How to create less -clean- scenes

degsegura

I have been using Daz to create my D&D party. One of the party members mentioned that they look too clean and super model like. Which I have noticed as well. 

Does anyone have any videos or ways to learn how to create a more lifelike, dirty scene rather than a squeaky clean modeled look?

Richard Haseltine

Are you wanting to add clutter, or are you wanting to scratch and dirty the stuff you are currently rendering?

LenioTG

I guess that's mainly artistic experience and inspiration!

I would take a look at the work of SirTancrede, he's the best one IMHO to create complex lifelike scenes: https://www.deviantart.com/sirtancrede/art/A-Victorian-Dark-Fairytale-005-788869525

My 3D Spin

Or get Nick,s Collection for Photoshop. Its free. Then you have plenty of filters to dirty up your scenes with scratches and Light leaks etc...

Lissa_xyz

My 3D Spin said:

Or get Nick,s Collection for Photoshop. Its free. Then you have plenty of filters to dirty up your scenes with scratches and Light leaks etc...

Nik is no longer free. It was bought out by DXO some time ago and they promptly put a price tag back on it. Currently it's $69 USD.

/edit I stand corrected. Had to dig through their FAQ to find it. https://nikcollection.dxo.com/nik-collection-2012/

JonnyRay

If it's dirt and grime you're after...

• For Iray renders, V3Digitimes has a product called A Touch of Dirt for Iray which will add dirt/grime to any object in your scene.
• Riversoft and SF-Design have Skin Doctor - Dirt and Grime for G8F and G3F and Wounds and Blood for G8F for female characters or Skin Doctor - Blood and Bandages for G8M for males.
• For outfits, unless you're using that first product, you'll either need to rely on the vendor creating dirty textures, or figure out how to add your own dirt layers. I know a few vendors (like Aeon Soul) have started including worn / used textures as part of their products. Unless you're a lot better than I am at painting textures, you'll almost always get better results by looking for outfits that have dirty / worn textures available from the professionals.

On the other hand if the scenes seem "empty", pick up a lot of small props. This is a great time to browse freebie sites to get some odds and ends that will dress your scene properly. It's something that is missing in a lot of images, those little details that make the set look less sterile and more life like. I'm at a point with content that a good collection of bottles or vases or boxes, etc. is worth more to me than another modern bathroom.

m3than0l

I use Daz for the same reason and have been struggling with the same issue. I've found the best solution is adding tons of atmosphere in Photoshop. I messed around with adding grime and blood, but I ended up prefering a clean look for the characters themselves but layering smoke, dust, haze or magic effects in front and behind them. Also, desaturating the colours subtly really helps give it a gritty look.

A couple of my more recent attempts:

 

 

 

sriesch

  There are some shaders that add a layer of dirt/grime/blood/rust/rips-and-tears-in-clothing/etc. over the top of an existing material.  These work with varying degrees of success depending on what it is you are trying to add the overlay too.  Remember that you have the option of applying the shader to the entire objects, or to selecting just certain material zones, or even creating your own material zones to vary what is applied to what. That would likely be the simplest and easiest route.

  You can of course manually do the same thing in your image editor.  This will be a lot more work and could vary from quick and easy for something basic through extremely time consuming for something more complex.  If you go this route, explore the various photoshop brushes (or whatever works for whatever application you are using) as there are a bunch out there that will be very handy for this purpose.  There are brushes for just general dirt and grime, brushes for specific things like graffiti and scars and holes and cracks in objects.

  The scene dressing mentioned above is a third option you will likely want to combine with one of the above.  You might have a very nice grungy dungeon hallway that has perfectly square corners.  Some debris, bits of dirt and stone and pebbles and broken beams or wood slivers or tracked-in mud or a few rats or bones scattered strategically about can hide the too-perfect corners.  You can place furniture or foreground items or the characters in your scenes to hide a lot of the too-perfect edges.   (or stick a gelatenous cube in the distance to explain the squeaky-clean condition of the corridor...)

  Consider the use of dformers to add cracks, dents, or general irregularities to your room or the objects in it.