Rendering Trees

[pailhead]

Any time i do that i end up abusing it and it just doesnt look right. The thing is, i've seen some people who weren't that good at rendering, posting awesome looking greenery all of a sudden. I think it coincided with PGs lawn scattering tutorial, and something else. I was wondering if anyone was aware what that other thing was . Tt has to be some evermotion tutorial or something along those lines.

[snivlem]

Not really sure what you are even asking for? What i posted is a tree that directly came from the pack from your first picture.

cant be much else of a help for you. maybe post a picture of your own progress and we can critique it???

[simmsimaging]

I understand - and you are right: if you use a tool badly it's not likely to fix your problem well

Anyway, I think the answer is given above: better materials and higher density of leaves. I think the shape of hte willow branches/leaves exacerbates the problem, but it's common to all CG trees that are too thin, IMO at least.

I'll give you something to try anyway - and it's something I find useful for many, if not most, LWF rendered images. This only works in 8 or 16bit though, so you need to convert from full linear:

1) create a gradient map layer(found where you find pattern layers etc.) above your render. Set it to a black to white gradient.

2) set the layer mode to Overlay and set the opacity down to something around 25%. That needs to be tweaked on a shot to shot basis, but it gives a good starting point.

3) mask it to just the lower contrast areas if necessary

This technique adds a really nice bit of snap to an image and is really adjustable by playing with the gradient values and layer blending/opacity. It's quite powerful actually - probably something I would consider one of my "secret weapons".

Give it a whirl - I think it will go a long way to solving this particular problem for you.

[glorybound]

I understand - and you are right: if you use a tool badly it's not likely to fix your problem well

Anyway, I think the answer is given above: better materials and higher density of leaves. I think the shape of hte willow branches/leaves exacerbates the problem, but it's common to all CG trees that are too thin, IMO at least.

I'll give you something to try anyway - and it's something I find useful for many, if not most, LWF rendered images. This only works in 8 or 16bit though, so you need to convert from full linear:

1) create a gradient map layer(found where you find pattern layers etc.) above your render. Set it to a black to white gradient.

2) set the layer mode to Overlay and set the opacity down to something around 25%. That needs to be tweaked on a shot to shot basis, but it gives a good starting point.

3) mask it to just the lower contrast areas if necessary

This technique adds a really nice bit of snap to an image and is really adjustable by playing with the gradient values and layer blending/opacity. It's quite powerful actually - probably something I would consider one of my "secret weapons".

Give it a whirl - I think it will go a long way to solving this particular problem for you.

I do something similar to my exterior renders, but I lighten the base (grass), and darken the top (sky). I am probably the, "not very good rendering" guy, but this is something I do, too