Dear POVCOMP competitors

Following the postponement of the deadline of the POVCOMP and after reading 
the comments posted here, I've decided to write a series of short 
"tutorials" that aim to help the participants to improve their images (if 
necessary). Several topics will be addressed in the weeks to come such as 
concept, composition, modelling, texturing, lighting etc. The term 
"tutorial" is used loosely in fact, as this will be mostly general advice, 
hints and examples taken from the vast world of 3D (or photography). 
Comments, corrections and discussion are welcome of course.

#1: References in 3D

While POVCOMP is a POV-Ray competition, its objective is also to demonstrate 
that our beloved raytracer is a fantastic tool, able to create fantastic 
images, to the large majority of people who have never heard of POV-Ray. 
These people will be seing these images in magazines or at computer trade 
shows: they will not compare the POVCOMP images to other POV-Ray images, but 
to the sort of CG imagery that is now commonplace in movies and advertising. 
The POVCOMP pictures will "compete" with the best, and, as we know, the bar 
has been raised a lot since the early days of POV-Ray.

The following links are examples of recent 3D work taken outside the POV-Ray 
community. It's just a very small sample, but it covers a lot of ground. 
These works are for most of them created by professional graphic artists 
using high-end expensive tools, and able to spend a lot of time on their 3D 
work. Is it possible to do images like these with POV-Ray? There's no good 
answer to that. Let's say that from a rendering perspective, POV-Ray can 
really take you far, or at least far enough for its own limitations not to 
be such an hindrance when it comes to create great images. These limits are 
mostly in the modelling and texturing (but external tools like Moray, Wings 
or Blender can take care of that), in the post-process features (forbidden 
in the POVCOMP anyway) and, somehow in the rendering speed (since it's pure 
raytracing). However, POV-Ray has also its own strengths - the SDL itself, 
macros, functions, isosurfaces or mesh instanciation, for example - and 
POVCOMP participants can build on that.

But above all, an impressive image isn't just a question of computing 
horsepower. If the images below are good, it is also because they are good 
in many things that are perfectly accessible to the POV-Ray user, such as 
concept, composition or lighting. So have a look at the eye candy below, and 
if you have entered (or plan to enter) an image in the competition, try to 
look for images thematically similar to yours and see how those graphic 
artists approached the topic. Look for the similarities and for the 
differences. What did they do that you can't do in POV-Ray? What did they do 
that you *can* do in POV-Ray?

Gilles Tran

Community sites
http://raph.com
http://www.cgtalk.com/

Books
http://www.ballisticpublishing.com/books/expose1/index.php
http://www.ballisticpublishing.com/books/elemental/page_gallery/

Artists' sites
http://www.this-wonderful-life.com/
http://www.dusso.com/
http://www.jsaarinen.com
http://www.rochr.com/
http://www.raycaesar.com
http://www.oken3d.com/index2.html
http://www.cartesiuscreations.com/
http://www.begann.de
http://www.3dluvr.com/pascalb/
http://www.optidigit.com/stevens/
http://olivier.cousinou.free.fr/
http://www.buhovec.mcultra.net/3d_art/_index.htm
http://pyer.3dvf.net/
http://www.h6.dion.ne.jp/~m.mirage/
http://www.neilblevins.com/
http://www.art.net/~jeremy/
http://www.xavier-marquis.com/
http://www.interstation3d.com/
http://www.seaofsaa.com/
http://www.3dluvr.com/elrafo/
http://www.eklettica.com/
http://www.rustboy.com/
http://www.savinoff.com/
http://www.oud-japan.co.jp/
http://lucbianco.free.fr/index_en.html
http://www.alexbroeckel.com
http://www.dermattin.com/3dwerkverzeichnis/
http://www.deluxepaint.net/
http://www.pexel.de/
http://www.trajectons.com/seize/
http://oury.3dvf.net/
http://www.beans-magic.com/home.html
http://www.frederic-st-arnaud.com/
http://www.antropus.com/
http://www.art.eonworks.com/
http://www.flepotron.com/
http://mr2k.3dvf.net
http://www.squeezestudio.com/
http://www.siulong.it/
http://www.3dluvr.com/carles/home_eng.htm
http://www.3dluvr.com/jonkajtys/
http://www.schloerb.com/
http://www.richardrosenman.com/
http://www.musa3d.com/
http://www.trinisica.com/
http://membres.lycos.fr/rimasson/
http://www.vetorzero.com.br/kaya/
http://www.juansiquier.com/
http://www.imago-design.it/gallery3d1.htm
http://www.bprince.com/

Software
http://www.caligari.com/gallery/ImagesGallery/default.asp?Cate=GImages
http://www.softimage.com/community/Xsi/Galleries/v3/Gal_Oct04/Gal_Oct04.asp
http://www.maxon.net/index_e.html
http://www.splutterfish.com/sf/gallery_index.php
http://www.e-onsoftware.com/Gallery/index.php
http://www.vrayrender.com/gallery/
http://www.alias.com/eng/community/galleries/image_gallery/index.jhtml
http://www.newtek.com/products/lightwave/lw-gallery/index.php?cat=2
http://www4.discreet.com/3dsmax/3dsmax.php?id=515







-- 
**********************
http://www.oyonale.com
**********************
- Graphic experiments
- POV-Ray and Poser computer images
- Posters

Thanks Gilles, I think this is very cool what you are doing.

In fact, way back in an earlier thread, there was a little skirmish over 
  whether you would be entering or not and you announced that you would 
not be.  It shocked me at first but then my immediate reaction was to 
want to respond with a proposal that maybe you could act in some sort of 
technical advisory capacity for participants.  But the idea never got 
past the fanciful stage and I wasn't sure how it would be received.  In 
retrospect I kinda wish I'd suggested it then.

On a personal note, I did not enter the contest myself for a complex of 
reasons, but one huge obstacle for me was the high resolution required 
in the specification.  I know that had I made the proposal, and had you 
accepted, questions about the pitfalls of producing high res images 
would have been salient for me.  And still are.  It seems to me that 
that is one of the milestones that separates you and the other 
organizers, who have greater experience technically, from many of us who 
are less far along.  Just wanted to throw that into the mix as you are 
putting together your tuts.

-Jim

Gilles Tran wrote:


> The following links are examples of recent 3D work taken outside the POV-Ray 
> community. It's just a very small sample, but it covers a lot of ground. 
> These works are for most of them created by professional graphic artists 
> using high-end expensive tools, and able to spend a lot of time on their 3D 
> work. 

Wow, thanks.  Those are some eye-openers and no mistake.  I was kind of 
stuck in the "how can I make the most realistic and detailed flowers and 
trees" mode.  That was competing with the "to heck with the flowers and 
trees, maybe I can model some stuff on a table in a room" approach. 
Time to do some serious re-thinking (and now we do have time.)

Thanks again.

Dave Matthews