Mirror reflection

[stager386]

I have created mirrors on two walls that intersect. The reflection shows this black shape that I can't get rid of.  If I delete one mirror, the reflection disappears. If I have both, it appears. Any idea? It happens whether I use an object (framed mirror) or floor material or back-splash material. 

 

Thanks.

[Dermot]

Unfortunately, mirrors can only make one reflection in a standard render view.  The dark grey you are seeing is what the other mirror looks like without any reflections.  If you turn off reflections for your current view, all of your mirrors will be grey. 

 

Mirrors can make multiple reflections in ray trace views.

[stager386]

Thanks.  So how do I get rid of that black box when I want to show a client a rendering that is not ray trace?

[Evolution]

Not sure if a material region would work for this (it probably won't since Dermot didn't suggest it)?, but I've used them before for other items in 3D view, for client presentations.

[Joe_Carrick]

1 hour ago, stager386 said:

So how do I get rid of that black box when I want to show a client a rendering that is not ray trace?

You can uncheck "Reflections" in the Camera Defaults or in the individual Camera dbx.  The other option would be to make one of those Mirrors a non- reflective material.

[stager386]

This is really perplexing.  There is no reason for these black boxes to show.  I need to show the reflection.  I have tried everything.

[DRAWZILLA]

Just ray trace it, I can do ray traces in a couple of minutes. other than that your out of luck. 

[Dermot]

If you need to see accurate reflections, I would recommend creating a ray trace view instead of a standard render view.

 

If you find the single reflection too confusing, you may want to turn off all reflections in your camera specification dialog.  Then all of your mirrors will be solid grey.

 

You may be able to create an image of your bathroom from the mirror's point of view and then use this image as the mirror's material.  This is how people used to create reflections before the program could do them automatically.  It's kind of a pain to do and it will be nearly impossible to make it look accurate though.

 

Another alternative would be to show your client a different kind of view, such as technical illustration or even a simple vector view.  These won't show reflections either but maybe they will look less confusing and your client won't be focused on what they do or don't see in the mirror.