VRay

THE COMPLETE GU IDE

second edition
 This is
The Damned Motherfucker's
fine release
 VRay
THE COMPLETE
GUIDE
second edition
Francesco Legrenzi
Originallillc
VRlly- TilE COMPLETE GUIJ)E-M!,vmri ,'(Iili'm
by FraneescoLcgrcm:i

CO I)fright f:l 20]OFr~ncescougrc n1;i

Gra ]lhicsa ndl)~ging

Fr.lIIcescoLcgrcrvj
wII'wfrancescolegren:i.cOl//

Firstl~ition Seco nd ctlition

2008 2010

The nuthor is nvnilablc 10 OWIlCTS of rights who he has not ocen able to contact for mailers COllCcming im'oluntnl)'
omissions or rnist.lkes in the eitnt ions of the sources ofthc wril1cn nndillustr;lledeonlenthcrcin.
All rightsrescr.·cd. No P;lIt of this book e;\11 oc reproduced, nlCrnori7.c<l illfi lc systcms or transmined in 3ny fonnorby
any mcans:clcctronic. IlIcchanical. photocopied. rccordedorolllCr. withoutlhcprc\' iouswril1enauthori71ltionoflllC
author
T11C mrthorofthiSl'ohrnlC 1l.1S earricd out tllC preparation of tllC book and co llCei"edtllCleamingprogralllscontaillCd
within il. TIIC author docs not take responsibility, implicit or e~plieit. for tl lCsc programs or tllC contents of tllC te.\1. TIIC
authOrc.1nrlOt.undcranyei rcul1\st:mccs.ocret:linedresponsibleforaceidcnts or conscqucnt dalllagc which dcril'c or are
eauscdbytllCuscofthcscprogramsandthcirfuuctionality
Nallles aud brands which are cited in the te\t are generally deposited and registered by their reslXX=til'e publishing
houscs
SUMMARY

ORGANIZATION AND AIM OF THE BOOK

CHAm. 2 - hI cOII.IOIO stOll II COIIPltor Gr•• hlc.

ll-IE GENERAL STORY
12009.C
1500 AD .
IGOO A.D.
1800 AD.
1900 AD
1910A.D
1930 A.D.
J')-IOA.D.
1950 A.D.
1955AD
I960A.D
1%5 A.D.
1970 A.D.
1975 A.D.
1980 A.D.
1985 A.D.
19'JOA.D
1995 AD
2000 A.D.
2005 A.D.

THE STORY OF VRA Y

2001 A.D.
2003 A.D.
200.jAD.
2005A.D
2006 AD
2007 A.D.

SUMMARY _ VII
CHAmR 3 - VBay:.and"a, PAITl

VRAY: FRAME BUFFER

'"
INTRODUCTION
'"
PARAMETERS .
Fmmcbuffcr
Framcbuffcr loolbar . 150
FramcbuffcrshOl1cul 152

VRA Y: GLOBAL SWITCHES

INTRODUCTION
'"

VRAY: IMAGi,: SAMPLER (Antia liasi ng) '60

INTRODUCflON

NOle
'"
EXAMPLES 167
Exmnplc 1 : \\'1~11isanlial iasing'! 167
Examplc 2: Adaplivc subd i\'ision sampler ............ 167
Example J : Adapli\'c QMC smnp lcr 168
Example 4: DOF, bump and lC.Xlurcs 169
E:-;arnpic5: OOFandproccdurallc,,\urcs ............................................. 173
Exarnplc6: SCCIlC withoul1C.xturcs and DOF 179
E.xamplc7: tCX1Urcsand amialiasing 185
E-.:amplc 8: ObjccI omlinc and nonnal
Example 9: random .1nlialiasing
E:»amplc 10: the lihcrs
Example II: moircclTcct

VRAY: GLOBAL I LLUM INATION (GI) ........ 209

INTRODUCTION 209

CALCULATION METHODS FOR THE GI ........................................................ 213

E."actaudapproxilllatccaicillation Ulcthods . .. 21~
Shooting methods "s. Gathcrillg methods 215
Approxililme methods: Dcpcndelll \'iew ,·s indepcndelll View 217
Mcthods sllpponcd by VRay

VIII _ VRay - THE COMPLETE GUIDE

GLOBAL ILLUMINAT ION (GI) IN VRA Y ...... 219

METHOD ASSOCIATIONS ............................................. 225

AN IMATION

VRA Y: quasi-MonIC Carlo (QM C) 228

INTRODUCTION

PARAMETE RS 228

VRA Y: IRRADIA NCE MAP (1M)

METHOD ASSOCIATIONS ................................................................ 2~

VRAY: PHOTON MAP ( PM)

INTRODUCTION

PARAMETERS 276

NOTE

M ETHOD ASSOCIATI ONS .............................................. 2M

VRA Y: LIGHT CAC HE (LC)

INTRODUCTION ........ 293

SUMMARY _IX
CHAPTlR 4 - "ay: Ian'"" PART 2

VRAY: ENVIRONMENT

INTRODUCTION ............ 326

VRA Y: CAUSTICS

INTRODUCTION

VRAY: rQMC SAMPLER ................................................................................. 350

INTRODUCTION

PARAMETERS

NOTE

LI NEAR WORK FLOW (LWF) . ~o~

VRay I.5RC2 ...................................................... ·US

x_ VRay - THE COMPLETE GUIDE

VRA Y: CAMERA

INTRODUCTION

VRA Y: DEFAULT DISPLACEMENT

INTRODUCTION ............... 451

PARAMETERS

VRA Y: YRA Y DI SPLACEMENT MOD

INTRODUCTION

VRA Y: SYSTEM

INTRODUCTION

CHAm. 5 - lilY: MAn . ws •• DMAPS

VRA Y MA TERJAL: VRayMtl ................... 531

INTRODUCTION 5"

SUMMARY _ XI
VRA Y MATERIAL: VRayMt lWra llpcr . . ..................... 582

INTRODUCTION 582

VRAY MATER IAL: VRa~· LightM Il

PARAMETERS .. . .... 583

VRA Y MATER IAL: VRa~'2Si dcdMt l

INTRODUCTION 588

PARAMETERS

VRAY MATER IAL: VRa~' Blcn d M II

INTRODUCT ION

PARAMETERS

VRA Y MATERIAL: VRaJ·FastSSS ......................................................................... 608

INTRODUCT ION

PARAMETERS .. (08

VRAY MATER IAL: VRayO\"t~rridel\1 tl

INTRODUCTION

PARAMETERS

VRAYMAP: VRa~·/l1a 11

INTRODUCTION ............. 618

PARAMETERS

VRA YMAP: VRayHORI

INTRODUCT ION

PARAMETERS

VRA YII1AP: VRa~· Oi r1

INTRODUCTION

PARAMETERS .. 650

XII _ VRay - THE COMPLETE GUIDE

VRA YMAP: VRayEdgeTe~ ...... 66 1

INTRODUCTION

PARAMETERS

VRA YMAP: VRayBm l)Filler .................... 666

INTRODUCTI ON

PARAMETERS

VRA YMAP: VRa,·Color

INTRODUCTION

PARAMETERS

VRA YMAP: VRayCom llTn

INTRODUCTION

PARAMETERS

cornl6 - GAMIUS AlIa UGHTS

TIIEORY

lliECAMERA . 68~

V IGNETfING EFFECT

BOKEH EFFECT ........................................................ 709

THE VIDEO CAMERA

VRAY CAMERA: VRa'· Ph,.~icaIC li mcra ............................................713

INTRODUCTION

SUMMARY _ XIII
VRAY LIGHT and VRAY SHADOWS .7-41

VRAYSHADOW ........................... 762

INTRODUCTION

PARAMETERS

VRAYLIGHT

INTRODUCTION

VRAYSUN and VRAYSKY

INTRODUCTION .................................................................................. 810

PARAMETERS VRaySun ............................................................................. 813

PARAMETERS VlbySky

CHAmB J - VBav: 1IIIey and IIVlBI I MIIT

VRAYOBJECTS ............. 82-4

VRAYPROXY

INTRODUCTION 825

PARAMETERS

NOTE

XIV _ VRay - THE COMPLETE GU IDE

VRAVPLA NE

INTRODUCTION 833

PARAMETERS

VRA VFUR

INTRODUCTION 835

VRAYTOO N ........ 857

INTRODUCTION

VRA VSPH EREFA DE 869

INTRODUCTION

GENERAL ELEMENTS

COMPOS ITI NG BAS IS 875

PARAMETERS

CHAm. 8 - RENIEIElEMENTS

VRA V RE NDER ELE M ENTS

INTRODUCTION ................................................ 892

PARAMETERS 893
RcnocrElcmClllS

COMPOSITING

SU MMARY _ XV
CHAma 9 - .. UTIS

VRay,-1.5RCJ

INTRODUCTION

VRa~· 1'I.5 FINAL 965

INTRODUCTION

VRay , -1.5 FINAL SPI and SP2 .......... 99-4

I NTRODUCTION

VRa~' ,' 1 .5 SPJa 102(,

XVI _ VRay - THE COMPLETE GUIDE

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

INTRODUCTION _ 1
INTRODUCTION

ABOUnHIAUYHOR
Frnnccsw LcgrclUj was bon! ill 1971 in a linle valley in Bergamo ( Iwly). Aflcr \!lIming a dcgR!t; in bui lding
cnginccringalthcfacul\yofcnginccring.hcworkcdasaslmc1Ura l cnginccrfor lh~ycars.Rcali7jnghisrcal p<1ssio li.
he llbandOllo:l 1he j ob for whid l he had spell! years studying. to dcrlicmc himsclf 10 Ihe study 1uJd pmclicc of
professional gmphic design. In 200 I he was asked 10 p:1l1icipalc in the ma r~1gcmcnl of www.1rcddi.com. a small itali,Hl
CG porlaL lhal at the time cou nted up a bi t more than 1000 users; at the present it is a poi nt of rc fcncc for ,Ill ita lians
fascinated by cornplIlcr gmphics. by Jallual)' 2008 it had 0\"cr30.000 registered uscrs. In 2001. he also became ,m-arc of
a small plug-i n. VRay. developed by Chaosgroup. a Bulgarian sortwarc- holLsc. Siocc then he has 1101 stopped being
interested in everything thm h.1.s to do with rhe world of rendering systems. cspccblly VR~y. Afler four ye~rs as the
director of the Modeling & Lighting dC["l!1rnent in 1111 architect's studio in Milan. the ml1hor is currently working
free lance.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
At the risk of sounding like as if giving an nceeptmlee speech a t tile Oscar'S ceremony, I thank the following people for
giving rlleadviee. inspiralion. and support for this book

tIle friends an1 users of www.lretldi.co m. Without \\'hose support and encounrgelllent I would 1\3\'e ne\'er sct
olTon lhis advell1ure.
Fabio All ama ndri (O$ \"e), ,,.ho was with me for the dmfling of the book
the uscrsoftheofficial YRllY forum. the princiJXl1 5Ourceofinfonnation and instruction. It is t l~urkstotheir
advice 1I~1t Ilmve been ab le 10 n~1ke Ihis book
the col1egues :11 www.abc·fologmfia.com. Pao lo Alli\'iss im o's www.auissimo.llel. Mau ro Bosca ro l's
www.boscarol.com. Franccsto BlInlcr lc 's www,banterle.colH. for providing nle with infonnation ke\' to tile
rcali~1n ion of the cI~lpters dellling wi th lights. photography and lhe history of compUicr graphics. A tI~mk you
10 Paolo Bo na\'oglia 's \\,\\,W,bol~1\'oglia,eu for llle P,1!1 dedicmed !O photognlphy.
spa~joinwind,libcro .illbm\'offologmfia of Da\'id Donnini , wcb.liscalilletitfv isiol~1gcf of Mau rizio C he lucci
again for the part dcdica tcd 10 camems.
a ll the intemel sit es wherc I havc bccnablc to find images and newSlOpu t lOgcthcrthccl~lptcraboul thc
histol)' of compUler gmphics. of lighl ,1lld of pho tography. I am sony for nOI citi ng all Ille sources 11~1t
cOlllributcd,c\'Cll i fonlyindirectly.tothedrawingupoflhcsecl~lPlers
Ihe typographers St ilJ!r.lfonli nc
10 Mariarosa Ta ranlin i for ller co ll,1bomtion in [he fonr~1 1 clleck oflhe In:t
10 Tom Hul1 so n for allowing the addilion oflhe Grccble plug-into Ihe OYO.
10 Cu neyt Ozda s for ill10wing lhe insertion into tlle OVD of [he Color Correct plug-in
10 Fedor Bi nka for a llowing tlle usc of llle GUt for vrimgcxr program in llle DVO
10 the C haosg ro ul) for allow ing Ihe insertion of tIle VRay Oemo into the OVO.
10 Flillside \\'\\'w.aycrsis.bcIforlhcirHORlrnaps
10 Chi ara. my girlfriend. for bclIring my absence these years a nd for p.1IieH[ly eneoumgiug nle
10 my dear p.lrenlS Tomaso aud Mcgi. who. wilhout even knowing, tmrghl their son commitment to follow his
drcams,neyerleUinggo.T1~1nkyou!

2_ VRay - T HE COM PL ETE GU ID E

Some years ago Ill<1d the opporlunity to write some tutorials for I "HfIY. 11Icy were prelly e.\tensi\"e. it"s tme. but I IlCI-cr
illl<lgined they would be sosueeessfui. Aflerll~11. sonlC USCTS suggested the idea of pulling a book together. At the
begillningl didn't take wh.al. a! the nlQntent scented likelmabsurd undertak ing.scriOllsly. AS IllQmhs passcd. I wrote
OlherlUtorials. willlQut publishing slill. because il wasjusl fun for me. not m all boring. I \I rotc so 1I~1ny lhm 1 ended up
wilh a lillie book let in my hands. and IlQt only aboul I "Rill . And so I asked mysclf: "'Why not think aboul Ihe idea of
nl<lking the book scriouslyT I s\:lrled jOlling down some ideas. thinking about II table of contents and I undcrstood tlw
the idw was feasible! Initially I only wanted to dcal \I'ith some aspects of ' R"y. \I'riting a small nl<lnu;d of no more tll<lH
200 pages. but the nlQTC I wrole. lhe nlQTC I realized lI~1tlll<ld nl<my things 10 talk about. From a small projCl:t lI~lt
would lake a fell' nlQmhs. pUlling the book 10getilCr rel'ealed itself 10 be mueh IIlQre compliemed al~ intrieme. After
two YC.1rs of work and almost 1.000 pages. I still look back with satisfaction m the efforts n~'lde to complete this
difficult ad\"entuTC. Natumlly. difficult nlQHlCnts did not lack. during which I thought I would not n~1kc it. but itlthe end
tllC IhiTSt for knowledge and tllC passion for my workwcTCvictorious
I'vc II<Id 10 fighl against. as a manner of speaking. tllC continuous updmes of a progmm tl~1t 1~1s nCl"er slopped evolving
Starting in 2005. with tllC VRflj" .'I..n.OJ. finishing in 2009. with the .'1.5 SP3<J . It was IlCcessary to Jeam how to usc
tllCm and to IeSI dlCm out atlhe sante time. while dealing wilh all lite problems tl~1t would arisc. I h:1d to CTCme :tillite
3D scenes and tllC mode ls (some were fOrlut~1tel\' free). I 1~1d to create anin~1tions and alllllC .1.200 rel~ers! Screen
c.1ptures and composition of all the in~1ges. for;' total of 2.300 images! To bring Ihis "OhUllC to eooclusion. I 1~1\"e
worked whole nights. weekends and sultry holidays in tllC comp.1lly of a little air conditiollCT. Still and all. I was able to
finish tllC book
I hope you find my work uscful. bcl;ausc I put my IlC:1n and soul mid all my e:l:perlise into this work

ABOUT THI BOOK

11tis book teadlCs tl~1ttllC fabulous computer getlCTated scenes. 1II<lt look like real photogmphs to the I~1ked eye. in tllC
end. are not tll<lt difficult to create. TllC book is ntlinly addressed to uscrs of I R"J for 3ds M,l"', But it can also be uscd
by all those tl~11 1~1vc lite fonune of 1~1\'ing the software for which tlte Rcndering porlware by CI~10sgn:mp has been
cremed. By now IR"y exisls for n~1ny progl1uns. such as CillCn~1~D. Maya SkclCh-UpL Rhino alld soon il will be
available for XS I. I R".I vcrsions for otllCr progl1UIlS do nOl val)' m all from the \'ersion for Jds Ma.\ . because IllC core.
tl~11 is tllC IlCarl of tllC progmm. is alll'll)'S tllC s,1nte. l1lC only thing tlw c1~1nges is tllC interface. depending on tllC
software on which it is installed.11lC commands and IllCirCOlTCsponding functions remain idemical forall versions
TIte aim of lite book is 10 give a logical. complete. and meticulous e:l:pl:mation of a ll th e ru mm a nd s in t RI/Y. spread
out for 3ds M:L.... E\"eIY now and tllCn also tutorials will appear. in order to help undcTStand pmmneteTS tltlt are
panicubrty complicmed. The volume ended up being a comprehensive guide of all tlte possibilities offered by I "RI/Y.
Al1hough it is nOl spccifiwlly nddressed 10arehitcCls. anin~1torsordesigllCrs.sonlCc.\amplcsorlcchniquesdiscussed
eouldbeuscfulfortllCm.
11lis book is created for uscrs tll<1t Iw\"e ulCdiuTII understanding of 3ds Ma.\ or tll<ll are acqll<1inted with 3D tCl:hnology .
Many argunlCnts. in any case. :lre dealt with thoroughly as to gi\"ce\"en thosc with li111e practical knowlcdge tllC
panicubrs 10 emb1c lilCm to Ul~ersland the whole. or m Icast a pan of it thm which is being expbiTlCd. I Rill' is a
simplc progmm. but m lilC S,11llC linlC it is comple ..... even the nlOSI nperienced llSCrs can find unexplored areas. It is also
well designed and applies IllC same SCllings in n~1ny paris: il is logical andcollCrelU. so il is llOlllCCCS&1l)' to nlCnlOri~-,
uncountable e.\ ccptions to tllC OIles.
A 3D begilUlCr. though. should 11<1\'e a !lOtion of it. aoo ofartistie tCl:hniquc. TIIC 3D graphic desigTlCr is fUT1danlCntally
and artist. tltereforc he Sl1Q1Jld know the fundmnenL11s of color. design. pllOlOgmphy aoo an direction. l1lC instrumcnt is
tllCcomplltcr. tllCrcfore IlC sllOuld be able 101~1I'igatewithin its nlCnlOl)· andc.11"l)· OUllllCOpemlioT1S0Ulsidcof JRul
and3dsMa:l:. 30gmphics.butabo\"callrcOOering.isapainstakingdisciplillCbeeausc it rc<juircs. both an anistie and a
tCl:hnic.11 approacll with a /,oood dosc ofp.1tience and sclf-control. OIIC IUust not be disconmged in IIIOUlCllts of
difficulty. All gmphic designers COT1ti1H~1Ily face new problcms Il~1t must be soli-cd. While following this book and
working with J Ray. it is llCCCSS,1l)' to rcnlCmber tl~1t in order to assimilate tllC collcepts tilllC and practicc are IIccdcd. If
you begin with smal! projects and experimcnting: a plane :md a tcapot or a box with a whole for wil~o\\". Before being
able to work seriously on a project il is nccC~ll)' 10 get a good idea of \\'1~11 • "R'I.! is cap.1b1c of offcring

fNTRODUCTION _ 3
ORGANllATION Of THE BOOK
Rcscnrch was done 10 find a slyle for the book (hm was sober, bUI a1 the saine lime rich and plcasam to read. Composed
of9cl~lplcrs.cachoflhcmdc:llingwilhdisliTlC1andcasiJyidcnlitiable topics

1. I NTRO DUCTIO N.
2. THE HISTORY OF COM PUTER GRAPHICS.
J, RE N D ER ER - PA RT A.
~. RENDERER - PA RT B.
5. MATE RIA L EDITOR.
6. CAMERAS AN D L1GII TS.
7. O BJECT & ENVIRONM ENT .
H. RENDER ELEM ENTS.
9. UPD ATES.

TIM; first ,haptcr OOll1ains &Cnernl infonnaliOIl. The SC\:ond d~lptcr is an unllSI~1J pa.rt of the book. Personally I've
:1111'<1\"5 had an interest ill history. aoo 1]l<ltof COlllpulCT Gr.lphics has. and I think man.,. readers will agree. a Spcci,ll
chann. For 1I~1ny years of my life J lJ.1\'C oolle<:tcd ,Irticlcs and infonnmion about tIl\: subject. Rcali~jllg tlJ.11 J 111d
gmhcrcdalotofm.11crial,ldccidcdlosharciLbyaddingilasani1l1cgra1cdplIn Oflhc book. Funhcnllore. in lhc SlImc
CII.1ptcr.lhc history of IRtll" will bediscusscd. from ilsbeginnings. with inI.1gCSllnd ncwSIIC\"CrpublisllCd before.
C1I.1ptcr 3 and Chaptcr -I. tllC largest oncs. conlain infon1l<ltion regarding tllC usc of most of tllC p.1ralllCtcrs in tllC
Renderer. TIIC subjcct has been divided into two pariS only bec<lU$C of practical reasons. Chapter 5 dcscribes ,til tllC
nI.11crinlnndIl11psaddcdt03dsMaxnftcrinslalling l"Rm .whilcCII.1ptcr60ITcrs infOnlI.1tionabolllcamCl1lsnnd [ights
belonging to 1"R"y . ClI.1ptcr7describesl11C0bjcctsandtllCatmospllCricalcffcC1S 1II.'I<lc availablcby 1"H".... ChaptcrS
introduces video compositing conccplS. tOgCttlCT with tllC Rendcr Pass. lllC last Chapler brings tllC book up to datc with
tllC innovations inlroduccd by ' Ruy ·s\'I.SRC3. 1.5 FINAL. VRay 1.5 SPI. SP2 and SP3a

GETTHE MOST OUT Of THE BOOK

MostlcchniqllCsuscd in this book rcquireonly 3ds Ma."S. 9. 200S. 2009. 2010 and 1 Ruy. For tllC CTCalion of this
\'o lumc many vcrsions of 1Rill" wcre used. Whilc hopping from one vcrsion to IIIC olllCr. sonIC codcs and paraulCtcrs
1I.1VC been added or removcd. lllis is why it is I'c ry probablc Ihat SOUIC imagcs do not correspond perfectly wcll with tllC
interfaccoftllClatest version availablc.lltisis n01,1 problcm:lt alL becausctllCconccpts preSCll1 are often tllC 5:1ll1C
CI'cn iftllCcomll\1lJds [\1\'eclI.1ngedposilion
To gellllC most out of this book. still. il is useful 10 tl3l'c SOlllC e~pcriencc in sonIC 3D applicmions. Fore\:lllllpic. all
graphic anisls shou ld [\11'C and knOll" m Icast 011C p.1inting and/or image retouching program. Programs stich as
PhOloshop or Paint Shop Pro. GimporPaintcrare absollllcl y nccessal)' to create and retouch the textllTCSorltlC final
renders
As far as thc reading of the book is concerned. Ihc advice for newconJCTS is 10 begin with tllC fiTSI chapter. avoid
jumping from 011C arglltnell1lo!l1C lIext. lltis is because often and dclibel1l1cly. tllC description of sonIC p<lI1llllCters
refcmxlto prcl'iously

THE ENClOSED DID

A DVD-ROM is erlClosed 10 lllC book. 11 contains (; folders. 5 of which are dcdicalcd 10 ClI.1ptcTS 3. -I. S. 7 and 9. Inside
32 allimalionsin .rnol· ronml are present. in addilion 10 nI.1ny inI.1ges lakenrromtllCbook. TIICillustrations are dil'ided
as in Ihe CII.1ptCrs alJd will 1\1\"c refererlCes in lllC lC~t. TIIC videos show sonIC interesting tcchnica l sill~1!ions. TIIC
remaining folder contains all 1"R1ll versions presently availablc. All DEMO \'eTSions for 3ds Ma.". Maya. Rhino and
SkelchUp are present. also 2 plug-in freell',lre_ Color Correct. Greeble_ and G UI-lvrimg2exr. graphic ill1erfacc for
1"RIIY -S vrimg2cxrtoo[ alutllC DEMO VCrsiOliof 3ds Ma~ 2010

4_ VRay - T HE COMPL ETE GU IDE

 I 'Rur is a progmm tfl.,t appeared in public in december 200 I. It derives from the genius of two progmmmers from Sofia
(Bulgaria): Vlad imi r Ko~·la".o,' (Vlado) and Peter Mite.' (Peter). I 'Rill is an internal Plug"in prescnt in 3ds Mm... And
it is uscd as a rendering engillC substitute for the OIJCS already prescnt in the software, Lights genemtion" shadows.
reflections. etc,__ are byp:lsscd thus calcubted by I R,I)'. As the programmers annonnced. I R#) 's Strong poill1 was the
e.~trelllC mpidilY ill mylracc eompUlalion compared 10 tmdilion.11 syslenlS. Absolulely lnte! II was possible 10 render
hundreds of el)'slal glasses in mylmcc in an uniln.1ginable lime for ScanlillC. which was tllC only internal rendcring
cngillC a\,:lilablc for 3ds Ma.\. TIIC Global Illumination too "'<IS vcry f<ls\, TI~lHks to tllC innol'ativc IrmdiallCe Map
rendciSll-ithphotorealistiequalityin IInilmgin.1blctinlCSllOt po ssiblcbefore.FurtllCntlOretllCintcrface.co lllpilredto
tllC rivals. such as Brazil. fillalRendcr mKi Melllni Ray . was unquestionably clearer mKi nlOre eompilC!. ,uKi able 10
ereatc S1Unning scenes. TIlis wasn". aIL OlllCr cffccls like DOF. MOlion blur. and tllC faslest e.~is.ing s.1mpling sySlcm
were pul into I Ruy. Moreo\'cr. it was possiblc 10 compute effects as c.1uslies. arKi il conlaincd special kirKis of
C<llllCras. Last but not leasttllC price. really compctitil·e. All this c<luscd a large growth in tllC uscr community. In few
years 11i1iKireds of web sites and spcci<lli~.cd forums for I "Nil.! were created" alllOngst tlus "~,,,·.tn'llili.c/Jin

VRayARD THE HARDWARE

Considering the high quality oftllC works achievable with I "Nfl.\'. 01lC nught think Ihat a powerful system is llCCeSs.11)' to
usc I Rflf_ TIlis is 1101 InIC_ Any reasonably rcccll1 eompmcr is suitable for IRfI.1 We could S<l)' tllC minimal
reqllirelllCntsarelhoscllCeesS.11)· IOnLll3dsMa.~

SOF'WARE

32_l1itOp<'rllling!:»·.f/em,':
- Microsoft Windows XP Professional (Service Pack 2 or higllCr) TCCOllllllCnded
- Microsoft WilKiows 2000 Professiol\<11 (Sen'icc Pack 4)

6.J-llitOper(l/ill{:.~)·"lem.. :
-Microsoft WilKioll'sXP Profession.alx64
-Browscrwcbrequircd: Microsoft 11l1enICI Explorer 6 or higllCr.
- Addilional software required: Diree. X R 9.Oc (required). OpcnGL (opliona l).

HARDWARE

32-IJitI /t'f'siO/,.-:
- Intel Pentiulll IV. Intcl Core duo. AMD Athlon XP or higllCr processor
-512 MB RAM ( I GB recollllllC1Kied)
- Hardware llCcclcralorOpcnGL R mKi Direcl 3D
-Poill1illgdispos.1IMicrosoftWindowS-C01llp.llible(Microsoftlll1elliMousc)
-OVOplayer.

6.J-lJitOperlltillg!:»·stl.'m!l:
-Imel EM64T. Imel Core Ouo.lmel Xcon. AMO Alhlon M orhigllCr. AMO Opleron Pf(lCessor
- I GB RAM (4 GB TCCOllllllCrKied).
- Hardware acccleratorOpcnGL R and Oirect 3D
- Pointing disposal Microsoft Windows-c<Jmp.ltible (Microsoft InlelliMousc)
-OVOplayer.

INTRODUCTION _ 5
Two l'ersiollS of IRIIJ exist: the 32-bil one. and thc 6-f-bitone. Regarding thc 32-bil I"crsion. it I1lnstbeinstallcdinlhe
presctlCe of a J2-bit OS. suc h as Windows XP Professiot~11 J2-bil. instead tllC (H-bit version mUSI be instnlled wilh
Windows XP Professional 64-bit. lbc 64-bit version will gual1lntce the possibility of assignillg to 3ds Ma.~ . and to
'Rtly as weH. more tll.1n 4 GB of IllCmO!)'. due 10 ils intrinsic nature. TIIC impossibility of assigning more than 2 GB of
memory tolllC sanlC process is OIICoflllC IIlOst scriousJ2-bit systemsproblellls. This isa big lilllitation. collSidering
11~1t high qualily computations IlCed a lot of RAM . In C<ISC tllC !ICed exceeds IIIC maximum nlCmo!)' available. 2GB in
32-bit systems. 3ds M,l~ lI'ill crash. even if more than 2 GB are prescnt on tllC system. TIlis doesn't 1l<lppen with a (H-
bit system. where all tllC installed RAM. 2. 4. 8 or 16 GB. Clm be assigned to an unique process

SOIlIC "not-official'" advice on tllC typology of hardware to usc wilh 'R".I to get tllC mosl out of tllC book are collccted
intllCnextscetion. withspcc ial c.1retotllCprices. TIlisisnotgeneraladvice:lhey·regroundedone.~perienccandonthe
prescntprices.aecordingll'ilh IRlly ·sneeds

P roc~S{Jrs: this is illC pM oftllC 1~1rdware which is uscd mOSl by 'R"y . All raytracingcomputillg. Globallllumi!~1tion
is processed by IIIC CPU. Thus. tllC more power OIIC has. IIIC more rapidly tllC image crealion will be achieved
NOl1'ad1ys l1l<uket oITers relat ively cheap 2.66 GHz-Qu.ad-Core processors. TIlis me<t1lS tllC PC will pragnl<ltic<tlly
,ontain just one CPU which is in tnuh fonned by .. scpmllled CPUs. A system containing two of llK:sc CPUs. called
Dual QI~1d-Core. will hall'e times comp.1rcd with tlK: previolls 01K:. I( is also possible to conncet more PCs. Single Core
or Multi Core. togellK:r in a network making !lK:m work toge!lK:r. This lI'illll11ow a funher fall in waiting tiuK:s

RAM: Memory qu<tlltity is anotllCr cruc ial aspect for a workstation. WllCn I "NIIY I~ls to compute complex inl<lges. it
Slores 11K: infonnation in Ihe syslem memory. SonlClimes. wllCn certain objects are uscd. for inst.1llCC Light CadlC.
DispJacenlCntand many oillC r oncs. ilcould happenlll<lttllC nlCrnol)' rcqueSlby IRu) is higllCrtll<1Ilthe available 01lC
lhis will make tlK: progrlllll cl1Ish. TIlis means iI's beHer to economize on Olher h.1rdware cleillems. I1ItlK:r tl~111 tlK:
RAM. As far as 32-bit systems a~ ,on:;:emcd. [ find pointless to e.~eced 2 GB. while for 64-bit ones tlK: adl'ice is
11.1\·ing allc.1st 4 of lhem. divided inlwo benehes, each one of 2 GB. RAM's mpidity is IIOt ilnpon.1nl as its quam it)'

H D: TIte choice of 1~1.rd disk illSlead. comp'lred 10 RAM and CPU. isn't all tl~lt imponant for I Ray. Its employnK:nt is
in fact purely storing tlK: infOlll~11ion. TIK: faster 11 HD is. the more rapidly you'll be able to open a file. save or llXall
11K: IrradiallCe Map. et, ... TIK: dirre~tlCes betll"cenllK: tK:W 1~1rd disks and tlK: oldest 01K:S is, anyway. just a fell'
sccOllds. TIK: problelll ariscs wllCn. for e ....ample. tlK: HD is used by 'Rfl.) as a "pad" me!llOry. instead of tlK: RAM .
SonlClirnes you' II llOtice a HD's on!,'oing aetivit,· dU.rillg tllC rendering with I R"I", togctllCr with tllC processor's
letl~Hgic 011C. TIK: reason is tlK: RAM requesll~IS been integl1l1ed by tlte hard disk ntelllOl)'. ilChiel"ing the creation of
p.1ging files on disk: this is a I'el)' long procedure. III otlK:r words. I Ril.!" is using disk space as if it was comnlOll RAM
This opermion is I'el)' slow. beeause the 1~1rd disk is. for its !~1ture. slo\\"erll~1n tlK: RAM . H:l\'ing.1 fasl HD could be
useful for lhis operation. in slang called Swapping. TIIC adl'ice could be I~l\'ing II 250 GB HD. with rotmion speed of
7200rounds/minUle

Nctw'ork Ca rd : A good qualily IlCt\lOrk card is helpful in casc 11K: PC is conrlCcted to a lK:twOrk uscd for dala transfer
thanks to a distribilled render. TIK: data isstorcdona Pc. when milltipic mac hincsworkl0gethcrl0,omputeascelK:
On;:e tlK: render is staned. tlris n~1ChilK: distribules tlK: SCCtK:. 11K: maps and textures et,--. to all tlK: Olhe r PCs linked 10
lIte !lCtwork too. Once this process is finished. as to sa~' all tlK: PCs 1~1ve llXeivcd .111 11K: infOlll~1tions. 111C lK:twOrk
Imffic slows down quickly. but doesn't stop. A lillie aetivily. due 10 tllC continuous d:lt:l transfer from tllC network
computers. which are executing tllC render. to the centr.11 SClver. which receives the data deriving from tllC PCs.lI'ili
always be prescnt Nowadays )'011 can find network 'llrdS 10110011000 Mbps at a dozen of euros

Vitl co Card : TIK: I'idco card doesn't affect tllC rendering computing in any way. II is only uscful for 1~1l' i ng a better
mal~1gClnenl of tllC viewpon. allowing a faster l'isualiz.1tion and a beneT real-linK: te.~ture represcntation. For this reason
it won't be considercd in this description.

6_ VRay - THE COMPLETE GU IDE

BOOK'SWIBSITE
TIIC llulhor of 1he [ex' (",,,,·/mncen·olegn,,,zi.c<,m) and adminislmlor of "'''''.Irl!ddi.c<>m h3\'C created. aI 1he address
http://'''''''.1Tt!,/di.,vnnl/r}fumA·,,,),-'a--1:,,it/,,.hlm, some P.1gCS ofsuppon for the book in order 10 illlcrac\ wilh readers
and when nccessary provide additional lllatcrk1L hi the sile there II-ill also be a fonnn which Carl be used exclusiyely by
the owners of this book Qne elUl access this part by clicking on the link in the pllblicimr)' ~Igc mxl inserting the
password which is 10 bc fourld Ot1 lhc back of lhc book's ooycr.
11 will be a IIICCling point for exchanging opinions 300nl C\'CI}'lhing concerning VRay and the subjccls coI'crcd in Ihe
book

TIIC author will be pleased 10 offer yon this support. accepting snggcSlions to improve lhe fulure cdiliolls of Ihis book
bUlhc is 1101 available forconsullingorspcdficproblClllsolI'ingoonccminguscrs'spccificprojccts

You can wrilc 10 Ihc allthor, both in Italian orin EngJish. 10 this add TeSS

,·rll):..("e....J;uid<!lQ~reddi.com

INTRODUCT ION _ 1
VRavANO ITS INTERFACE
IRlly iSlIsoftwarcbuiltuplocompUlcilll.1gcsbycomputcr,spccificallyCOJJCCi'"OOlocrcatcphotorcalisticimagC5_llis
bascdonphysicallall"sand propcnicsprcscnt in lI.11UJ'C. ThisCl~1b lcs i( to simUlate reality thebesl way possible thus
ob13 iningphysica llycorrcC\fCndcrs

. Flg..-el.l
Somee~esrealizedbyVRay'$wers

From Illc lcchnical point of vicw, I Ray was created as a 3ds Ma,~ plug-in. Nowadays many Olher versions arc being
developed. in Ilic fonn of plug-ins for Maya. Rhino. Cincn~1 ~D. SkclchUp. XSI. a SwndalollC \'CrsiOll onc for Linu.~
and 3no\herOlle for Mac OS X. lbc ones for Rhino, SkCIChUp, Cillcma~D arc already Oll lhc market
We will c~,Hn i nc ouly the 3ds Ma.~ vers ion in Ihi s book. SirlCc I '8".1 is still under beta-testing. different kind of
\'crsiollswilloc uscd.startingfrom .'I. .f7.03.uplililhclaslvclSioua\'ailablcduriuglhcbook·swriling. Incascncw
fcalun:s.dcrivingfromllCwvclSiolls.beoomclwailablc. lhCSl: will be n:mmtcdandoouullcmcd
(lhe book will be updntcd up 10 Ihc ,' J.5 SP311 for Jds Max 20(0)

Wc find l'RIJ,r lmd ilSOpliolls spread inside Jds Ma.\ . Onec inslalled and SC I as rendering cngine.one ca ll find il in
Illanv dilTcrcut scc lions. such as Matcrial Edilor. orin Ihc lights, lhc call1cras.thcobjccls.thccffccls.ctc

8_ VRay - THE COMPLETE GUIDE