Okay 3rd time trying to post this message since when you mess up on the file size and press the go back button all your text is lost! arrrgh$!@###!@!.

This is my try at radiosity/true ambience/HDRI..its hard to discern from the 3 since theres no 'end all' tutorials on these subjects.So heres what it consists of ... Spheres with 'poolball' mat,and Slightly bigger 'glass' spheres surrounding them. 155 Radial light dome,and a huge hollow soft white sphere surrounding the whole scene.Not yet fully rendered but you get the idea.

What is this called?How do i get those groovy 'HDRI' reflections?How can i improve this image? I thank you.

Do a search in the forum for "HDRI" and you will find numerous threads covering this topic. Just my opinion but for me there is way to much reflection on those balls. I am an avid wielder of the cue and I cant remember any billiard balls with that much reflection.

Yeah there are alot of comments,but like i said no 'end all' tut. I wasnt really going for realism.Reflection is what this image is about,not the actual balls.....

First of all, it looks great so far. I would tone down the brightness of the lights you currently have, then add three spotlights above the balls to simulate a real pool table light. Increase the size and brightness of those three lights, then try the render.

Put a photo image on your huge soft white sphere. Something with windows and fluorescent tube lights on it. That's where all your neat reflections will come from.

What you have now is some lightdome, and some fake hdri. Real HDRI (contact me for the site if you want to read up on it, its quite complicated, but once you get it, you get it)CANNOT be done in Bryce. Only fake HDRI. by putting a white sphere around your scene, and having reflective objects, your objects are getting white ambience from the surroundings. This is what the bryce sky dome does as well. However, if you put an image on that sphere, your objects now get different colors of light from the surroundings depending on the reflectivity. Thus, and image can be made with no lights whatsoever. A REAL HDRI image has information in it that Bryce cannot read. Lightwave can. But you can still use the HDRI image on your sphere. images on your sphere look best when they are spherical, and HDRI images are. But you can use any photgraph if you want.The best description of FAKING HDRI IN BRYCE is this: -Leave the sun on but disable shadows -Make everything at least 10% reflective (more reflective= more GI effect) -Add an image sphere or a white area or a sky around your scene. -Leave ambience at zero, and specularity zero (unless you want something that looks like plastic) -For objects you want to be reflective, make the reflective/diffuse ratio about 85:15. For matte materials, make the reflective to diffuse about 10:90. For a defined reflection, make the specular halo about 30-43% grey. For matte objects, make the specular halo 251-254. The rule goes, more white in the specular halo value = more reflection blurring. -Now turn on blurry reflections, premium, 32RPP, and render. TADA! Might take some tweaks but it works great. Also fast renders since there's no shadows (biggest render time hog you'll encounter. This was posted by someone else, who I will mention in the next post here.

Oh yeah, I would take the glass spheres off the balls. However, you are the artist, and if you like that ULTRA glossy look, leave them on!

right now he's got a light dome and fake radiosity...there is no fake HDRI present in the image, he doesn't have anything to produce HDRI reflections... I like the radiosity effect, though, looks pretty good.

the pool balls are reflective and the white sphere, while not an image, is being picked up by the balls. Perhaps this would not be called fake hdri, but its the same principal. Isnt it? lol (I will accept any answer and assume you are right!) Anyway, the brief description I have above was originally posted by Madmax BR5. Check out other posts by Shadowdragonlord, Agent Smith, Drawbridgerep on this subject.

Want to know how I did this one?
"Hard Leave"If you do give me a little bit to do a tutorial, if not I wont.

LoL Like i said again NO 'END ALL' TUT ON THIS STUFF,This is what i get from reading the forum searches.Alot of conflicts between these subjects.Thanks for the ideas guys and i think i speak for alot of people when i say "FOR GOD SAKES SOMEONE MAKE A COMPREHENSIVE TUT ON THIS!"

Another thing,....I Cannot lower the intensity of the dome radial lights its on setting 2 if i go any higher the image is blinding white if i go to 1 its too dark.....if you look directly under the 8 ball you see some sort of ripple effect the Radial lighting has left,know how to get rid of it?

um I did I hear a please? hehe I will have a tut on what I did in a little bit. But it is what I did it may not be what others do.

Attached Link: http://www.renderosity.com/viewed.ez?galleryid=673488&Start=1&Artist=kaom&ByArtist=Yes

I'd love to see your tut, there's so much to learn about this stuff. I'm in the process of trying to master shooting photographs of a gazing ball and creating LAT/LONG HDRI Images in HDRShop.. I've experimented with a few techniques in Bryce, the Ambient white sphere/Global Illumination, and the same thing with a converted HDRI map on it.. Both ened up looking pretty cool. I'm really digging the environment mapping end of it, and want to shoot a bunch of different environments to render in.. Here are some images I've done using these techiques, thet are in my gallery if anyone want to check them out. I'm waiting for Carrara 3 to arrive, it supports .HDR images, and I can't wait to do some HDRI in there. http://www.renderosity.com/viewed.ez?galleryid=673488&Start=1&Artist=kaom&ByArtist=Yes http://www.renderosity.com/viewed.ez?galleryid=664976&Start=1&Artist=kaom&ByArtist=Yes http://www.renderosity.com/viewed.ez?galleryid=668977&Start=1&Artist=kaom&ByArtist=Yes http://www.renderosity.com/viewed.ez?galleryid=665619&Start=1&Artist=kaom&ByArtist=Yes http://www.renderosity.com/viewed.ez?galleryid=667227&Start=1&Artist=kaom&ByArtist=Yes

I HAVE THE ANSWER!!!!!!!!! to the radial light setting question if your setting at 2 is too bright, and your setting at 1 is too dark. put the setting at 2, and change the light COLOR to a shade of gray. That is, change the value 255,255,255 TO 150/150/150. even at 10/10/10 you still get WHITE light!!!

ah very good or hey set it to 0 too. I have a tutorial done but I am waiting for approval!

Thanks to all,i can put most of these comments to good use. (hopefully)

Maybe this might help some people.... http://stevesartgallery.bryce-alive.net/tutorials/bryce/keyboard/shortcuts.html http://stevesartgallery.bryce-alive.net/tutorials/bryce/environment/reflective.html

It could be just me, but to the light domes don't look as good as using an ambient/GI sphere for the lighting...To me it looks more realistic, like real world lighting.. Theh light domes look beautiful and are amazing renders, but they don't look natural, the lighting is too perfect. The stuff I've seen of AS' using ambient spheres looks incredible, it's what made me look into it, and now I'm a believer....

http://perso.wanadoo.fr/azaghot-artwork/hdri%20with%20bryce.htm http://hdri.cgtechniques.com/~sibenik2/ These might help a little. First one is a great tut that explains Hdri in Bryce. The second is, well, it is. Louis

Thanks to Tanstaafl90