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New sale items that need looking into////// (yes, you)

Griffin AvidGriffin Avid Posts: 3,837
edited April 2017 in The Commons

Firstly, I was obsessed with March Madness and scanned every product, every day so some of these MUST BE NEW and Daz is just slipping them in. lol

First and easy one, Saphire

https://www.daz3d.com/sapphire-bundle

At first, I passed her off as another anime-efly-cone-unrealistic figure, BUT I have beens educed. She is beautiful and I think I must have her (even for the feature mixing down the road)

Mec4d Pbs Shaders

https://www.daz3d.com/mec4d-pbs-shaders-vol-2-for-iray

I know very little about shaders, but apparently they do what I thought Materials did - and that is to change the outer appearance or "skin" of items. The before and after pictures (finally a vendor includes enough to sell his product) are all I need to see the value of owning this one. I think it's time to dive into another aspect of Daz and learn shaders. This is a perfect jumping point.

Subsurface workshop

https://www.daz3d.com/subsurface-workshop-sss-shaders-for-iray

My understanding is, it causes items to have some translucency and you can see a bit through the outer surface.

I admit this one is a little bit over my head, It needed before and after shots to demonstrate the difference it can make.

And I'm not exactly sure when I would use it. I typically don't have close ups of everyday objects.. Good for hair and clothes?
Would I see through the strands? or for lingerie?

iray shader kit 2

https://www.daz3d.com/pd-iray-shader-kit-2

What's her name? Wilma? Makes all those free products that everyone grabs when you first get here. Looks like this would breathe new life into older items or plain clothes. Time to bring those 80s fashions into the present or future. lol

Tears

https://www.daz3d.com/tears-hd-plentiful-tears

For emotional renders, sure. Worth mentioning it. I won't be getting this.

Zone Smoother

https://www.daz3d.com/zone-smoother-for-genesis-3-female-s

I don't do realistic renders so I'll pass on this too.

Marble Shaders

https://www.daz3d.com/marble-shaders-for-iray

Statues..and such. I did just grab that other figure to marble product so....I dunno about this one. Will need to see what the cart looks like to decide.

Human Reshade

https://www.daz3d.com/humanreshade-for-genesis-3

This is a CLUNKER. I have no idea what it does. No real examples of before and after. A promo video that is a short clip of nothing. No paragraph explanation.

This assumes advanced knowledge of shaders and it's somehow solving a problem - so this is more like a utility. I thought it MIGHT allow me change the characters Shades and you know, swap 'skins' around.

Headwear for Genesis 2 and 3

https://www.daz3d.com/headwear-for-genesis-2-and-3-male-s

Absolute winner and VERY unhappy that I missed this. I was going to make a product suggestion that there are no standalone-hat-products.

Must have. Every badguy can't have the same damn mullet or Caesar lowcut.

iray smart converter advanced skin management

https://www.daz3d.com/iray-smart-converter-and-advanced-skin-managers-for-genesis-3

WINNER! This looks like the one to get to adjust those skins and make characters lean harder or lighter in the color-of-their-skin-department.

Looks like there are 1 or 2 more shaders and such....

Before I pull any triggers, I'll run this past the collective and see what your reactions to this are.

Who owns these?

Who uses these?

Sensible purchases?
Absolutely can't live without?

Post edited by Griffin Avid on

Comments

  • LlynaraLlynara Posts: 4,772

    I have: 

    • Med4D Shaders - all three sets, use the first two a LOT. The 3rd is a merchant resource I picked up at a great price. If you only have $$$ for one set, go with the 2nd one, there's a lot of variety. The first is a very comprehensive metal shader set, but some of those are in the second set too. 
    • Subsurface Workshop- Look super cool but haven't dug into it yet.
    • PD Shader Kit 2- Excellent fabric shading kit. I have both and use them quite often.
    • Tears- Good product. I used it recently in a render where I wanted tears that streaked a G3M's mascara. Slight learning curve but not bad. There's a thread here in the forums where someone was having trouble with it and I posted screenshots on how to use it. 

    I've heard very good things about Human Reshade for converting stuff to Iray. I prefer NGS Anagenessis 2 for that. The others I don't have. Some are on my wishlist. 

    Hope this helps!

  • Griffin AvidGriffin Avid Posts: 3,837

    Oh yes, it all does.....

    The Subsurface kit is probably pass on for now. If I can learn all the other stuff and incorporate it then I'll push for that extra 10% of flipping quality.

  • TaozTaoz Posts: 10,296
    edited April 2017
    avxp said:

    Firstly, I was obsessed with March Madness and scanned every product, every day so some of these MUST BE NEW and Daz is just slipping them in. lol

    Actually the current Flashback Sale is for March Madness 2016 items - so they are all relatively old.

    Post edited by Taoz on
  • Griffin AvidGriffin Avid Posts: 3,837

    Ahhhhhh Brilliant. Didn't notice that. Well spotted.

  • jakibluejakiblue Posts: 7,281

    LMAO omg i didn't even notice they were 2016!! I was wondering why none of them were marked 'new' but it didn't even click in my head. LOL. Regardless, I still nabbed three things that i wanted.  

    Taozen said:
    avxp said:

    Firstly, I was obsessed with March Madness and scanned every product, every day so some of these MUST BE NEW and Daz is just slipping them in. lol

    Actually the current Flashback Sale is for March Madness 2016 items - so they are all relatively old.

     

  • jakibluejakiblue Posts: 7,281

    Of your list, these are what I have:

    • Mec4d Pbs Shaders - I love these. Seriously, LOVE. She makes INCREDIBLE iray shaders and these are top notch. You will never need to buy another shader for metals especially if you have these. I use them a helluva lot. They are indispensible to me. 
    • Subsurface workshop - I just picked these up today. Full admission here - I have pretty much no clue what subsurface is or how to use it or what to do. However, recently I saw two artists I admire very much use these on a render they did with this guy: Toonimal Chameleon in iray, and he looked absolutely fantastic. Now this guy is ooooooooooooooooold. And they made him look like he was brand new and especially made for iray. LOL. I had a quick play tonight using it on Morphing Python and the Cold Blooded texture pack, cos he is one of my favourite animals to use. Made waaaaaay before iray. And I was really really happy with how he came out. I can't give you much advice on what you would use the subsurface shaders for, but suffice to say I was very thrilled with my results tonight, and the vendor who made it is top notch. 
    • iray shader kit 2 - another set of fabric shaders i use a LOT. These are one of my favourites. Fabric shaders are an excellent thing to collect - you can use them on anything you need, like clothes, couches, cushions, bed linen etc. And parrotdolphin is damn fine. :) If you're not interested in buying texture add ons for things, shaders are the best bet - and these are one of the best. 
    • iray smart converter advanced skin management - now, I don't have this one in particular. But I do own her ones for Genesis, Genesis 2 and Victoria/Micheal 4. I wouldn't be without them. I think her iray converters are an absolute must have, if you want to use previous generations in iray. They're supurb, and if you're like me and rather dumpkopf when it comes to complicated instructions, these are very very easy to use, and very well explained. As you apply the shader, a big box pops up with a heap of useful information. Digging into them a lot further, you can get spectacular results - or you can be like me and just apply them and be done with it. LOL. 

    I don't have the Sapphire bundle, but I can say, Raiya is one of the most top notch, brilliant character creators so if you're wanting more Gen3 girls, she's definitely a vendor to buy from. And Outoftouch makes spectacular hair. 

  • ThatGuyThatGuy Posts: 797

    I can attest that Subsurface Workshop is a great tool, giving your images just that extra bit of realism.  I love working with it, admittedly though, have used it only for hair and clothing.

  • FenixPhoenixFenixPhoenix Posts: 3,196
    edited April 2017
    • I have Mec4d Pbs Shaders & Iray shader kit 2 and I use them all the time. I highly recommend them.
    • Subsurface workshop & Zone Smoother I've been curious about, but I'm still on the fence since I don't quite understand exactly what they do (I wished they did a before/after comparison).
    • Human Reshader I might get for the usability of changing the skin color easily (maybe use it in combination with NGS Anagenessis 2).

    Example of Iray shader kit 2 (in combination with Fantasy Leather Iray Shaders) used to retexture an outfit:

    Sarah.png
    1932 x 2500 - 2M
    Post edited by FenixPhoenix on
  • mtl1mtl1 Posts: 1,508

    I have Mec4d's PBS shaders as well as PD's Iray Shader Kit. They're both incredibly useful for reshading surfaces and kitbashing items together.

  • TaozTaoz Posts: 10,296
    edited April 2017

    Iray Smart Converter and Advanced Skin Managers has a lot of cool options for manipulting the shaders. Here are some samples of the color options which include different eye and nail colors.

    EDIT: Sorry, this is Fantasy Skins, also by V3Digitimes, got the two mixed up...

     

     

    v3digitimes_smart_converter.jpg
    800 x 941 - 387K
    Post edited by Taoz on
  • barbultbarbult Posts: 26,537

    For me, these are must haves and some of the most useful and frequently used things I own. These 3 vendors are 3 of my absolute favorites, too. Take time to read the documentation to get the most out of them.:

    Mec4d Pbs Shaders https://www.daz3d.com/mec4d-pbs-shaders-vol-2-for-iray
    PD iray shader kit 2 https://www.daz3d.com/pd-iray-shader-kit-2
    iray smart converter advanced skin management https://www.daz3d.com/iray-smart-converter-and-advanced-skin-managers-for-genesis-3

    Own it, but haven't used it much yet:

    Headwear for Genesis 2 and 3 https://www.daz3d.com/headwear-for-genesis-2-and-3-male-s
     

  • barbultbarbult Posts: 26,537
    edited April 2017
    Taozen said:

    Iray Smart Converter and Advanced Skin Managers has a lot of cool options for manipulting the shaders. Here are some samples of the color options which include different eye and nail colors.

     

    Have you confused this with another product? I'm not aware of skin, nail or eye color options like that in Iray Smart Converter and Advanced Skin Managers. Unless you are doing something drastic to tweak it yourself.

    Edit: Maybe you mean Fantasy Skins

    Post edited by barbult on
  • TaozTaoz Posts: 10,296
    barbult said:
    Taozen said:

    Iray Smart Converter and Advanced Skin Managers has a lot of cool options for manipulting the shaders. Here are some samples of the color options which include different eye and nail colors.

     

    Have you confused this with another product? I'm not aware of skin, nail or eye color options like that in Iray Smart Converter and Advanced Skin Managers. Unless you are doing something drastic to tweak it yourself.

    Edit: Maybe you mean Fantasy Skins

    Oops, yes, I got these two mixed up (they're in the same subfolder). Sorry!

  • DustRiderDustRider Posts: 2,903

    First and easy one, Saphire

    https://www.daz3d.com/sapphire-bundle

    At first, I passed her off as another anime-efly-cone-unrealistic figure, BUT I have beens educed. She is beautiful and I think I must have her (even for the feature mixing down the road)

    I've used the character and the hair from the Sapphire bundle a lot! The skin texture is very good and versatile, and the character morph work very well alone, or in combination with other morphs. The hair is also a great addition, a great long hair style with the added little extra of the braid in the left side, makes if very usable in just about any setting (from fantasy to contemporary to sci-fi), but also a bit different from just plain long hair. I've used her, and the hair, in several of my gallery images here (i.e. fantasy/jungle scene using character/texture and hair https://www.daz3d.com/gallery/#images/137321 , contemporary pinup using character/texture  https://www.daz3d.com/gallery/#images/162901 ..... both renders use other morphs with Sapphire).

    The Mec4D PBS Shaders are fantastic and get used a lot, her shaders are always top notch! I don't have any of the other shaders you noted, but I do have a different set from Pd, and they are great and get used a lot too.

  • Griffin AvidGriffin Avid Posts: 3,837

    That first render is incredible. Looks like it could be promo art for everything in the picture. lol

    Anybody see that chameleon from above. Awesome. Yeah, Daz has figured out how to suck -amounts of money from me with this sale.

    Very clever- to offer last years' March Madness. These are some great utilities and will be worth it.

    And very smart to over  wear them all and then put all the compatible old stuff on sale/bundle. lol

    I would love to be the vendor is that days NEWLY list- I even bought the dang architecture set just for the discount. lol

    I'm convincing myself I can scale the table and use it for something important. lol

  • GatorGator Posts: 1,320

    Anyone have the HumanReshade?

     

    I'm getting frustrated with Anagenessis 2 - some characters color is getting changed a lot.  I posted in the thread but didn't get an anwer yet.  That it's not using the traditional means with specularity, SSS, etc I don't know how to fix it.  Tempted to can it for something else.  Maybe I'm too impatient, Easter was yesterday so that day gets a pass.

  • barbultbarbult Posts: 26,537
    scott762_948aec318a said:

    Anyone have the HumanReshade?

     

    I'm getting frustrated with Anagenessis 2 - some characters color is getting changed a lot.  I posted in the thread but didn't get an anwer yet.  That it's not using the traditional means with specularity, SSS, etc I don't know how to fix it.  Tempted to can it for something else.  Maybe I'm too impatient, Easter was yesterday so that day gets a pass.

    I don't have that product, but I have had excellent results from V3Digitimes series of Iray skin converters. If you are ready to try something else, I recommend those. There is a converter product for each generation, so get the one(s) for the model(s) you use the most. The V3Digitimes products use the Iray Uber shader channels you are familiar with, so it may be easier to tweak if you feel the need.

  • FenixPhoenixFenixPhoenix Posts: 3,196
    scott762_948aec318a said:

    Anyone have the HumanReshade?

     

    I'm getting frustrated with Anagenessis 2 - some characters color is getting changed a lot.  I posted in the thread but didn't get an anwer yet.  That it's not using the traditional means with specularity, SSS, etc I don't know how to fix it.  Tempted to can it for something else.  Maybe I'm too impatient, Easter was yesterday so that day gets a pass.

    Prior to NGS 2, I used Human Essentials for Iray which gave me great results. Even now, I still use it and love it. Then again, I haven't tried V3Digitimes, but I've heard it recommeded quite a lot.

  • AJ2112AJ2112 Posts: 1,417

    Mec4D shaders are awesome ! I use them in every project I create.  She also has marvelous content at her online store. 

  • CypherFOXCypherFOX Posts: 3,401
    edited April 2017

    Greetings,

    Yeah, I was using an old sci-fi bar scene and applied a TON of Mec4D's shaders to it.  I took a cyber-arm made for G2M with just 3Delight textures, autofit it to G3M, and applied Mec4D's 'Tarnished Chrome' to it, and it looked abso-fricking-lutely fantasticly crappy.  I fixed a bar counter top from 2011 (targeting Poser 5!) using 'rusted copper patina', and it looks wonderfully beat up and dented and scarred.  I love those shaders, and I haven't come close to touching the depth they have.

    I completely agree about Human Reshade; there were like 3 things which did something similar around the same time, and I had no idea which did what, but that one was the least clear to me, so it's the one I don't own.

    I make sad pictures sometimes, and the Tears are really good for that, so I own them.  Not sure I have posted any pictures that use them, though.  I keep the stuff I do to exorcise my own feelings pretty close to the chest, usually.

    Thanks for pointing out the Headwear!  I've added it to my wishlist, as I should definitely have more hats.

    I never picked up Sapphire bundle, it somehow never felt...necessary.

    --  Morgan

     

    Post edited by CypherFOX on
  • nelsonsmithnelsonsmith Posts: 1,337
    edited April 2017
    scott762_948aec318a said:

    Anyone have the HumanReshade?

     

    I'm getting frustrated with Anagenessis 2 - some characters color is getting changed a lot.  I posted in the thread but didn't get an anwer yet.  That it's not using the traditional means with specularity, SSS, etc I don't know how to fix it.  Tempted to can it for something else.  Maybe I'm too impatient, Easter was yesterday so that day gets a pass.

    It's hit and miss,  some characters come out beautifully, others come out looking like the living dead.  Either way the times that it does work makes it more than worth while.  
    . . . for me at least.

    Post edited by nelsonsmith on
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