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[blackchicken]

Hello

I have some long time consuming projects so I still use H10, but new projects I started to integrate into H11 (heh soon, when H12 is behind the door ) I love my settup in H10 with light template, vex global ilumination with some map and area lights for add details. But in H11 something changes and I realize to start learning PBR. There is little project from last night. 5hr modeling + render settings and tests. Final results from 40-2h render. Close shots takes more ofcourse. DOF, a lot of glossy materials, enw light and objects light. Im really happy with the results but my Boss will not with these render times so what about some render chalenge to speed up a render time and little bit denoise dof areas? Ill post scene later. There is picts.

Settings:

PBR

720p

white point 0.9

Pixel samples 10x10

min ray: 1

max ray: 9

noise level 0.01

refl limit:2

refr limit:2

diff limit:2

color space gamma 2.2

color limit 4

These settings I found somewhere on the forum and little change for my purpose.

[Erik_JE]

From the top of my head. Decrease pixel samples to 7x7 maybe and then keep decreasing noise level until desired result. It have been slightly faster for me. You could also try with diffuse limit at 1 instead if it works for the scene.

Also of interest is sampling quality on your lights. Usually keeping them at default 1 gives the best result vs time.

EDIT: By no means an expert but this have worked best for me. Someone can probably give even better suggestions.

Edited September 8, 2011 by Erik_JE

[blackchicken]

Thanks a lot Erik. Ok Ill try 7x7 and diffuse 1 and will play with noise level. Sampling quality is 1 on all lights.

I have couple of question.

1, glass, I want glass shield on the front of model. But. I dont want refractions, I need only transparency with freshnel for fake, and reflection thats all. But glass shader, or mantra surface with refraction off and transparenci 0.2 forexample, still has full alpha,like full refractive glass,bad for compositing. Must I write my own material or is there some quick solution. Or add reflection forexample to RAMP material, there is frshnel build.

2, Ill add some lights on the doors, and want some volumetric. Ill do it in post I thing, but which technique i could use? What do you use. I experminet long time ago with spotlight with some mantra volumetric shader. And then composite, But I remember render times was big. Some solution?

ref:

3, Lensflare. All post? I want of course do everything in houdini. Just do a little star geo and then blur in post or what ever? Which technique do you use. Im not composer, so sorry for a stupid questions.

ref:

all must be ready for animation ofcourse. Thanks a lot guys.

[Erik_JE]

1. Alpha/opacity falloff on the opacity tab and disabling refractions should get you what you wan't.

2 and 3. No idea really but think they are common to do in comp. At least lens flare. I think you can make volumetric lights with sprites as well as they do in some games. Should be faster to render but limits what camera movement that can be done.

[stevenong]

Hi,

For volumetric lighting, you can use volumes which renders reasonably fast and you have control over the quality through the Volume Step Size of mantra ROP.

I referenced one of the images in the collage you posted.

Cheers!

steven

volumetricLighting.zip

[Alexander Weide]

Thanks a lot Erik. Ok Ill try 7x7 and diffuse 1 and will play with noise level. Sampling quality is 1 on all lights.

I have couple of question.

1, glass, I want glass shield on the front of model. But. I dont want refractions, I need only transparency with freshnel for fake, and reflection thats all. But glass shader, or mantra surface with refraction off and transparenci 0.2 forexample, still has full alpha,like full refractive glass,bad for compositing. Must I write my own material or is there some quick solution. Or add reflection forexample to RAMP material, there is frshnel build.

2, Ill add some lights on the doors, and want some volumetric. Ill do it in post I thing, but which technique i could use? What do you use. I experminet long time ago with spotlight with some mantra volumetric shader. And then composite, But I remember render times was big. Some solution?

ref:

3, Lensflare. All post? I want of course do everything in houdini. Just do a little star geo and then blur in post or what ever? Which technique do you use. Im not composer, so sorry for a stupid questions.

ref:

all must be ready for animation ofcourse. Thanks a lot guys.

you can save rendertime if you kill some things in mantra surface shader... if you dont wanna use refractions or displacement on some shader kill these nodes inside the material and you will get faster render times.

i dont know why but its the experience i got..

next thing is...build your own shader networks...and dont forget..your pictures dont has to be photo accurate -> it has to look foto accurate...try to cheat a bit. it helps alot..... other way is to Render some thing in passes and combine it in composition so you able to change resolution and sampling rates. And please dont render Deph...Try to make it in Post. Houdini got a very excelent Post-Deph Effect in chops. its better than the nuke version....

Watch at Digital Domains Making of Movies online www.digitaldomain.com you will see it only has to look fotoreal it dont has to be;) cheers

Edited September 8, 2011 by Mainframe123

[Stalkerx777]

you can save rendertime if you kill some things in mantra surface shader... if you dont wanna use refractions or displacement on some shader kill these nodes inside the material and you will get faster render times.

i dont know why but its the experience i got..

next thing is...build your own shader networks...and dont forget..your pictures dont has to be photo accurate -> it has to look foto accurate...try to cheat a bit. it helps alot..... other way is to Render some thing in passes and combine it in composition so you able to change resolution and sampling rates. And please dont render Deph...Try to make it in Post. Houdini got a very excelent Post-Deph Effect in chops. its better than the nuke version....

Watch at Digital Domains Making of Movies online www.digitaldomain.com you will see it only has to look fotoreal it dont has to be;) cheers

Sesi has fixed a bug with mantra surface, when displacement get evaluated, even if was turned off.But it' in H11, for H10, you can build much simple shader, and this will save you rendertime.

But i totally disagree with making depth of field in post. True bokeh effect is pretty fast in mantra, and looks much better than any hacks in post

[blackchicken]

guys thanks a lot for your time. Ill try your volumetric setup, thanks.

for lence flare a saw some cool tutorials on nuke and saphire plugins, I thong that it will be may way. Iwill try do a 3d like effect.houdini hasnt some post cop lensflare,right? I would like to do whole project in houdini. thanks.

[smaugthewyrm]

daniel phillis posted: a link for a little COP chromatic aberration.

http://houdiniadventures.blogspot.com/2008/04/weekly-research-chromatic-aberration.html

network chromatic aberration

after a quick bit of google-fu regarding the lensflare cop, it would seen that back when mantra switched to vex, sidefx let the lensflare atmosphere shader die. bummer.

all of this goodness rests in nuke though... maybe you have access?