Z-buffer with Vray...

[Daniele]

I'd like to know if z-buffer is supported into v-ray.
I tried to render a scene as RPF (with Z-value activated in G-buffer), but It doesn't seem to work...

[samuel_bubat]

z buffer is supported. you just have to activate the z-buffer separately in the vray render dialog (GBuffer/Color Mapping Rollout).
Vray/RPF´s sometimes even crash max if you forget activating
the wanted channels in the Vray Rollout.

[Daniele]

That's what I've done! but it doesn't work:

A ball, a table.
If I render with scanline and saving rpf file I get the z-buffer (I can see it in render viewport and I can use it in Combustion)
If I render with v-ray (and, sure, vith z-buffer activated in the GBuffer/Color mapping Rollout) I can't get it neither in the viewport (all white) and neither in Combustion (3d fog, for example, doesn't work).

[Daniele]

Ehm... sorry but does nobody has my same problem?

[Biohazard]

Nope, sorry. It workerd fine.

But due to the fact the rpf's Z isn't very accurate + z coverage, you may want to try to render it in scanline (2nd pass). There are many solutions to do so. Use a white fog over black objects, or a fallof material in disntance to camera.

Anyways, you'll get a much better Z that way.

[mare]

Just a wild quess... Are you rendering image from perspective viewport?
If you are, render scene from camera viewport and Z buffer should be fine... or at least something else than pure white.

best regards,
Mare

[Daniele]

Thank-you!

[3dform]

That z-Buffer is working with rpf. I do it nearly every day.
Just one thing i dislike is: Z-Buffer isn't anitaliased, making depthblur a very hard task...

robert

[Daniele]

3dform, do you use z-depth in Combustion?
I tried to use it for 3d-fog, but id doesn't work: Combustion (v3) recognize the depth, but the fog remain totally white: with the same scene, but rendered with scanline, 3d-fog work well.

[Polakow]

i have the same problem

[neods]

Will Vray 1.5 make the z-depth feature better? because it lacks much in my opinion. When compared to example Cinema4d's same opinion it seems that this is from the stone age

[vance3d]

What are the options for z buffer in Cinema4D?

V Miller

[neods]

From the camera you can set the ranges and the z-pass can be rendered in to a separate file, etc. a tiff file. The z-pass is completly antialiased and works like a dream..

So how can this be done in Vray? when i try to render a z-pass it looks really strange while rendering, when the rendering is done it changes to white, and it looks like a alpha channel? Please help me!

[trixian]

Why would you want an antialiased zbuffer? That would mean it can't give accurate depth information around the objects edges.
Anyway. Just go into the effects dialogue and add "file output" to the list and chose the z-depth and your output path if you like. Pretty straight forwards if you ask me.

PS: If you need the zbuffer to look antialiased, but still retain the information crucial to certain software packages, just output it at double or higher resolution. It renders blazingly fast anyway. Then just resize the zbuffer in your favorite compositing package. If you're using say Lenscare to do DOF, it reads off the z depth information at the layers true pixel size. I.e before the resizing occurs. This is actually the recomended procedure in the Lenscare help file.

[RErender]

There is no rule against mixxing renderers, render your image in V-Ray and switch to scanline for for your Z pass if you want...