I'm already a member there.. Thanks :D

My best advice would be to just play around.. Its not really about what content you have but how well you manipulate the program. Take some time and several test renders just playing with your material settings and dynamics (which there are several great freebie dynamic items here for download.)

I learned a lot by taking some of the freebies I downloaded (example: EvilInnocence) and studying the material settings for those items.. You learn so much just by adjusting and playing with those dials and numbers, you can really create some interesting depth using basic shapes and figures.

I used P4 for a long time and was wary about stepping up to 7 and I have to say, I was overwhelmed at first too. Just remember to work at your own pace and have fun! :D

Quote - > Quote - > Quote - ...Good grief! I just went back and had a look at my own gallery - some of the stuff I've got posted is just awful. I feel like I should just go and delete about 90% of my gallery because it looks terrible. I may do that. What was I thinking with posting some of that stuff?!?

You may wanna consider leaving it there. I mean, it's a good barometer of progress over time - to see how far you've come, both technically and artistically, no? ;o).

Laurie

I had exactly the same reaction seeing my older stuff - how shocking! - but you're right, LaurieA: I need to see where I've been from time to time, in order to say: "sheesh, need to pick up my game... haven't gone anywhere in a while!"

Thats how I feel too.. I even went and dug up one of my very first renders to make sure to keep it in my gallery so I know where I came from. I'm nowhere near an expert on Poser or art or anything like it but I have learned quite a bit and I feel I've grown as an artist and I like remembering where I started.

Quote -   No doubt my pics will still be flawed but at least I'll have the satisfaction of knowing they are honest works and not vacuous eye candy.

I just want to comment on that for a teensy second. IMHO, there is no such thing as 'flawed' art at least from what I have learned... Its based on interpretation and appreciation. If the technical side is whats getting you down about creating a project, then maybe what would be best is to focus on exactly what it is that makes you happy and proud of what you make and/or upload. When it comes right down to it you are your own worst critic (I'll try not to throw out any more cliches) and if the work you are currently producing doesn't satisfy your creative need then consider what it was that you did enjoy about your older work.

Try not to worry so much about 'perfection' and 'flaws' because no matter what you do, you'll see those every time but make sure that what you did make in the end makes you happy and proud enough to show it off.

One sign that I know I've made something worthwhile is that I want to look at it. Don't do something that you want to upload and forget because then it WILL NOT make you happy and will keep you in the rut you're currently in. Make sure you want to look at your new image and even go as far as to set it on your desktop as a wallpaper or something....

 The only reason I am obstinate about using Flux is because I'm familiar with the program. Its a newer version of Spazz3D which I've been using since 1999 and I'm almost a bit afraid to try out a new building tool... So I guess its my own fault I have to jump through so many hoops :P

 I can completely understand the import/export headache you are feeling.. When I build props for Poser, I start out in Flux which is a freebie 3d modeling program that I believe you can get from: www.mediamachines.com/downloads.php (the Studio 2.1 NOT the player) then once its all built I need to convert it to a mesh object then I need to texture map it in there or it won't render properly in Poser. Then I need to export 3DS and open it in Max to do the material selection so it isn't necessary to texture each piece seperately (otherwise you might as well build with Poser primitives) then I export AGAIN as an OBJ file then import to Poser where I have to AGAIN select textures and re-size.

So as you can see.. I understand but due to how Poser works, I just suffer through :P

Quote - Apologies if this has already been said, but when you upload an image you get to choose the sort of feedback you want (critical, non-critical or both). Surely nobody's going to be upset if they get critical comments when they've chosen the option that invites them?

While I agree with this and make sure that every time I upload an image, I have this option selected.. most people who upload just leave the default settings and upload without thinking about what it says. In my experience here, the same group of people get the same comments from the same other groups of people which places them in the top commented and rated sections of the galleries.

I would love more critical comments on my images, I joined this site originally for the free stuff (I won't lie) but I've grown to appreciate what I've learned. Awhile back we had the critique group which worked out well at the time.. not exactly sure what happened to it, I think it has its own gallery now?

Someone had said earlier in the thread about how some aspect of post work could take 2 minutes while rendering would take an hour.. I laugh a bit at that because most of my end results with post work is something that takes 2-3 hours in post work but saves me 12 hours or more of rendering coughatmospherescough

Anywho, thats my $0.02

*Hehe thank you everyone.. I got her from my fiance who bought her way back when she came out so I didn't know anything other than what came on his zip drive LOL! He promises me that the morphs are there but I blame it on being pregnant and my brain cells are swiftly disappearing so I'll just have to break her back out and see if I can get them working :P

Thank you again for everything, you guys rock! :D*

*For some reason when I INJ the base morphs, I don't see these options :(
I mean like these for example:

*- TorsoThickness

• Pregnant
• StomachDepth
• BellyThickness
• TummyOut
• BellySmooth
• BellyThin
• WaistWidth
• LineaAlba
• AbsHeightR
• AbsHeightL
• LoveHandleR
• LoveHandleL
• NavelGone
• NavelSize
• NavelHeight
• NavelVertical
• NavelHorizontal
• NavelDepth
• HipsSize
• HipsCrest

*ROFL You guys are a silly bunch :P This is what happens when I go to bed before the fun stuff starts LOL

Anthanasius: I do that every time I render and it still streaks. I've even gone so far as to reboot my PC, remove my desktop image, close down all non-necessary backround tasks and run on the bare-bones to get the render to go more smoothly and I STILL get streaks :(

http://www.renderosity.com/mod/gallery/index.php?image_id=1983514&np

There's the finished product after postwork guys.. Thanks again :D*

Its not a horrible thing and easily postworked like I said.. And no I'm still using 7 :)

The streaking, you can see is across the skin mostly.*

*Thanks guys I found it after Googling it last night LOL

I appreciate the help! :D*

*Uhh... I don't even know what that is LOL

The files have whatever character morphs came with the sets I downloaded.. Mostly freebies from here for Aiko and V4*

Side note on this.. It doesn't seem to do this with every save file, only a couple of my most recent ones and one or two of my older ones. I just ran a test through a folder of saves. I wondered if it was a content issue but one that won't open its just a figure with hair and no background or props while I have several that have props galore and dynamic and such that opens up fine.