Timeless_16

I just tried that and it still resulted in the same roof. 

I updated my Signature, I had one before, apparently it's been awhile. And thank you!

Hi, 
 

I am trying to do a gambrel roof like what would be on a shed - First image is what I am trying to achieve. However, when I follow the How-to help within Chief X-13, I get this - second picture? I am know it something probably simple I am not checking or realizing? Ideas?

Thanks, Zac.

Hi All,

This is a really dumb question but am I doing something wrong? When I upload a X-11 PBR render to Facebook, the quality seems to dip and doesn't look even close to what it does inside CA in terms of image quality. Is there something I'm missing?

Just curious if there are any users near the St Louis area.

Hi All, 

Is there a specific raytrace tutorial that shows a more step by step process and how to set things up for faster rendering, etc?

Hi,

I'm going to be upgrading to X11 most likely today (this afternoon). And I read where there is an option for a physical hardware lock for someone who's going to be off internet for more than two weeks at a time so the program keeps operating. 

I was wondering does anyone have one? 

How much is it? And is it available if you are doing the rent to own. I'm going to do the rent to own until January and then pay the balance off.

Thinking of upgrading and going from HD Pro to X-11 but wondering if I have to redownload all the bonus catalogs again in X11 or can I just import the ones I had for HD Pro. I'm sure there is a difference but thought I'd make sure.

I just tried to get the settings exactly as you have them and I come out for some reason drastically different. I am not sure what I am doing wrong. Is there anyway at some point this weekend could we Skype or do like a Team Viewer for some teaching help? Or maybe video clip? I set my sun exactly like yours and I got this. 

Edit: just had a thought, if you could save that file after you adjust it and send it back to me, if it would open up like that or if it would change some of the numbers maybe? Just a thought.

22 minutes ago, TheKitchenAbode said:

I made a few changes to the sun, added a few area lights around the kitchen and changed a few material properties. All of these changes I made should be possible in HD PRO 2020.

 

Wow! That's a HUGE difference!! Can you do a quick write up on it (how to) of sorts? Like what you did sun wise, what material changes and area lights?

The first image is the best HD PRO 2020 PBR render I could get. 

The second image is the Sketchup render done with Podium. 

There is a difference as I went back in and changed the cabinet faces on the right wall. 

Also I know in the podium render the under cabinet lights aren't on, I just was doing a test.

TEXTURE FILE FOR OLD BARN Project.

Old_Barn_-_Chief_Help_textures.zip

Hi All, 

I am hoping someone can help me out and just take a look at this and see if there is any room for improvement or ideas. I created this model in Home Designer Pro 2020 and I am having an issue with getting the PBR rendering to look more realistic. I have reached out to a few users on here and also a few mentors that I have in the Facebook group. I am really struggling with this, at this point, I can't afford the CA X-11 upgrade which several people have told me is one part of the issue, the other being I am just not adjusting things correctly (lighting & materials). I know HD PRO is limited, I know that from the start BUT I know that what I am getting can be a bit better. I am at the point where I am wanting to further my designs and work on designing as a side gig, eventually maybe more. Everyone keeps telling me that one or two jobs will pay for the upgrade but, right now financially to put that much money out without a guarantee of ROI, I just can't do it. 

I have never been good at Photoshop and there isn't much of a tutorial with regards to relating it to a project done in HD PRO or X-11, at least that I have found.

I am wanting the render to look more on par with the image that I was able to do in Sketchup using Podium. But that is not a viable option at times because the only output HD Pro has is .dae and there is some form of an issue with the file size that can be imported, anything over 20-25 MB seems to "import failed". I was able to import this project and got the results that I posted in a reply to this thread, since there is only 25 MB worth of attachments I can put on this initial post. I thought I had a work around with renders but the file size fails that option. So I need to somehow work with what I have an improve upon it. 

I have attached the file if anyone has a few minutes to look it over. It would be greatly appreciated. I would really love to stick with HD Pro and can't afford the steep curve in price for X-11.

Old_Barn_-_Chief_Help.dae

Tried this morning and same thing, only had a sliver of one of the recessed light rings, but everything else including the rest of the fixtures were gone. At this point. I think I'm going to stick with HD Pro PBR and see what happens.

3 minutes ago, Chopsaw said:

 

It looks like the default material for ceilings in Chief is the same as the color used for the trim rings of the can lights which may be causing the issue.  Also the "Lighting White" lens may not be a recognized material.  Change those up and try the export again and there should not be any issues with exporting as .dae as opposed to .3ds

I'll try that tomorrow and see what happens! Thanks.

Has anyone done any interior renders in Twinmotion? I'm just curious as I tried it and when I exported in .dae format, (I have HD Pro so I only have the .dae "collada" file format).

When TM imports the model, it will import everything, including the chandelier and or pendant light, however recessed can lights, will not show up.

Ideas?

How is this? I adjusted some settings the best I could and played with the drop rates as well as the PBR settings.

2 hours ago, TheKitchenAbode said:

Yes, it does look as if you have fewer options concerning the material properties. However, as Chris_Kelly states lighting is extremely important, both sun and your actual light fixtures. You can play with material properties all day but if the lighting is not correct it will never look very good. In the sample you posted the lighting needs to be worked on, for example, if you have the option on your recessed lights to change the drop rate I would increase this to eliminate those hard transitions between lite regions and non lite regions. You may also need to adjust the sun angle and intensity, for most materials their reflective property is mostly influenced by the sun.

 

Here's an example on a project I'm working on now. The reflections in the backsplash tile are the result of the sun setting, same for the sheen on the cabinetry and the floor. The internal lights don't really contribute much to this reflectivity, you can see this if you look at the backsplash to the left, almost no visible reflectivity even though there are under-cabinet lights there.

 

In this example, same project, note the softness in the upper in-cabinet lights, no hard transitions, that's due to the drop rate being set higher to 9.0.

 

I'll try to mess with the lighting tonight, I do have drop rate options, so I will adjust it and see if I can get it any better!

Thanks for the advice both of you!

3 hours ago, Chris_Kelly said:

I'm by no means a pbr expert, but I know a bit more than your average bear. One of the aspects that make pbr so realistic in chief are the different maps you can apply to a texture that give it more realistic shadows or depth or shininess, etc. It looks like HD doesn't have the option to include those maps, like the normal, bump, ambient occlusion maps, etc. So that's going to limit you a bit. But another big part of getting a realistic rendering is lighting.

 

In chief (and I'll assume HD) you can add extra light sources to a light fixture to get different effects with shadows and "hot spots" in the light a fixture is casting. This can go a long way towards having a more natural look. Another option is to download a (currently free till Nov.) rendering program called Twinmotion. You can import your model into it and use their textures and lighting to potentially get a better look. I played around with it a bit and it may or may not be worth your time long term, but its free so it's worth trying out.

 

So I guess my only helpful advise regarding HD is to experiment with additional lighting sources with different settings. Get a baseline, take a picture. Make a change, take a picture. Flip back and forth between pictures and pick the better looking one then try to improve it further.

I've tried Twinmotion and like the concept and seems similar to Lumion. However, the model loads okay but the light fixtures from HD Pro do not import with the model which leaves and issue.

I have Home Designer Pro 2020 (NOT X-11) and it has the PBR feature. I love it but I'm still struggling with setting up specs for lighting and materials. The materials from what I understand are PBR capable if within HD Pro but importing textures for materials just has an image and a pattern upload, nothing else for using a multiple file like a PBR file that you would be using in X11, but I'm okay with that since HD Pro Catalogs plus ones that I have purchased are huge.

I seen a titled "Let's PBR" and the thread is huge and I have read through a ton of it. I am wondering if there is a guide that exist for PBR rendering in the program, as far as, what settings for rendering go with what combinations, etc. I understand that the Home Designer Line has less abilities than X-11, but I also know that if you work for it, you can do it. I also know that the PBR, is supposed to be nearly the same capability wise according to CA. I do realize that a lot of it is by look within the model as you are modeling and using materials / lighting / etc, but I didn't know if there was a write up of different baselines to go by or if this is just something I am going to have to learn as I go?
 

I seen renders on that post mentioned above and they are incredible and thought that any advise you all could offer or guidance would be worth asking. I am looking to increase the realism as far as I can go without going to an external render, I have been down that road and it just leads to much more headache than I am comfortable with at this time. 

I added the menus that control the materials and the camera / rendering, so you'll know what I have access to. Also added a render I just completed not too long ago for reference of what I can do currently.