Refract / Reflect Interpolation settings

[simmsimaging]

Hey all -
I have been trying make some sense/use of the reflect and refract interpolation function, but I just can't seem to get anywhere with it, and I can't find any threads on the subject. The manual is pretty thin on this one.

Here are two example images, using refraction interpolation (but the issues seem to be the same with reflect as well). The first has no interp. the second does. Note the rendertimes.



It's just a test of translucent/sss materials and I know a jade (sort of) bolt is dumb, but it's just the model I started with

The issue is that I can't seem to find a decent setting for interpol that doesn't have splotches all over it - and even at this level of splotchiness the render time is *longer* than without interpol. Clearly I'm doing something wrong.

Is there some sort of tutorial or documentation that can help me figure out how to use this function properly? My current settings are as follows:

Refract Glossiness: .5
Subdiv: 20

When interp. is on the settings used for this one were:
-1 /0
Clr. Thres: .01
Nrm: .4
Interp. Samples: 200

Any help would be appreciated, because right now interpolation seems almost completely useless!

Thanks,
b

[simmsimaging]

Just bumping this one.

Does anyone have any guidelines that might help figure out how to use these interpolation settings ?? I did some more testing and it seems that raising the glossy subd. and lowering the interpolation samples got a smoother result, but the render times were not appreciably faster than a straight non-interpolated render. Is there something I might be missing here?

Thanks in advance!

b

[RErender]

If there were one thing that could be removed from V-Ray that I'd never miss it would be the reflect/refract interpolation.

[simmsimaging]

I was beginning to wonder if it was like that. Thanks

b