Show Us Your Bryce Renders Part 10
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Richter! Welcome back! It's been a couple of years. These five renders each demonstrate how powerful and divergent Bryce results can be. Not one of these looks anything like a "Bryce" render, they look like Richter artworks. Hopefully you'll become active again as you once were. Who's got the time nowadays. So gald to see you back.
e-richter - Hey! So cool to see you back - what a surprise. We're still around so you can conclude that we're doing mostly fine. How's life on your side?
Never seen Beads Deflection before, it's an awesome render and so are Bane Relic and Minotaur Fortress. Who could have forgotten Morty?
EDIT - just checked at bryce5.com. All there but we seem to forget.
Ha, ha, you don't full me! You are nowhere near dumb enough to not come up with some good concepts (though not this one).
Good you did so. You could still make it more realistic, by adding some light inside the car with the open door. My indoor light is on when the door is open and that is quite usual. Still, a wonderful scene!
@e-richter: It is always a pleasure (though pleasure might be not the right word for some of your pictures hm... a pleasure with goose bumps perhaps ;-) to look at your pictures. Unique and intriguing.
Lanouk - very nice animation
Horo - thanks
Dziels - thanks
E-Richter - nice unusual renders, looking forward to seeing more of your renders
DZiels: Very nice lake-scene!
e-richter: Great renders, highly imaginitive.
Whew! This took a long time to render and needed a lot of tweaking even with ray depth on the main render set to 8. Had to spot render at 12-14 ray depth to eliminate unintended dark areas. Lesson learned. The scene is mainly a lot of transparencies instanced over a lattice, with IBL driven by one of Dave & Horo's volumentric sky HDRIs.
JStryder - wow awesome render, we don't normally see renders banked.
Hey there!
Rashad Carter: Thank you, I have something in mind. My love for Bryce isn't gone so I believe I'll be around for more bryce-rendering endeavors. Due to work and my own demands in the last few years I switched entirely to Maya and Zbrush (and Photoshop). Now I thought I'd fiddle around with Bryce to see where I'm at and and what's changed :)
Horo: I'm very glad to hear/see you and the others are fine and still into 3d graphics. I've been mostly creating models and painting textures for real-time rendering for games, not so much frame-rendering. I did a bit of Maya teaching also, short-term really, but it was fun and productive :) So my hopes now are to see if I can contribute in some way and help people (where I can) who are passionate about 3d, postprocessing or anything related really.
Electro-Elvis: Thanks man, I'm happy you like them. Trying a different setting/moods of what we generally make is always a challenge - be it cartoon or realistic with hints of comedy or horror.
mermaid010: Thanks, hopefully there are more to come.
Hansmar: Thank you, now I'll have to show something new. Time will tell.
JStryder: Good rock material and trees combination, also nice sense of height. The tilted camera brings the feeling of someone about to fall. I'm not sure if that was the intention, but it works.
JStryder - great mountain and trees, I particularly like the rising fog. I'm not a great fan of banked renders but it is often used to make a picture look more dynamic. Just because I'm not a fan of it doesn't mean it is not good.
e-richter - yes, I'm still with Bryce and mostly a purist as well. Though I'm the first to admit that this is a stupid attitude since the result counts and not the means how it was accomplished; it helps to learn what Bryce can do, though. I'm certainly looking forward to see more of your artwork.
JStryder: Wonderful render.
Sorry uploaded it in the wrong thread.
Horo - Beautiful results with the terrain in terrain experiment.
Slepalex - The skin texture is just perfect in every way.
DZiles - Wonderful render. I really like the composition.
Rashad - Thank you for constructive comment. Regarding the dead looking plant in the foreground, I believe I got it from the 3dxo website under aquatic plants.
Mermaid - Beautiful looking island escape
Launok - Now the scene looks complete. Great work
e-richter - Wow . Impressive work and very unique. Hope to see more of your marvellous work.
JStryder - Striking render. I like the ambiance that the low clouds provides
I tried to clean up my folders in Daz3D Studio and discovered different things I had forgotten completly. Was a good occassion to try out a few of them.
Hello people!
It took awhile to browse through all images of the current topic. Most of what I saw deserves appreciation, I have some nice picks of these works here I'd like to comment on, I haven't had the chance to do so before. Since there are quite a few renders, placing them all here would result in a too massive block of a post (if not already such), so I'll just use links to your images as originally uploaded. So let us get to it then :) Sorry if it seems too long anyhow.
Slepalex - Physalis
http://orig03.deviantart.net/bd82/f/2016/360/e/a/physalis_by_slepalex-dasx7uk.jpg
Физалис очень хорош, молодец! You're getting good at this and by all means you're reaching the limit of what can be done in Bryce. Let me also point out that I appreciate you're modeling your objects yourself. That's a step in the right direction and further shows the skills you have. What I really like about this image is the balance of light, colors and spacing. Good job there! Spacing between the models and correct framing is essential in this kind of imagery and you let it all "breathe" well. As a criticism, there are just two minor things - first being the procedural mat of the table and the second is the thickness of the vase's top part. The table diffuse color is spot on, but the bumpy pattern seems like something more of an organic (tissue) nature, like veins on a hand/leg. Perhaps being more classic and subtle with finer wooden type of bump could benefit your result. Then again it could always be an artistic choice. My standpoint is just a traditional one :) As for the vase - it does look like colored glass, it just needs to be a bit thicker at the top ends. Currently it matches the thickness of the tin cups. Since they're metallic this is fine. But the glass itself needs more "substance", otherwise it will brake easily.
Forest brook 2
http://www.daz3d.com/galleryimage/image/308636/forest-brook-2_full.jpg
As it is obvious from a lot of your renders, you can surely "tame" the scale of a vast scenery. That particular characteristic of yours inspired me before to do some landscapes of my own. Here in "Forest brook 2" I like what you did from compositional point of view - trees' volumes and distribution in foreground and far back seem to corespond naturally in relation to the brook and the topology flow of the landscape. I like that you tilted some trees, that's always important for me, brings both realism and aesthetics. Most of your greens are well chosen. My only remark goes to the too cold-green color of the grass near the brook. It wont hurt to be a little closer to the main grass colorin your scene, warmer green. Now it sticks out more than it should. Skycolor is convincing and the clouds work good. I'd always wish for volumetric clouds though (that's just me), even if those clouds are as high as now. Since this is a very good scene, I really have to try hard to find faults :) there are none. Hey, how about some wet moss where the water meets the wooden beams :P ? I'm kidding, good job, Alex.
Road in the Rye
http://www.daz3d.com/galleryimage/image/312306/road-in-the-rye_full.jpg
Well, I'm familiar with the original painting. Шишкин is more or less a legend amongst the russian artists. That makes a tremendous challenge for anyone who wants to recreate or come close to what he painted. So I can only complement you for this task. I'm not sure if you intended to match 1 to 1 his painting. I think not, judging by the road curve, yet you acknowledged some finer details very well - the rye itself - how it stacks and bends more prominently near the road, also the sky gradient and tree placing fashion. I already mentioned the clouds in general for the other render, so same applies here - if they can be more puffy and less bryce-ish, it's a +1 point in my book. My only critique for this image is to pay attention to color temperature of your yellows the same way you do for the greens. It needs to vary but not too much and for the rye itself colors ought to lean more towards the lively orange-yellow than dry hay-type of yellow-grey. Shadow color plays a role perhaps too. Just a personal observation. As a whole, that one work of yours might be one of the most convincing real scenery you've done up-to-date.
Hansmar - Roboderwish
http://www.daz3d.com/forums/uploads/FileUpload/a8/f5044707b5acaa126c2fe4d5cd43b4.jpg
The figures certainly look like chesspieces. Nice and eccentric. In order for those not to get lost too much into darkness (if not intended), try to place a round parallel light or spotlights low and to the side to lighten up some contours so all the shapes can be read better. I like the golden-jelly sort of appearance and prefer this one to the newer version.
Dave Savage - http://www.daz3d.com/forums/uploads/FileUpload/7f/0b9bb5a98f230bfaa70c380f44c471.jpg
If not for the wings (which is not your fault) this is pretty much real looking, aside of the fact that it is a Fairy we're talking about :) I love that you kept the noise of the dof rougher, the web is surprisingly neat and the pose of the fairy plus this shade of sepia makes this an artwork, if not photograhy artwork. Very good.
http://www.daz3d.com/forums/uploads/FileUpload/a6/8fd6c83b3cb6acb38c68f0532c7534.jpg
This reminds me of David Brinnen's art. Very good material work and lighting to complement it. The image is simplistic and yet complex at the same time. Artistically I like the presence of the raven, however I have some doubts if its size should be smaller. Maybe because the shapes of the rocks suggest something as high as a building. Otherwise, no flaws. The clean sky gives very nice contrast to the roughness of the rocks.
c-ram - Forest Stream
http://www.daz3d.com/forums/uploads/FileUpload/f8/7bf0d2138b2d2e3caf8968f49d99a6.jpg
Rare are cases when I just go 'wow' to a render. To put it like this - you know what you're doing! I can't fault it. Really. I've seen your other renders but this one grabbed my attention right away - realism of lighting, tree shapes and leaves, rock scattering, bump levels, water reflection and surface waves, frame cropping - all of that works increadibly nice. A "could-be Vue" render. Good job investing the time for taking photos for your own textures. Means you're really involved. As I said to Slepalex, with so good renders one has to try really hard to find ways to advise improvement of these pictures or find any level of criticism to share. So you're not makin it easy for me... However, maybe just one or two things I can say before I wrap up my amazement with this work of yours - you can scatter a bit more rocks and stones at the low left muddy foreground, it's the closest thing to us so let it tell more of its story :). Or, a large boulder instead with a finer bump, nothing exaggerated. Only a suggestion. The other thing is actually the Only thing that gives away it's a bryce-made render. It's a bit on the washed-out side. I'd say don't hesitate to have a little dark or even black in your shadows and more saturation. It is natural, especially in forests with denser foliage. I can understand that as an artist who works with Bryce, you tend to capture every bounce of light possible so the result could be closer in simulating reality, but if you use reference photos, don't let your eyes off of them for they show all the imprefect features a photo lens can have (even human eye for that matter), which in turn is the secret spice that can make a perfect render look like a photographic scenery. I can assure you that your artwork here is a perfect bryce render (I guess that's the first time I say this). If your goal was this - C-ram, you achieved it. If you were going for a photographic simulation, then turn your attention to bringing in more of this imperfectness, the aberrations, contrast enhancing and exposure-burning some bright spots (to moderate amount) for example, that Bryce alone currently cannot 100% handle. Yup, this is postwork I'm talking about and you're on its verge. You're ready for the finest of the details, or you could always press on and push it further with Bryce. That's the good thing about art - it's the artist's choice. So whichever suits you. In any case - keep up this level of dedication, C-ram!
cyberjym - http://www.daz3d.com/forums/uploads/FileUpload/6d/93167813470c3a70706d9c58be1640.jpg
Impressive detail and a lot of work. I'm certainly looking forward to see it finished. What I can recommend is using anti-aliasing, regular at least. I like the style of clouds being opaque and bulgy, just make sure you have them non-uniformly distributed - with bigger more pronounced bulges at places and at others you should have medium to small ones so there could be a gradual transition to shape up your clouds.
Electro-Elvis - http://www.daz3d.com/forums/uploads/FileUpload/c0/77e8d0968eae01b6f840ef9d7b9229.jpg
First of all the pose is very nice and relaxed, very natural looking. Your lighting is also well positioned, only a bit dimmer than I'd expect. Skin in bryce is tricky, not because we still lack SSS (at least not only) but if we assume it is an opaque "object", it will still vary in color, specularity and bump everywhere on the body. Most of the texture maps I've seen are on the uniform side in the manner of color variation and bump/spec. acuracy. So what can be done. Well, the sub-surface scattering can be effective but easily overdone, making people look like wax figures, to me that's not the magic solution, just the magic box that has to be filled with the right textures and affected by a good light rig. That is a complex discussion for another time though. I really am trying to cut down the mileage of this post, so maybe in the future I'll dive in deeper. Electro-Elvis, sorry for getting off track here :) Your key light is ok, but if you were up for a studio shot, in my opinion it needs to be stronger. As a general rule that works in portraiture and will give you nice results I'd say you need at least one more lets say cold bluish light (also rim light) to enhance all the outer silhouette edges at the back of your model so she does not lose shape in the dark there. You can always "break-out" of this rule as long as you need a certain effect like something appearing or sinking into frame with the help of darkness, some scenario where you artistically get rid of secondary non-important planes/pieces/body parts/clothing/etc elements that eventually fall out of your general composition or concept, or just need diminishing, while leaving your showstealer in full light. So your case here I believe is within the studio shot scenario (correct me if I'm wrong, always... please). And as such, forgive me for taking the liberty to point out certain locations and edits on your render, this way you can see it better and I can explain better. http://cold-may.com/br/pose_1.jpg
Here you can see the bluish contour by a rim light I painted, it should be set back and pointed in a way that will not disturb the main lighting, it only serves to help bring out some back detail of the hair, shoulder and the arm. Aside of that your skin tones are very much a great base, as the skin needed only its yellows and reds boosted a bit so the warmth of the skin pops out better on the monochrome background (that can be done to the texture or make main light slightly warmer and brighter, depends.. perhaps both will work in combo). Also I brightened up some areas that ought to be hit by light bounce like the left knee, the resting hand and right cheek. Old school weak radials can solve that for you. Make sure you don't tilt your render to visually remedy the position of the body. That is, if it seems off to you for whatever reason. Which is not the case fortunately. She's lying on a flat surface so the bottom end of the render should be lined up to the horizon. As I said - the pose was nicely done, so all you need is to adjust the camera. Lastly (don't hate me for that, it needs to be pointed out :)) that's a photography rule, but applies here - whenever you take a shot/render of humans, humanoids or generally something that has anathomical joints, try not to crop the frame through a joint or some pivotal part such as the waist or ankle for example. You handled your setup with care, why would you cut away from it. Show her at her best. I hope that was helpful.
DZiels - http://www.daz3d.com/forums/uploads/FileUpload/ee/a59709e910ce9a03ca9e2ac9292995.jpg
That's very impressive! Reminds me of Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. There were forts there very much like this one, distant trees and the clouds work very well, I particularly like the water, it's reflectivity and wave height are not overdone. I'd just wish you saved this image with higher quality, since some pixelation/noisiness in the grass areas are evident. Otherwise, no qualms!
Vivien - http://www.daz3d.com/forums/uploads/FileUpload/ca/2e3a325bcdc9bd8a987cdc10b7d146.jpg
I too think the second version is an improvement, and a major one. As such I'd recommend to save a copy of it and try to play with the perspective a bit, you know, to give your scene more of a dramatic angle/approach. It is important for the story you are telling us to show whether these ruins are an archaeological find, an exhibition of sorts or we're viewing something that we stumble upon for ex. while walking through the forest. You can play with the camera's field of view too if you decide on a different angle. Also, let these vines and bushes creep onto the foreground tiles, given enough time nature always takes back its toll :) so you could try something like that. Nice materials I must add. Technically you should also check to see if all the columns and structures are firmly positioned on the ground. I see an equal-sized crevices at the bottom of the mid- and far-left columns. When using negatives to cut away from imported models, make sure the cut planes don't face the camera because of the hole they leave in the models. Only bryce-made objects translate boolean cuts with filling the holes appropriately. You can always fill these holes with a stone or a terrain/lattice to simulate broken and eroded surface. Speaking of the mid-left column, you need to finish the cut completely because I see a bit of the top part hanging in the air :) The foliage palacing is very good. Keep it going, Vivien!
Dan Whiteside - Femme Fatale
http://www.daz3d.com/forums/uploads/FileUpload/d4/3456d47ae5a42b304825f69516e3b6.jpg
Hello Dan! This is like talkshow gone wrong. Funny thing is that I have an acquaintance with almost the same haircut and face features, but she would rather use words to kill, not a gun. Everything seems so tragic and funny at the same time, essence of a talkshow indeed. I have to ask - is there a policy here where only non-harmful imagery is allowed to be posted with no graphic content. I'm asking because most of what one would need is there - concept, action poses, light setup, materials and all. I.. just.. miss.. the blood. Cause and effect, that's all. Talking about striking image, with a bit of red it surely would've spilled out of the renderframe. Nontheless, very good one, Dan.
Horo - Foothills Morning
http://www.daz3d.com/forums/uploads/FileUpload/f9/6ed7965c6d1698a84fd047101d345d.jpg
I'm a fan of this one too. That's a detailed terrain, and naturally looking too, I was going to ask if this time you had relied on different software for achieving this. Have you thought of putting some structures to complement the eroded landscape, like nature taking back whatever had been built upon these hills and mountains. Perhaps I'm still influenced by Vivien's setup, hence I suggest you such things :) I believe it will be a very intriguing experiment to place something sci-fi related or part of a city that sank into the green and crumbled into debris. I'm thinking some of Stonemasons models or anything that conceptually as an architectual object could "oppose" the fine landscape you created. Just a thought.
And here's my latest work, an Abyss Lily, lives deep underground. I used Bryce, Photoshop, AfterEfects and good ol' Apophysis. Since the workflow isn't too short of an explanation, I'd rather make a different post about it tomorrow. Take care for now, guys. Laters!
here's a better resolution
http://cold-may.com/digital/abyss_lily.jpg
Richter : this is a real pleasure to see you're active again and with such beautiful artwork! Your last one with apophysis is awesome! Also, thank you for your long and constructive comment on my stream render.
Here's another picture using speedtree and once again inspired by shishkin painter. Render at 64 rays per pixel with T.A.
Richter- Another excellent image. A bit surreal and abit abstract at the same time. Very nice colors and depth to the image. I have no idea what was Bryce and what was Apophysis. Being a post work master as you are, I'll never know more than what you are willing to tell me!
C-Ram- Stop right there! This image is just too much. You need to provide some sort of warning so I can make sure I'm seated when I'm about to view one of your works for the first time. Very good daytime feel, not always easy to accomplish in Bryce. The trees look very natural. The colors a bit subdued but it fits the mood of the piece. Nice arrangement and feeling of being surrounded even if we are not. Wonderful, top notch!
Richter, thank you for your detailed comments and criticisms, many of which are quite fair.
Physalis
On the countertop, I tried to make the bloated paint from time to time. This sometimes happens with numerous changes in humidity and temperature. I have several experiments with cracked paint. In general, the table top was important to me as a background. Just like the wall behind the still life.
As for the vase, I too late noticed that the glass should not be so thin. It was impossible to remake the finished model. It's easier to create a new one.
Forest brook 2
As for the tall grass on the bank of the stream, I have already explained to Rashad here.
Maybe I did not realistically depict the reeds ...
I also prefer the stage with volumetric clouds. Simply, I'm afraid that the render will not be 15, but 50 hours or more.
Road in the Rye
You are right, I did not have the task of creating an exact copy of Shishkin's picture, and that's impossible. But everyone who is familiar with the work of Shishkin, learned this work.
Yes, it was difficult for me to convey the whole gamut of shades for rye. This requires several models with raster textures. I have here a simple procedural texture for all the spikelets. Perhaps it was necessary to increase the saturation?
It's more like watercolor, rather than 3D. I like!
@Rashad : so sorry.. to take care of your buttocks, I promise I'll send you a mail before posting a new picture in the forum. Thanks for your very nice comment my friend!
I forget to mention that you can visit my deviant to see the picture at full size :
http://c-ramgfx.deviantart.com/art/Garden-above-the-lake-670099620
C-ram, you have reached unprecedented peaks in Bryce!
As always, I'm interested in the technical question: what is the height of your trees in Bryce units?
Deserted pond
Bryce 7 Pro. Render Premium 36 rpp. Render time 9:41:40.
Lighting: sun and Sphere Dome Light.
Modeling: Bryce, Wings 3D.
File size 45.7 MB.
*******************
I am also inspired by Shishkin's works.
JStryder – Looks great. I love the vegetation growing out of the cracks and the moody feeling.
e-richter – Great renders. The spheres and Bane relic are incredible renders. The Minotaur Fortress is almost enough to tempt my roleplaying character out of retirement! Your Abyss Lily is another beautiful image created with several different tools. I'm curious to know what elements are from what sources. I realize that describing all the steps would require a tome.
Thanks for the complements. I'm not sure what is going on with the image quality. What I uploaded is definitely cleaner than what downloads – especially the water and foreground rock and grass.
Electro-Elvis – Another fine figure that conjures up a number of possible stories... Is she calling a storm or holding one off?
c-ram – WOW! You've done some incredible work with the trees. I love an image that draws me in so that I want to be there. I'm ready to drop the picnic basket and spread the blanket in the shade... I can almost hear the frogs croaking at the pond. Awesome!
I agree with Rashad that the colors are a bit subdued but I wouldn't mind seeing it with a little more contrast and and a little less blue in the haze... or maybe it's my monitor. Either way, great job! And like Slepalex, I'd like to know what Bryce dimensions you've used to get such a natural feel.
Slepalex – Another fine render from you. You have a natural looking mix of plants in the foreground. Looks great!
Electro - elvis - It is certainly good to go through old files to see what goodies we have forgotten about. She looks like she is summoning the storms. Not sure about the object below he left foot. I can't work it out.
e-richter - I really appreciate your comments to everyone and insight. I will try to play around with it as you suggested with perspective and growth of the vines..... As per the floating part of the column I take total fault... When I first modelled my columns in Bryce them I used negative lattices to cut through them everything looked in place . As I went back to the render and started changing and moving things around I ended up with the (U.F.O) to tell you the truth I tried so hard to put it back into place but as you can see without success. Well back to the drawing board.
c-ram - If it wasn't for the pouring rain I would go across the road and take a photo to send to you of the park at the end of my street that looks so much like your latest render that it's not funny. Of course your trees are looking much healthier and I really like the material of the sandy ground on the bottom left. Again Marco, you leave me speechless so I just bow to your brilliance.
Slepalex. I'm always amazed at the vastness that you can produce on your renders. Such a relaxing view. Just gorgeous.
I too was going through my old files yesterday and found one of my old apophysis fractals and decide to play with it and embellish it with Bryce
vivien - thank you. Beautiful Apophysis shape and render.
Electro-Elvis - very nice render with rediscovered lady. Looks like an evening mood.
Richter - thank you for your comments, as if bryce5.com came alive again. The TE is quite powerful but unfortunately very slow and thus difficult to work with it. I use an external landscaper and export terrains 8192 x 8192 and with 32-bit floating point height values. I process and combine them as HDRI, then down scale to 4096 and reduce to 16-bit integer as Bryce accepts, and apply several convolving filters (if appropriate) using the tool I programmed myself. Finally I import the height maps into Bryce. Creating a terrain or two usually takes the better part of a full day.
I'm not an artist, I do not try to match artworks, my result would certainly be an insult to the artist I try to copy. Rather, I live from my imagination and often get carried away while working on a scene. I usually end up with something mediocre and seldom, quite by accident, with something a bit better. But this is fine by me, even if I find the next day that my incredible work from yesterday is actually only crap which happens all the time. But the main thing is, I had fun.
Your Abyss Lily is just outright beautiful.
c-ram - absolutely beautiful, Marco. I don't agree with the suggestions it could be more vibrant and have more contrast (oh it could, but that would convey a completely different mood). I like it the way it is. I have the impression the sky is covered with some hazy clouds (as the rather white-ish sky suggests) and this makes the light a bit subdued and the colours a bit less saturated. There is sunlight on the ground, but not with the brightness of a clear sky. Rendering with TA was a good choice for this scenery.
Speedtree trees look very realistic and it also shows that you have mastered the program. I'm always awed when I see your vegetation.
Slepalex - your vegetation is also always outstanding. I like your open landscape very much. In my eyes, it is not photo-realistic but rather as realistic as a beholder at that very place would perceive it.
I set out for something different but ended up with comparing trees with real objects as foliage (Bryce) and with foliages made of 2D-faces and their outline defined by the alpha channel of a picture (Xfrog). If transparency is used to define the shape of the leaf, there is no transparency channel left for translucency. It depends on the scene whether translucency is key or not. For all four renders below the sun provides the key light, once from the right and once it is behind the tree. Ambient light is by an HDRI, for the Bryce tree with 100% IBL shadows, for the Xtree ones 50%. Whether an HDRI or a dome light is used, if it doesn't cast any shadows, it looks like ambience, i.e. flat.
There are two BTO trees combined for Bryce taking up 86 MB of memory (file 9 MB) and there is only one Xfrog tree, using 134 MB memory (file 38 MB). This includes two 512 x 512 resolution terrains and the low resolution HDRI. Render time for the Xfrog tree is 16% longer.
Without translucency of the foliage,a backlit tree looks as if lit from front, though the shadow proves that it is backlit.
e-richter: Thanks for the comments. In this case, the darkness was intended, but thanks for the advice; I may use it next time. Wonderful abstract flower you made there!
c-ram: What an amazing realistic render! You really use your speedtree very well, but also put all elements to good use (grass and such). Very well done!
Slepalex: Another marvelous landscape. Great level of detail and I really like your water plants.
vivien: Yep, deserves a place center stage, that Apophysis creation!
Horo: Very nice experimenting! I wonder, can the shape of the leaves and the translucency not by in one and the same transparency map?
@e-richter: Thank you very much for your detailled advice. I really appreciate it. I'm actually rather a Bryce purist. I know this may sound a little foolish and I am the first to admit there is actually no reason not to use any postwork to achive a convincing result. And nevertheless ;-) We've all got our little pecularities. Therefore I tried to follow your suggestions and rendered the bikini lady once more. I added a bit of fake SSS, which in other words is ambience driven by the genesis SSS texture. It is quite difficult to find the right balance here. As you mentioned add a bit too much at the skin looks waxy. Light comes from 2 spehre lights with 100 % soft shadow (for the front) and a blueish back light. I am not sure, about the camera angle. And in the end I confess... I used Photoshop's tonal correction. So much about the purist ;-)
@All: So many really outstanding pictures and each had deserved a remark. I hope i will find the time soon.