Daz 3D is part of 
Connect
DAZ Productions, Inc.
7533 S Center View Ct #4664
West Jordan, UT 84084
Licensing Agreement | Terms of Service | Privacy Policy | EULA
© 2025 Daz Productions Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Comments
To get a bit more specific, if you can link to an image you like, perhaps the amazing artists on this thread could 'reverse-engineer' the lighting, materials and postwork needed to achieve it. :-)
I read that, clicked that, saw that and still missed it! :roll:
The new ready-to-render scene is similar, I wonder how close that can get to the Isikol look?
Ok, with some patience and trial end error it is not too hard after all. Really, with some simple tricks you can create stunning images. Look at the one below. It was done in about an hour, from starting DAZ Studio to saving the Photoshop image. Now imagine you take yourself some time and spend some more time.... Watch out Isikol, I´m on my way :-)
Left is the original render, right after some postwork.
Nice start. :D Now you need some splashing effects on the ground and on the girl to show that the rain doesn't fall through the floor and figure. :P
Great work on the postwork background, but for the overall image, this is what stands out. (And this is just my point of view and how I see SciFi.)
In the original render, the woman's dark hair and outfit blends in with the background while the skin doesn't. (GOOD)
In the postwork, everything about the woman stands out from the background, making it look like she doesn't quite belong in the scene but was simply added to it. (BAD)
Since you're a fan of isikol, check out this tutorial of his
http://isikol.deviantart.com/art/AQUAMAN-11-PAGE-TUTORIAL-158080187
Notice how Aquaman is sanding IN FRONT of the ocean before postwork. After postwork, he is standing IN the ocean.
Something I've noticed by studying isikol's art, is that by blending the sole of the feet or shoes with the ground, you'll make it appear as if the character belongs in the scene.
I would take the before picture and try adding highlights on the character. Say moon light reflecting off of her since she's wet with rain.
I have nothing helpful to add but i did stumble across this guy at deviantart http://phelandavion.deviantart.com/ if anything his pictures would make a great study :)
Seems like he has quite a few pictures that fit the style your looking for and could be useful perusing his page. keeping in mind it looks like they use stock images instead of 3d but still.
:bug: :bug: :bug:
:bug: :bug: :bug:
I had the same look the other day when i was looking through their gallery, no seriously my head literally turned big round yellow and eyes bulging out. try walking around like that all day, talk about people staring at you. I think it made children cry it was that scary.
:bug: :bug: :bug:
While nice, seems all his work is just photography images mimicking others 3D art. Some good links to other artists that actually do the postwork style art though.
While nice, seems all his work is just photography images mimicking others 3D art. Some good links to other artists that actually do the postwork style art though.
Oh, he's the stock artist.. I thought he was the one doing the overpainting. I feel less impressed now. lol
Ah i see , he was featuring other artist that used stock footage (i am guessing it was his stock photos ?) cool but yeah this --->
nice collection of stuff to study still though
Yea, it is. I enjoy looking at before/afters. Makes me realize that things I think are impossible for me, are actually possible with enough practice.
Thanks to all for your comments!
I think that one important aspect with postworking is not to overdo it. Right now, here at the beginning, I am really so excited about all that brushes, layer styles, effects and filters and how easy they are to use. So I simply try to put everything in every image, which is certainly not the best idea :-)
Of course I would still be happy about any tips and tricks from more experienced users. I am also still unsure about the "correct" workflow, which means where to start and how to go on to get the best possible results. Now it is everything more trial and error than real work :-)
Ok, here is another one. Left the original render, right the postworked version. Again, done quickly, fooling around with brushes and filters. I had no idea about the final look, I just let it happen.
Ok, as I have written above, I like that rather dark style with high contrasts and strong colors. This is a great style for scifi and I like that look very much.
So now I am going to share some thoughts about lights, how I use them and what I think of them. Maybe someone out there will share his own ideas about them or can give some useful tips. I am always willing to learn and improve!
Spot Lights:
Sometimes hard to control and to find the right position. I tend to use "realistic lightning" in my scenes, so placing a spot somewhere in the scene just to have a light there is not my thing. But I like to use them as "artificial" lights for effects, like rim lights, fillers or bounce lights. UberSpot is my favourite because of its enhanced controls. Especially the fall off controls are very useful, because you can literally cut off the light right behind the character or whatever. This prevents spill over and saves some render time because all light calculations stop at the fall off end.
UberAreaLight:
One of my favourites. But you have to be careful, not to overpower it or the whole scene will become too bright. In my second image right above I have used an UberAreaLight and a spot as rim light. Thats all.
UberEnvironment2:
I was very excited about it when I learned how to use it but I got disappointed very quickly. It simply does not work for me and my style. I have often tried to use it in night scenes to simulate a blueish diffuse moon light, but it never worked well. I used the "indirect lightning with directional shadows" mode, set the color to blue and lowered the intensity quite a bit. But it never looked good. It always overpowered my scenes with light and I always had the feeling that it "washed out" the colors. I dont know if I did something wrong all the time or it really simply does not fit my style. Right now I have stopped using it and I use distant lights instead.
Point Lights:
Easy to use and to set up. Great for any kind of "realistic" light source like light bulbs, candles or street lights. I use them very often and always the LinearPointLight because of its fall off controls. I prefer them over spot lights whenever possible. In my first image in this thread (the rain image) I have used a Linear Point Light, as main light.
Distant Lights:
I use one or 2 of them to simulate moon light or to get a diffuse overall light in my scenes. Easy to use and give good results.
In general I can say that I always try to keep my lightning simple and I use as few lights as possible. This saves render time and makes postwork easier.
Ok, thats it. If anyone has some suggestions or ideas, please feel free to share :-)
Personally after using the Age of Armour advanced light sets i can't go back to using anything else.so i would say if it's in your budget give those light sets a try. I wouldn't say my stuff is overly sci-fi-ish or that it's even good so don't let that affect that affect your opinion on those light set lol but i have liked the results i have gotten from the AoA stuff.
Thanks for that suggestion. Actually I have tried the AoA lights a while ago. But after some testing I have returned them, because I did not find them very useful for my needs. In fact I had similar problems as with the UE2.
Funny, the more I learn about lightning and the more I work with lights, the more I come to the conclusion that the DAZ stock lights (together with UAL and UberSpot) give me the best results :-)
...like Dire Bunny I have done the same. I find I have a lot more control with the Advanced lights than I have with UE.
I find them much easier to create night and dark scenes with. Again the "Flagging" is a bit more complex, but at the same time offers a greater degree of control
The final picture in my post on page 2 (my namesake leaping down on the unsuspecting elf gangboy) used multiple Advanced Ambient and Advanced Spotlights.