Can someone rework and render my Blender scene?
I updated the scene with a city skyline but the rendering is noisy and the ceiling lamp doesn’t work.
Also I want the city lights to be brighter without just brightening the whole image of the skyline, which wouldn’t look good.
Can someone fix these things.
The .blender file is here.
They just want to know how to create lamp lighting and ceiling lighting, and for it to influence the environment in a flattering way. The ceiling lamp is in the file.
They also want to make the lights in the skyline background luminous without flatly lightening the image.
And lastly they want some help with the excess noise (Does it mean the lights aren’t bright enough??).
They want to be able to do things themselves, so this advice would be good.
How do I get my rendering quality to this level, what do they do that I don’t?. x. I feel like my scene feels compressed and small, when they want “Big”.
Eugh it’s really annoying that the file doesn’t come with my textures…
Can anyone just give me some advice on how to render my scene better.
Who is “They”?
If you want your image to look photo-real then judging by your first render it will take a lot of practice to get to this level. If you are fast and dedicated you could get to this level in about 3-5 years.
You could also look for paid tutorials that will advance your learning - check out the quality of work produced by the artists who are offering the tutorials, also check out their students work after completing the tutorials and if that’s what you want to achieve then it will be worth the time/money. FYI this is specifically related to software skills. You also have to consider your general knowledge in terms of photography, camera lenses/heights, interior design, basic color theory, understanding architectural drawings/language, lighting theory/practice, composition etc…
if you want to include your textures in the file make sure you embed them:
You have to think how it would be lit in real life.
For example, paintings are commonly lit by special accent lights above, as well as collectable aftifacts, like the statue.
Watch out for objects not to be too dark. The painting and also some elements are too dark and underexposed, so they look more like holes in the picture.
Look for lighting planes. Architecturally, you would want to make a less uniform lighting.
All your lights are currently white, whereas in real life they usually have very different colors. They seem white to our eyes due to adaptation, but if you take a picture by a camera, you will see that they are not.
Think about where lights could come from. For example, some light could come from the street, another from the ceiling, some lights could be off-camera.
You created materials, which are very difficult to light. Namely transparent furniture (glass), and mirror-like as well. Those are intricate subjects in lighting, and can easily break the picture due to its whimsical nature. Maybe try with more opaque ones first, and make reflections softer.
In your second render, the night city light values look clamped. Use a self-illumination material, so they have a proper brightness.
The statue ligting looks good. I also like the floor perimeter lighting.
If you want to become better at lighting, start collecting sscreenshots from movies with good lighting. It’s not an easy subject, because it can easily break the shot if done poorly. But it can also create different mood and visual style.
The torches themselves can be of different types. Go to the local lighting store, and examine, what types of light you can use. Those can be point accent lights, omni torches, directional for reading, directional for illuminating certain objects (artifacts, paintings), ceiling lights, decorative lights (candles, fireplace). Also flat self-illuminating panels of any form and shape.
There is not a single way to light a scene. Usually you can come up with different scenarios. For example, you can make indoor (night( and outdoor (day) lighting for the room. The lighting can be architectural, or you may create a certain mood. Lights can be very dim, creting intimate feeling, or it can be bright, making a more cheerful look. But you don’t want the lighting to be flat. Lights can be soft, or harsh. Harsh lights are better for drawing attention to a certain subject, but should be used with caution, as sharp shadows are attention stealers.
This is a good book on the subject https://www.amazon.com/Matters-Light-Depth-Creating-Memorable/dp/1879174030
First in architectural lighting, you want to think about key lights, and fill lights. A key light is the main lightsources with the most brightness and scene form definition. You might want to start with one or a couple of lights, defining the main lighting planes, and only later add another lights. Then there are softer lights to fill the surroundings. And then you might add accent lights. to create bright spots, which catch the eye, and create visual depth.
Thank you so much for the advice, it’s exactly what I was looking for.
My site is FrodeHaugen.tumblr.com If anyone wants to follow them.
The best advice I got a few months ago is that you need to perfect the materials of every object.
Don’t treat it as a “scene” but as individual puzzle pieces that come together to form something bigger.
Ironically, with the way PBR has found itself crafted into every render engine, lighting itself should never be an issue. If all your plants have solid opaque surfaces or your Sofa is missing micro-fiber fresnel, then it’s never going to look realistic.
Also, use photo references. Even if you think you could eyeball it, don’t unless you’re seriously well versed in how photorealism works.
Could I get more technical-specific advice on making the city skyline look natural and real. I guess the lights need to be naturally luminous at the higher ends, instead of being a flat image which is what I had done.