosity.com/mod/gallery/index.php?image_id=2348196

I hadn't seen it, no. It does look good for modern machined silk, though I think [url=http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-u7OF9oX1Af4/TxsmLxfArPI/AAAAAAAAFF0/tymszS_H1fY/s1600/Blue+Color+Pure+Tusser+Silk+Saree+-+Indian+Silk+Sarees+2011.jpg]traditional silk[/url] tends to be...glossier? The reflection seems...sharper and less blurred, I think? And just in general shinier, I think.

Quote - My wallet hates you, Blackhearted...But it's such a sweet, beautiful hate...

QFT. First I buy Anastasia despite having next to nothing to dress her in. Now, after years of resisting the beauty of GND4, you just made her too beautiful to resist. :( :P 

Wow, this is exciting! Also, these shaders look perfect for polyhedral dice. :D

Quote - Quote - "2) Lack of customization. I don't want my Anastasia to look like everyone else's Anastasia. To my knowledge Alyson doesn't have the most versatile dial morphs."

 

You do realize that Shae and Prototypes Candy characters are built over Anastasia's morph and, while they load at 1 they can be lowered and mixed to a greater or lesser degree. Not to mention that since Ana, Candy, Shae, etc are built on Alyson2 the Face Room works on her/them, unlike the DAZ figures?

 

If/When the figure becomes more popular I'm sure dial twists will be added but in the nmean time I personally think characters based on native SM figures are REALLy more customizable by the average user and you don;t HAVE to buy all of the seconary morph packages for (other than for the Ana based characters at least) to make it possible. Even though I highly recommend Anastasia as a starter!

I didn't know that, so thank you for pointing that out to me! I really have never used the SM figures since I started buying Poser content from DAZ, even though I've actually bought a few outfits for them (some of the Great Rulers outfits over at CP).

Quote - > Quote - 2) Lack of customization. I don't want my Anastasia to look like everyone else's Anastasia. To my knowledge Alyson doesn't have the most versatile dial morphs.

whistles all innocent-like

Yeah, I'm evil, I know. I also need to get off my rump and finish that-unnamed-that up. ;) Or was it a them? Yes, evil. Evil indeed. But I know I'm not the only person who is currently or is planning to do some work with her. :)

Anastasia is too pretty to NOT play with... I just need to get the three or four that have been languishing finished for an age out the door first. Blackhearted did a positively killer job on her.

sigh You know that when you specifically say that to me specifically you'll just make me go buy Anastasia, don't you? :P Next time I have both a Rendo coupon and money, I'll be buying Anastasia. ;) And Chimer, who I somehow missed, apparently. :(

Doesn't solve the lack of adequately-covering clothing, though. :(

I just wanted to pop in and say that, as a customer, I love GND:Anastasia but I have not bought her yet, so I thought I'd share my reasons.

 1) Lack of clothing that is not slut wear. I don't do nude renders or even partially nude; I have yet to see a single piece of clothing for Anastasia with adequate coverage. At least until the slinky dress, which I just downloaded. Yes, I could use dynamic clothes, but I'd kind of like to have some conforming options too.

1. Lack of customization. I don't want my Anastasia to look like everyone else's Anastasia. To my knowledge Alyson doesn't have the most versatile dial morphs.

2. Lack of funds. This is probably the biggest one. She's in my "buy when I possibly can list," but that may be later rather than sooner. :/

I can see she's truly a masterpiece--probably the most beautiful female figure available for Poser [i]or[/i] DS.  It's only these considerations that have kept me on the fence about buying her. It's not "Vicky-itis" as discussed earlier, in part because I probably wouldn't stop using V4 even if I picked up Anastasia. I'm not concerned about losing the value of my V4 content; I'm just concerned I don't even have enough dynamic content to work much with Anastasia. :/

Since I do a lot of fantasy renders, I'm very fond of ornately carved things. But if you're avoiding those, I also do a lot of sci-fi renders, so things with sleek organic lines, very modern or postmodern, are also very useful. But I also do some contemporary rendering, so the current stuff is still useful to me... ;)

Quote - > Quote - Sorry to double post, but I just bought the car patio and the furniture set. Bagginsbill, I really must object to your using photographs as thumbnails on the furniture set--that's most unfair. :P

This made me actually laugh out loud. Thanks for that. And thanks for your business.

My pleasure. I've certainly been benefiting from your knowledge and your free shaders for the last three or four years; I'm happy to give back. :)

Actually, my budget for Poser is becoming a little more limited than it has been as I approach graduate school and the student loans implicit therein, but I'll definitely be prioritizing what I have for your products, 'cause I know I'll be getting maximum bang for my buck there, not to mention adding a lot to the uses I can get from what I already have. :)

Sorry to double post, but I just bought the car patio and the furniture set. Bagginsbill, I really must object to your using photographs as thumbnails on the furniture set--that's most unfair. :P

Quote - Might want to wait on the car - new ones are coming. You might find a modern vehicle more useful. Colors will be different (I research the stock manufacturers colors and then add some of my own choices) but the actual shader will be the same.

Thanks, I'll probably do that then. ;) 

Quote - The movie set has wet stone, puddled stone, wet wood, damp wood. The camera equipment black material is kind of unique - a bumpy black anodized (I think) metal. There's a pretty nice copper and brass on the lamps - using some of the techniques in my newest metal set, but not all. If you were of a mind to put 255, 215, 150 in there it would also make a great gold. Accurate chrome. Perfect thin glass in the lamp glass. The camera leather is new - not the same as the free BBLeather. The rubbery material for the power cords is new, and the rubber on the camera eye cup is really good - totally over the top work for such a small part. The paint on the poles is interesting. Glowing cloth on the diffuse lamps is interesting. There's no light bulb in there, but I made it look like there was. That set was hours and hours and hours of work.

On the car, the car paints are improved over anything I gave before, especially the candy apple red. (Although it is not the perfect one I have in the queue) The tricks I did with the headlamp glass are useful, to make lit versions as well as remove extraneous colors that were in the photo of the headlamp texture. It also has the thin glass shader.

The furniture has the new stained wood I mentioned earlier, which is incredibly useful. The colors were carefully chosen which takes hours of test rendering under many light conditions. You could make them yourself, but it's a lot of experimenting. That's why I'm making so many presets for the set. Chrome, brass, pewter, antique (aged) brass, and iron are important materials in that set. An accurate mirror material (no mirrors do not reflect 100%).

 

Thanks. Sounds like I'm off to put the car in my cart as well, awaiting the day I have money for them all. ;) 

Ou la la! Looks fantastic!

BTW, what materials am I missing out on in the movie set and car? The movie set I intend to buy anyway, but I have no use for the car unless it comes with awesome materials I must have. ;) I mean, I [i]know[/i] the materials that come with the car are awesome, but I have the BBGlossy shader...Are there any fancy materials I'm missing with the car set? 

And know all I can see is iPod commercials! :P Good info to know, though.

Quote - I don't even know how to choose anymore. There are just too many beautiful combinations.

Of course, the stain is a parameter so you don't have to stick with my presets. You can make an infinite number of variations yourself, too.

I want this. Like, in my house. Only replace the fixtures with brushed brass or wrought iron. O_O Note to self: dedicate entirety of now very limited budget to everything BB releases. 

Quote -
M4 is being weight mapped as we speak by the kind folks over at Poser Place (same team that did the V4 WM.)

Paience, Grasshopper.

I know, but weightmapping will change M4's bends but not his shape. :/