Hi all,

I've been a POV-Ray user since I was 7 years old, and recently we uncovered an
old archive disk that had my earliest scenes on it!

My dad was writing his own raytracer in 1987 on a MicroVAX I. In addition to the
archive disk, we also recovered an old Betamax tape of his work from that time
period.

I recorded an interview where he and I discussed all of this and showcased the
recovered artwork. It's going to premiere on my YouTube channel on June 18
(loosely in honor of Father's Day).

I hope it's okay if I share the YouTube link here: https://youtu.be/MXErvBZ3CGI

The video features a huge amount of my old POV-Ray work, spanning from 2000 to
2007. When it premieres I'd love to hear what you all think! :-D

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(I tried to include the video thumbnail as an attachment, I think it dropped off
when I edited my message...)

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Attachments:
Download 'thumb.jpeg.jpg' (598 KB)

Preview of image 'thumb.jpeg.jpg'

The premiere will be in 24 hours now! :-D

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Hi Peter,

It was a busy weekend for me, but I made some time to watch the video.

It's pretty impressive that your dad was able to write a raytracer, drivers, and
other software from scratch!

I also liked the historical thread linking your dad's early renders, Pixar, and
your attempts to recreate them.

Especially interesting was the process to create that heart!
Making a clay model and then actually slicing it and "scanning" it by hand!
It's just about the complete reverse of 3D printing - going from the 3D object
to a projection in 2D.  :O

Looking forward to more interesting ideas and Pov-Ray scenes!

- BE

(Especially amusing was when you said, "... you decided that I was old enough
for you to teach me about Pov-Ray.")  :D

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On 6/23/26 6:52 AM, Bald Eagle wrote:
> It was a busy weekend for me, but I made some time to watch the video.

I'm flattered that you made it a priority, how kind!

> (Especially amusing was when you said, "... you decided that I was old enough
> for you to teach me about Pov-Ray.")  :D
lol That's my dad for ya

Thank you for sharing your reaction, and for the kind words!! :-)

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