Looking to go from Averge CGI to Photo Real

[jamiemarshall]

Studio/Institution: N/A
Genre: Residential Interior
Software: 3DS Max, Vray
Description:

Hello,

 

So I've been trying my hand at doing Arch-Vis work for a while now, and a few weeks ago had a job interview at a fairly big local company.

 

There I was told that whilst I have the basics down, I really need to improve my work to make it more photo real. Since then I've been devouring tutorials, trying to improve my work, but I've yet to get anywhere close to what I would consider Photoreal, instead I'm left with what are blatantly CG images.

 

I was hoping the users here could look at my most recent work, and provide any tips on how to achieve this.

 

http://imgur.com/a/Q1vNc#0

 

Thank you in advance.

[jordanp]

The biggest thing that stands out to me is the flatness of the image - there's little differentiation between the foreground and background, and everything is evenly lit to the point where there are no deep shadows where light would not penetrate. Your textures also lack depth; are you familiar with bump mapping? Your couches look like smooth blocks, and your wood textured floor lacks any of the specular properties of real varnished wood. The wood table's texture also seems too large, and it looks like it's supposed to be veneer, but the texture wraps over the edge so it just ends up looking off. The fireplace lacks detail, it's pretty much just a pure color.

 

Also, small details, like...that lamp has no cord. The rug has no fiber. The buildings in the background lack depth. The TV is too reflective at this angle (it looks like a mirror).

[himanshuchoudhary]

Considering you will be looking at everything Jordan has already said, i think the image lacks contrast. Get familiar with the ambient occlusion settings, or try to find some tutorials online about the same. It can make your images pop ( will not be very useful without the bumps and displacement, keep in mind )

Also, the lighting can be improved a lot. There are no soft shadows cast by the wall with all the windows in the front. What was the rendering engine used? look into sun or light planes and the shadows cast with them. Instead of going for everything at once, start with an empty model with just the openings and glass and a simple grey material. Try achieving some play of shadows in the image.

[jamiemarshall]

Thanks for the feedback.

 

Jordan: Yeah, not too sure why the lighting was coming out like that. I imagine though its because I had to bump up the brightness in PS as i neglected to use the correct gamma settings. Fixed it now though I think.

 

There are bump maps on the objects, but they aren't showing up that well. I always end up having to go to a stupid value on the map settings to get them to show decent (200 instead of default 30)

 

Hadn't really thought of the little details like wires etc. been too focused on the big picture, so I'll get that in next time round.

 

Himanshu : Got a AO pass working now ( Infact I learned the entire "render pass" from scratch as I had neglected to do it)

 

I was using Vray, along with a HDRI and Photometric lights. I've since gone back and redone the lighting entirely ( Still with the same things though) and it seems to have come out looking better. I do use the openings/grey material to get the basic lighting working, and it always seems to look good then.

 

Here is my latest render of the scene ( Albeit without that many improvements)

 

[jordanp]

That's looking a bit better, but it mostly just looks like you dropped the brightness and lost the warmth - it looks like it's an overcast day outside.

 

Would you mind sending me the scene? I'd like to see what I can do with it using Lagoa.

[jamiemarshall]

Well its been a while but I've gone back and worked on the scene some more. The lighting is still horrible, god knows why though :S

 

 

I will see if I can get the scene uploaded and sent to you Jordan, but its being a pain as it is.

[jordanp]

Wow that's cool, it looks a lot better. The floor and rug are especially improved. I don't really have any crits at the moment - it looks great!

[CliveG]

Is there any post work on this image?

 

There are guy's here that could take that image as it is and really lift it to the next level just with their PS skills. There are still things to improve with the image as it comes out of the renderer, but post work is where some of the magic really happens.

 

Perhaps that's the next thing for you to check some tut's and have a go at?

[Chris MacDonald]

The exposure is wrong. The image should be much brighter, and the outside should almost be blown out entirely - outside is brighter than inside during daylight hours.

[himanshuchoudhary]

Just a quick test with some post... took 5 mins..

But yes, the exposure on the image looks wrong...

[jamiemarshall]

Thanks for the replies everyone.

 

There was some Post-Production work involved, although it was mainly only bringing in the separate passes to enhance the image, along with some curves/levels/color-correction editing done.

 

Post-Production, along with "advanced materials" and lighting are still sadly my weak points. I've been following some tutorials to try and help this out, and did learn a lot from the newest Evermotion tutorial, but when starting off from a much weaker base point, that can only go so far. Are there any particular tutorials people would suggest to help learn these?

[Crazy Homeless Guy]

I would start by taking some time to research photography. Find some photography that has the feel and look of what you want your final image to look like. Study the way the shots are framed, how they are exposed, what the color balance looks like, how the nuances of the shadows help to give the space definition. Really study them closely, and then think about how to replicate them in your scene.

 

After you study the photo don't realy on your memory to replicate the qualities. It would be good to start off by opening the photo in 3dsmax image viewer. Use "File > View Image File...." This will keep the photo visible on your screen while you are doing test renderings. It will help you see and identify what you need to do in order to replicate the photo qualities.

 

I would also start off by working only with light coming into the scene from the outside. Turn off or delete all other lights in the scene. As you make adjustments to the light it will be easier to see how that light is effecting the scene and the learning process will be accelerated.

 

After you get the exterior light perfect you can begin to add in internal lights, but don't start with the interior lights on full blast. Slowly turn them up so you can see how they are effecting the scene.

 

It will also be beneficial to start with a simpler scene than what you are using. One window, one point of focus.

 

Reference photography to get you started:

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/162481499030675028/

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/162481499030668678/

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/162481499030665333/

[keithcase]

These are definitely looking so much better! Much improved.

Apart from the photographic inspiration and lighting recommendations above, looking to photography or drawing would also help in terms of how to knit together the background/HDI and the rendering. A good rule of thumb is that the horizon line is always at eye level (there are of course exceptions, but if you are doing an eye level rendering this holds pretty well true). And anything else at eye level, should appear to have flat lines, as opposed to lines that recede to the horizon. So if you are crouched down, and are rendering a shot of a credenza or table, then the top of the table should have lines that are roughly flat across your vision, whereas if you are above the table, the lines from either side should converge at the horizon. All of this is to say that with an eye level shot like yours, the horizon of the background image should be at about 5' up the glass at the outside windows, and should be flat across the image. Here are couple of examples:

 

http://boston.curbed.com/archives/2014/02/gobsmacking-w-boston.php

 

You can see in these images the horizon is at the camera level in each shot. When the horizon is lower than the floor, it basically means that you are looking up. Likewise with putting entourage in your photomontages: If the person is the same height as you, their eyes will be at the horizon. If the person is taller, then their eyes will be above the horizon line.

 

I hope this helps.

 

Keith