[def4d]

i don't agree, Maxwell is perfect for product viz, and Dielectrics are just great, no need weeks for three jars!!!

[Peter Shupe]

Calico Jack - please just respond to what I am asking. I don't want this to become a post to debate Vray over Maxwell. I want to get advice on how to make a better image with Maxwell, from this Forum. I know what is possible for the gurus of both of the programs and I want to find out what is possible for me! Thanks.

I will be updating images soon and asking advice - Thanks again.

Regards Peter.

[Mihai]

Also I find the AGS and glass materials very complex.

It's better first if you get more familiar with the parameters in the material editor before going into AGS (it's easy to understand once you grasp the basics).

What kind of glass do you want to make? If you show a photo of a similar glass it would help. Post it, and then say how you would make that glass, what settings you would use.

[Becco_UK]

Maxwell and VRay are both very good at achieving specific requirements. Maxwell for premium quality and Vray when a faster render is needed.

That said, a point often overlooked is that Maxwell has much faster set up times to get to the actual rendering stage. Personally, I would rather be getting on with something more useful than messing about with VRay parameters.

[Peter Shupe]

Thanks Mihai - that is the plan - get better with material settings . I will be doing just what you say. I have pretty much finished the majority of the modeling - and will be starting to work with materials - here is an update of the modeling progress.



Becco_UK - I agree with you - but I don't want this to turn into a post about the comparison - I look forward to comments on how to improve my Maxwell scene - thanks.

[Mihai]

The modeling looks good, I'm just thinking it will be time consuming to test materials in this scene, waiting for it to clear up every time. It's best to isolate one model in a very simple scene, and experiment with the materials there. You'll be able to advance much faster this way.

Also, the hanging ceiling lamps in this scene, if the bulb is covered by a glass material, they will cast caustic light into the scene which will take longer to clear up. You could instead add an AGS material to the glass part of the lamps, which doesn't refract, it only provides reflections so it doesn't produce caustic light. In this case it looks like you don't need a refraction effect for those lights anyway.

[Becco_UK]

Peter Shupe: Ok. I would suggest the title of your thread invites comparisons!

Good luck with your Maxwell endevours.

[def4d]

This scene will rock!!!

You can experiment the materials, via the Simball scene provided by http://mxmgallery.maxwellrender.com/, and learn from others users Mxm
This scene is calibrated, so it is the better way to learn!

[Peter Shupe]

Mihai - Yeah, I was wondering whether I would have to test materials in this scene to get an idea of what they will look like. How simple can I get to test materials? Can I just sit the object on a plane and use skydome for lighting? Or should I make a small room and use similar lighting to my scene? Thanks.

The lights are probably going to be one of my first challenges - the shades are actually quite opaque, very frosted. They almost look like paper. Again, can I test this is a very simple scene and will it look correct when I drop it in my overall scene? Thanks Mihai

Becco_UK - yeah, I guess I should have named it something different. I thought I explained it clearly in the first post but I guess a lot of people either want to vent or bash, or don't want to read the whole post. Thanks for the support.

def4d - thanks - I really hope it turns out as well as some of the renders I have seen here. I have downloaded the simball scene. Thanks.

Well back to work -lots to do - thanks for all the suggestions, they are greatly appreciated.

Regards Peter.

[Mihai]

Check the tutorial vids on materials by Mike Verta. They are in a sticky thread in the Maxwell forum. Your questions and much more are explained there

[Peter Shupe]

Thanks Mihai -I will do that.

Cheers Peter.

[NicoR44]

Fantastic modeling Peter!!! very nice.

[Mihai]

Sorry, they have been moved to the Tutorials section:

http://www.maxwellrender.com/forum/view ... hp?t=22956

[Peter Shupe]

Thanks Nico - your stuff is awesome. Hopefully it will come along once I get into materials. Thanks again.

Mihai - no probs thanks.

[Peter Shupe]

update - added some materials, selected a different view - I possibly should have tested materials a bit more first. I will try and refine materials. Is it a better workflow to do one material at a time once I have the lighting setup? Or should I setup lighting and materials at the same time? Thanks for the help.



Regards Peter.

PS - I will be getting into individual materials soon - specifically my pendant lights - I want them to glow like the material is less opaque - I will post a blowup for suggestions Thanks for all the comments and help with this image.