OK, I got C5withTrans. It is totally unlike every other program I have in that I cannot figure out even the simple stuff. I truly need help to understand how to get off the ground. When I opened the program, I was caught off guard by the "window" that overlays the main screen..I cannot see where to use this in the tools, much less use the tools as when I try one of those I get 1 to several new windows. So...can someone please direct me to the very basic> basic tutorials? I looked here and did not find anything that would assist me. ThanX! I really need your assistance this time.
*totally lost and not ashamed to admit it!
Ariana

Start with the manual. Under help. Basically you have 5 rooms - Assembly, Model, Storyboard (just stay out of there, usually), Texture, Render. Icons at the top right take you to the rooms. Assemble is default. Pull out on right w/ tabs is where all the features/properties are to objects. The bottom area is the browser and sequencer. Are you referring to the c5 splash screen? Just click on it and it will go away...that really should be made to do that anyway.

Hi CrimsonMoon there is a lot of stuff in Carrara and ren_mem is correct in recommending the manual as your first source, you could also go to lynda.com there is a great video tutorial for Carrara 5 but it not free.

Check out eovia3d.net for some tutorials on C5 another great source of information.

Many ThanX to you both! LOL! and I thought Hexagon was complicated! Well I have lots of time to learn. So I will get the books and read the boards for insights to the program. rem_mem, a special ThanX because much of what you said actually helped to explain and partially demistify the windows that were popping open left and right! BTW...the screen I spoke of is a rectangle with a large X that tranverses it. If this is also what you were referring to...do I right click or left click to remove it? Also is there a way to preset the functions to open the program with things in a more concise order? Last...the right hand slider..simuliar to the Poser menu options, I munderstand what that might be, so is there a place on line that shows screen shots of the interface and points out their funtions? Gosh I sound pathetic...LOL! Pity me, for the moment.
ThanX again,
Ariana 

ren_mem sorry for the typo on your name!
A 

That is perfectly fine about the typo...there are always plenty to go around Here is a screen cap to show what I am describing. I am not sure what you are describing. AN x in the upper corner..closes a window. Just like windows works. If you are on a mac and that seems odd...we are used to it. :biggrin:

didn't want to take the pic...here

hmmmm.... It is compressed to death sorry...kept saying it was too large.

No what i am speaking of is a transparent box with a lager grid X in it. Let me do a screen shot. See the white overlay box? That is what i was speaking of. I am having a bit of a problem finding the sizing tool for the window. And one thing that would be of emmense help is seeing the render in real time full screen...not in the little window in the right corner. I think Veiwing is one of the problems cause I can't see what I am doing. Is there a way to change the presets for that? I think it would help me enormously! ThanX! Ariana  

Notice our versions look different? What version do you have? and How do I check for sure what I have? I somnetimes question Daz...
Ariana

Hrm. Couple of things here. First because it seems simplest, you'll never get a real-time render that includes all of the lighting effects, post-render effects, and so forth. 3d applications, as opposed to 3d game engines, are built around a "set up then render" philosophy. The Assembly Room view is can be driven by either an Eovia engine or OpenGL -- the latter can make some use of your graphics card hardware. In either case, this view is optimized towards helping you place your objects and helpers accurately. It does not attempt to do real texture densities, reflections, or numerous other effects that appear only when you commit to Render. A useful tool is the Plop Render; there is a camera icon that, when selected, allows you to draw a marquee anywhere on your current window. That area will be rendered, ONCE, with all the bells and whistles. From your comment about the Preview Window, it is possible your Main Window(s) is not in solid or solid textured mode. I believe these controls are on the upper left of the window -- you can change modes down to wireframe or even bounding box there. The white box you see is a preview of what your currently selected camera will render. It should take the proportions specified in the render camera dialogs in the Render Room. You will notice that most of the navigation tools keep this window centered in your Assembly Room window, but some -- like scrolling -- do not. There is quite a bit more to it than that but the above should help you get a start. Check your preferences. Check your window settings. Look for "Interactive Render" as the keyword.

That's your viewing area. That area would render. I have latest C5Pro. I moved some things around...tools. They pull off. You can also change ui colors...I sometimes do that. Also the right menu changes based on what you are selecting. Look in the manual for the info on the interface.

Many ThanX No Muse!!! Would it be possible to post a screen shot of how to change my settings to get a "RealTime" view and also mset up the Render screen at full size? I would so appreciate it!
Ren Mem, ThanX for sticking by this thread! I am opening the program during the course of the day off and on...and it is starting to get the "Familiar" feel of something I can reccognize w/o fear! LOL! I honestly think it is a matter of setting up the preferences and presets to what I am comy with...like Bryce, it is daunting at first but better as time goes on.  I will keep an eye on the thread!
ThanX!!!!
Ariana

OK one other question is about the multiple rooms! I think that is also what is causing me confusion....I gather unless it is a clip/animation to stay out of the Storyboard as Ren Mem stated. But when I try adding a basic background it adds more places to be involved in and I get confused. Is there a way to utilize just one window and get a saved render from it to start? So I can get familiar with what each room does???
Ariana

OK! Here's what I mean! I selected a "Scene" to start...this is what I am looking at...I don't know what to do with this! It isn't comfortable to work with...because I have no point of reference! How can I model up a say...mountain, without being able to "See" what I am working with. Ariana

*Scene is "Icy Moon"

ARRRRGGGHHH! LOL! Yep I can't do anything...YET!
Ariana

Ariana,

For your early sessions you should keep returning to the first chapter of the Carrara manual, the Basics, to learn what the names are for the various rooms, controls and windows, where to find them and what you can do in them.

The Carrara 5 interface has more space for the 3D view than previous versions but its getting a little bit too busy, especially for beginners.  The icons used to be bigger and friendlier.

If you are familiar with Bryce and Poser then there are a few things to point out that are different in Carrara.

You should recognise the little ball and the direction arrows on the far left side that move the camera.  In Poser these orbit the camera around the figure, or face or hands depending on which you are on but in Carrara there are only two default cameras.  They orbit around the current selection so try to select the object you want to look at and work on before you move the camera.  If you loose the camera and dont know where you are click on the Camera name in the top left corner of the window then choose Set Position to...   |  Reference.

The properties tray on the right is similar to the one in Poser but it doesn't have the nice easy dials that you can spin.  You can make objects visible here, change their name and get direct access to edit their materials.  At the bottom of the properties tray is the list of objects in the scene, just like the Hierarchy Window in Poser.  There is also a list of objects in the sequencer window.  You can use either of these in place of the little triangle below the scene view that you get in Poser.

You probably wont want the sequencer window in the way most of the time.  If you click on the handle of the Sequencer tray at the bottom of the screen then it will close and look a lot more like the Animation palette in Poser.  If you click on the handle and pull the tray right up and out to fill the screen then its like clicking on the little key in Poser to get to the animation and key frames window.

The browser tray in Carrara 6 was moved and you can only get to that only by rolling out the bottom tray far enough.  This is like the library in Poser but there wont be any figures or hair there until you add them, its more like the 'props' list.  You only have to drag and drop the thumbnails from the browser to add things to the scene.  However unlike poser they wont start out in the centre and on the ground unless you drag them into the scene list on the properties tray !

Anytime that you create certain objects, such as dragging in a moutain from the top toolbar much as you would do in Bryce, Carrara will automatically move to the 'model' room.  You can return to the view of your scene, the Assemble room, by clicking on the icon of the hand at the top of the window.  Also if you want to shape the terrain by hand use the Map Editor button.

To get a fast rendered view of your scene use the Test Render tool which is the little camera icon on the bottom left side of the main window.  Press escape if that is too slow or you want to abort the test.

I expect there are quite a few other new users to Carrara, like yourself, who are a bit lost.

PS:
I have a separate older computer for my internet use and keep my best PC isolated for security reasons.  I haven't installed Carrara or any other applications on this one that I'm using so I cant do side by side screen shots easily today.

...Also the soccer is about to start and its my national duty to stay up late and watch it.

Nice rundown of the basics, Sparrow. I concur -- Carrara is getting complex enough, reading the manual as you experiment is looking like a better and better idea. Just to keep from having to stare at an empty scene too long, tho -- both the Browser Tray, and the Scene Wizard that pops up when you start a new scene, allow you to load up complete preset scenes. Try one of these, see how it is put together, render it, play with it, try selecting and changing things. It's a great way to get into a new program.

Attached Link: http://movielibrary.lynda.com/html/modPage.asp?ID=196

Take a look here. You might also want to look at the C5 handbook...at bookstores.

My current modifier project is snowballing (but under control) and I could do with a mental break and to revise some of my own methods.

Attached is a test image from when I first got Carrara 5 Pro and it uses the Transposer 2.  The figure is Michael 2 but I made the skin texture maps in Carrara, this is using a procedure similar to Shonner's but perhaps mine is more complicated, I haven't looked at his in detail though.  The hair was made using both Carrara and Poser using a rather sly technique which I've almost perfected.

Now, the background scene here is a great one for testing figures using the Transposer.  You can find it in the Browser tray in the Scenes card under Indoor.  You can then import a poser pzz or pz3 scene file with a figure.  Most of the shaders/materials come through perfectly but you will need to manually set reflection on for the eyes and tweak some of the settings for the best results.

I noticed that the Tutorials section here at Renderosity for Carrara is pretty weak.

I'd enjoy writing a few tutorials to help out beginners like Ariana trying to get results with Carrara and the Transposer.  Unlike many other Carrara users I was very pleased to hear when DAZ acquired Eovia because I wasted a year of my spare time and then gave up on finished work inside Poser with version 5.  Don't get me started on all the reasons why but the Transposer was a god-send.  I still finish my conforming costumes and figures and pose them in Poser though.  I really hope, and expect, Carrara 6 or an update will have fully integrated figures, texture based hair and clothing as simple and easy to use as Poser 4 was.  The Carrara 5 'native' mode is almost there but the 3D preview needs to be better.

So that said, and these tutes would have screen shots, would a priority be a simple straight forward lesson on transposing Poser figures against a fixed backdrop and then how to adjust the materials and render settings for realistic lighting to match ?  Or is there more interest in how to import the figures into a scene and adjust the materials to get you started and on the right track ?

Jeremy
www.Sparrowhawke3D.com

I've drafted a tutorial that covers the steps needed to carry out the basic task of rendering a Transposer figure in Carrara 5 against a backdrop.

I've started on another one to help Poser users make the transition to working with and rendering their scenes in Carrara 5.

Anyone interested can find the link on my website.

Jeremy
www.Sparrowhawke3D.com

Top notch Jeremy. Would you make it available to Thomass site please. www.Polyloop.net.

Thanks. Okay.  Done.  I don't know if it suits the crowd there but we'll see how they respond.

> Quote - OK! Here's what I mean! I selected a "Scene" to start...this is what I am looking at...I don't know what to do with this! It isn't comfortable to work with...because I have no point of reference! > How can I model up a say...mountain, without being able to "See" what I am working with. > Ariana

 

All you need to do is insert an object, landscape or other item and it will take you to the modeling room or the landscape modeler.  There is a menu on the top, look for Insert.  Also that white overlay you seem to be confused about, with the white lines and crosshair is the render frame.  The program renders what is in that frame.  It is just like the viewfinder on a camera.

Hrm. Also.... it looks like the Working Box is not visible in your screen shot, Ariana. I assume that since "icy moon" is a space scene who ever constructed that scene turned it off. The Working Box is a set of three grids, sort of like an empty "Voyager" Holodeck, that can help you to orient yourself in 3d space, give you a ground plane reference, and in general help you to gather up the elements of a scene. (I generally hide the two sides and keep just the ground, myself). As Sparrowhawk says; you don't, basically, model a mountain or anything else in the Assembly Room. When you drop an object into the Assembly Room (from the menu at the top), you will automatically transferred to the Modeling Room for that class of object. If you insert a "mountain" (aka a terrain), you will be sent into the terrain modeler, which has a specific workspace for creating terrains; a fly-around preview, paint tools, fractal tools, etc. If you insert a "tree," Carrara will open up the tree modeler; a set of pages with previews that lets you set the parameters of a procedural....ah, palm. (And Peter picked a peck of pickled peppers...) And so on and so forth. Each kind of model you insert pops up some sort of interface that is specific to that model, with the tools to work on it. Another method of populating your scene: The "handle" on the bottom center of your display, if tugged, opens up the Browser Window. Within your browser are, among other things, many pre-built models. Don't know if these late thought will help the OP, but they might help someone....

Am I the only one who went through the "quicktour"?  I thought that was a pretty good place to start.  It's located on the content cd under "quicktour".  Comes in English and in French.  No sound with the animations though.