HowieFarkes Valle Alpina, Noble Pines, and Byodo In questions

Does anyone own any of these? Valle Alpina, Noble Pines, or Byodo In.

The Howie Farkes product Valle Alpina claims to be a Carrara product, but in the details it states "This product can not be used with cameras in Carrara."
Does anyone know what this means? The statement doesn't make any sense to me at all.

 

Secondly, all three of these products feature mountains. Are the mountains actual terrain objects or just background images?
I have "Howie's Snow Scene" and know that those mountains are all actual terrain objects. But I can't tell for sure about these other three products.


I'm looking for a rich, tree filled mountain environment that I can modify in Carrara to suit my needs. (Yes, I know I could try to make my own from scratch, but well.....I'm no Howie.)

 

Comments

  • I have all of them and have rendered videos with cameras you do need to hide or delete the fill bit in Vale Alpina

  • has a few changes

     

    There are some Byodo-in shots in the render thread

  • SileneUKSileneUK Posts: 1,969
    edited September 2019

    In Vale Alpina, the mountains are mountains, not backgrounds. If you buy it, go to the top view and you will see the huge terrain.  Here's a screenie of it in the shader room.

    There are lots of replicators in there for the trees and meadow along the river.  True only the  typical Camera 1 shows up.  Surely you can add more as you wish.  I usually just copy Camera 1,  and paste it, the move to where I want and rename it.  Some PAs give us loads of cool cameras. Like TangoAlpha and PhilW.  I have to mess with the lighting as it uses Realistic Skies.

    Just my 2p.  Others will have more techinical info.  smiley  Silene

    ETA:  Like Wendy!    Also, I have Noble Pines which is a bit faster to load.... but I got it in a package.  I prefer VA and have stripped out some of the trees which makes it easier for me and I didn't need all those trees.

    VAm.jpg
    601 x 427 - 111K
    Post edited by SileneUK on
  • SileneUKSileneUK Posts: 1,969

    In Vale Alpina, the mountains are mountains, not backgrounds. If you buy it, go to the top view and you will see the huge terrain.  Here's a screenie of it in the shader room.

    There are lots of replicators in there for the trees and meadow along the river.  True only the  typical Camera 1 shows up.  Surely you can add more as you wish.  I usually just copy Camera 1,  and paste it, the move to where I want and rename it.  Some PAs give us loads of cool cameras. Like TangoAlpha and PhilW.  I have to mess with the lighting as it uses Realistic Skies.

    Just my 2p.  Others will have more techinical info.  smiley  Silene

    has a few changes

     

    There are some Byodo-in shots in the render thread

    I remember you combining it with Harpsburg some time ago... nice effect. Big file? surprise Silene

  • WendyLuvsCatzWendyLuvsCatz Posts: 37,712
    edited September 2019

    That was a 360 BG render as a background for Harpsburg

    this is the scene simplified a fair bit with a Vanishing point castle that one in Germany

    Post edited by WendyLuvsCatz on
  • MistaraMistara Posts: 38,675

    i'm ready to cat like pounce on the byodo in and maple meadows.

    https://www.daz3d.com/maple-meadows

     

  • de3ande3an Posts: 915

    Thank you Wendy and Silene for the info and examples.

    When I found that all three were on sale I went ahead and got them all.

    Noble Pines and Byodo In are heavy scenes but workable.

    However Valle Alpina seems to be super heavy! I need to choose "Bounding Box" for the Assemble room display to navigate the scene without awful sluggishness. But I can't seem to get a render started. It gets stuck "Filling Grids" I think. Waited a long time but no progress. Have to Force Quit (on Mac OS) to get out of it.

    Wendy, you mentioned something about needing to "hide or delete the fill bit in Valle Alpina". I don't understand what that means. Could you explain?

  • WendyLuvsCatzWendyLuvsCatz Posts: 37,712
    edited September 2019
    de3an said:

    Thank you Wendy and Silene for the info and examples.

    When I found that all three were on sale I went ahead and got them all.

    Noble Pines and Byodo In are heavy scenes but workable.

    However Valle Alpina seems to be super heavy! I need to choose "Bounding Box" for the Assemble room display to navigate the scene without awful sluggishness. But I can't seem to get a render started. It gets stuck "Filling Grids" I think. Waited a long time but no progress. Have to Force Quit (on Mac OS) to get out of it.

    Wendy, you mentioned something about needing to "hide or delete the fill bit in Valle Alpina". I don't understand what that means. Could you explain?

    There is a section of trees called fill

    Howie said they are there to fill in for set shots but they obscure it if you want to move around 

    yes need to use bounding box to move or hide lots, it's very heavy 

    Post edited by WendyLuvsCatz on
  • Bunyip02Bunyip02 Posts: 7,531
    edited September 2019

    Worth the struggle !!!

    ValleeAlpine2 Topaz.png
    1800 x 1300 - 5M
    Post edited by Bunyip02 on
  • de3ande3an Posts: 915

    There is a section of trees called fill

    Howie said they are there to fill in for set shots but they obscure it if you want to move around 

    yes need to use bounding box to move or hide lots, it's very heavy 

     

    Thanks Wendy. I found the "Forest Detail Fill" group. Turning it off helps a little, I think.

    So far, though, I've not been able to render anything except the default scene. I suspect it's my computer's fault, but you'd think a 3 GHz 10 core Xeon system would be able to do better.

    Oh well...

     

  • de3ande3an Posts: 915

    Worth the struggle !!!

     

    Nice. How long did it take? What renderer are you using. I only have the Carrara native render option.

  • It is incredibly heavy, if I recall I actually saved a second scene with it only the camera and terrains and set my shots up in that then imported that camera, not the first time I have done so on a scene.

  • Bunyip02Bunyip02 Posts: 7,531
    edited September 2019
    de3an said:

    Worth the struggle !!!

     

    Nice. How long did it take? What renderer are you using. I only have the Carrara native render option.

    I did that render over a couple of years ago, so I don't remember the actual time except that it took a while.

    I deleted the "fill" and saved the scene.

    From memory I took lots of baby steps, slowly rotating or moving up and down, in and out, as Wendy said it's a very heavy scene.

    The Eagle when I imported it also took some sorting out to get it into position.

    The Carrara native renderer is what I used, but I then took the finished render into Topaz to make the colours stand out a bit more with post work.

    Edit:- Silene's idea of copy/pasting the camera is good advice as well !!!!

    Post edited by Bunyip02 on
  • SileneUKSileneUK Posts: 1,969

    I

    de3an said:

    Worth the struggle !!!

     

    Nice. How long did it take? What renderer are you using. I only have the Carrara native render option.

    I did that render over a couple of years ago, so I don't remember the actual time except that it took a while.

    I deleted the "fill" and saved the scene.

    From memory I took lots of baby steps, slowly rotating or moving up and down, in and out, as Wendy said it's a very heavy scene.

    The Eagle when I imported it also took some sorting out to get it into position.

    The Carrara native renderer is what I used, but I then took the finished render into Topaz to make the colours stand out a bit more with post work.

    Edit:- Silene's idea of copy/pasting the camera is good advice as well !!!!

    That's the best render of VA I have ever seen!!  Makes me was to play with it again.  IIRC... I stripped a lot of stuff out of it and saved it as a smaller sized version, but it is hiding from me right now.... likely got left behind on my old custom browser file. Wonder what else is in there LOL!

    I have a lot of trouble adding cameras with the Carrara drop down tool... I found it much easier just to copy and paste the main camera and put clones all around with appropriate names.

    smiley Silene

  • DiomedeDiomede Posts: 15,026

    Worth the struggle !!!

    Excellent render.  

     

  • de3ande3an Posts: 915

    It is incredibly heavy, if I recall I actually saved a second scene with it only the camera and terrains and set my shots up in that then imported that camera, not the first time I have done so on a scene.

     

    That's a great tip for setting up shots. I don't think I would have thought of it. Thanks for sharing!

     

  • Bunyip02Bunyip02 Posts: 7,531

    I

    de3an said:

    Worth the struggle !!!

     

    Nice. How long did it take? What renderer are you using. I only have the Carrara native render option.

    I did that render over a couple of years ago, so I don't remember the actual time except that it took a while.

    I deleted the "fill" and saved the scene.

    From memory I took lots of baby steps, slowly rotating or moving up and down, in and out, as Wendy said it's a very heavy scene.

    The Eagle when I imported it also took some sorting out to get it into position.

    The Carrara native renderer is what I used, but I then took the finished render into Topaz to make the colours stand out a bit more with post work.

    Edit:- Silene's idea of copy/pasting the camera is good advice as well !!!!

    That's the best render of VA I have ever seen!!  Makes me was to play with it again.  IIRC... I stripped a lot of stuff out of it and saved it as a smaller sized version, but it is hiding from me right now.... likely got left behind on my old custom browser file. Wonder what else is in there LOL!

    I have a lot of trouble adding cameras with the Carrara drop down tool... I found it much easier just to copy and paste the main camera and put clones all around with appropriate names.

    smiley Silene

    Thanks

  • Bunyip02Bunyip02 Posts: 7,531

    Worth the struggle !!!

    Excellent render.  

     

    Thanks

  • Bunyip02Bunyip02 Posts: 7,531
    de3an said:

    It is incredibly heavy, if I recall I actually saved a second scene with it only the camera and terrains and set my shots up in that then imported that camera, not the first time I have done so on a scene.

     

    That's a great tip for setting up shots. I don't think I would have thought of it. Thanks for sharing!

     

    Making progress with your renders ?

    Once you work out how to move around you should be able to get some renders done !!!

  • with habsburgic castle

    valle alpina with H castle.png
    1000 x 1300 - 2M
  • Bunyip02Bunyip02 Posts: 7,531

    with habsburgic castle

    Looks great !

  • MistaraMistara Posts: 38,675

    alpina, lag from render room back to preview window

    default scene render on 6 cores was 20 minutes

     

    byodo inn, default scene render 1 min and half.

     

    trying lighten the lag in alpina.  so far removed the fake gi group, lowered the replicators from 1,500 to 300, removed the dead trees.

    ca alpina.JPG
    1030 x 431 - 89K
    ca byodo time.JPG
    1151 x 434 - 86K
    ca byodo default.png
    500 x 650 - 413K
    ca 5 cores default scene.JPG
    712 x 445 - 28K
  • Remove translucency on the leaves

    reduce smoothing on the trunks

  • MistaraMistara Posts: 38,675
    edited September 2019

    thanks

    i can't find the trunk smoothing setting  - found a smoothing 

     

    trying to remove the backdrop, saving it to tray first.

    Post edited by Mistara on
  • WendyLuvsCatzWendyLuvsCatz Posts: 37,712
    edited September 2019
    Mystarra said:

    thanks

    i can't find the trunk smoothing setting  - found a smoothing 

     

    trying to remove the backdrop, saving it to tray first.

    In the tree room under the preview window where the show leaves etc checkboxes are there is a smoothing slider,

    think jusf called smoothing but it does the trunks etc, thats where it's obvious 

    I put it right down to 2 you get triangular branches and trunks so tree close ups its not great but otherwise OK

    Post edited by WendyLuvsCatz on
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