"RogerA" <rog### [at] yahoocom> wrote:
> Hello, I have been programming since 1971. Back in the 1990's I had Ray Dream
> Studio. I just downloaded POV Ray and have been looking over the tutorials in
> the documentation. These are great, but rather limited. I also found some other
> projects which I started modifying but this also is rather limited. Are there
> resources which show you how to build different models, create textures, etc.?

Hi Roger, and welcome.  :)
There is the documentation, best read via the files in the distribution, or on
the wiki.     http://wiki.povray.org/content/Main_Page

Most models are probably created using the various shapes, and Constructive
Solid Geometry (CSG) methods.  You can use the drop-down Insert Menu to paste
some usable code into your scene.
Textures are generally created via a nested hierarchy using patterns, color
values, normals, and finishes.
There are examples scenes in the distribution, and plenty of code uploaded to
the newsgroups here.  Plus the Insert Menu, and various websites run by
individual POV-Ray users.
http://www.f-lohmueller.de/pov_tut/pov__eng.htm
Also there are a few [very] simple YT videos.

> I took a class using SketchUp Pro. It was really great but also very expensive
> for a hobby. It had ways to build a model and then use photos as textures.

If you want to use digital images for texturing, you can apply a simple
image_map, or use a uv map to "wrap" the image around the shape.

Check out:     http://hof.povray.org/
and there will be some links to the source files used to generate the images.

And as always, you are welcome to ask any questions that you like.

Again, welcome - and have fun.  :)

-Bill

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