Should I upgrade to iclone 7?


https://forum.reallusion.com/Topic359024.aspx
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By 3d guy1 - 7 Years Ago
Hi,

I have 5 and 6, but barely touched them.   I remember trying to get DAZ characters in through the pipeline and gave up at how difficult it
was.  

Also when I looked at the render quality I was major dissapointed.

I mainly use Poser with Octane current.  

Doing animations in poser is tough, especially when you add more
than one character.  But the quality is good.

I was rendering today, with Octane,  and got it down to 10 seconds total, a frame.  3 - 4  seconds render,  and octane calculates for 7 seconds.    Of course it was a very light scene.

I see some people have elaborate work flows, importing DAZ
characters,  animating,  exporting to Max or C4D to render.  That
seems way time consuming.

I really like to simplify and speed up.

thanks for any opinions.

PS  will Iclone 8 have Brigade render?





By wires - 7 Years Ago
If your PC system is powerful enough then there is no reason why you shouldn't get iClone 7. In order to get the most out of the new version you will need a Graphic card with at least 8 GB of video RAM - 12 GB would be even better. It will run with a 4 GB card, but expect some issues if your scene gets overloaded with visual "goodies".

As for iClone 8 - going on past experiences this version won't be available until late 2019, early 2020.
By GOETZIWOOD STUDIOS - 7 Years Ago
wd70 (3/13/2018)
../..PS  will Iclone 8 have Brigade render?

Unfortunately Reallusion has chosen the iRay path for now, probably to be in par with Daz3D.
Nothing prevents them to add Brigade later on though, but there has been no indication nor announcement so far about such initiative.
By 3d guy1 - 7 Years Ago
Thanks guys,

My system appears powerful enough, with NVIDIA   gpu.  

I'm just trying to determine if I will ever use 7,  since I never used 5, or 6.
{ only upgraded for sale price reasons}

I'm not sure about the  PBR rendering - although it's an improvement.  I'm pretty
well used to the Octane look.

Some have posted its not at the level of Unity PBR, for some reason.    What about
Blender Evee PBR?  

Is exporting an iclone 7 scene to Blender Evee, or cycles, a one button process?

How about exporting an iclone 7 scene to LIGHTWAVE/ OCTANE?    is that one
button,  or do you have to re- texture everything?

Finally,  any estimate of when IRAY will be onboard?




By Pixtim - 7 Years Ago
I see some people have elaborate work flows, importing DAZ
characters,  animating,  exporting to Max or C4D to render.  That
seems way time consuming.



I work with Cinema 4D.
when I integrated Iclone 6.5 into my workflow, it was a little hard work. Today is very different.
On the one hand the quality of rendering allows me to make certain project only with Iclone and others in part because we can now recover animated cameras without problem. We can do rendering with alpha for integration in post prod (it still lacks renderings by layers and masks objects ... but it is planned in the next version).

On the other hand, I was able to refine my workflow for exporting 3D animation.
I had tried the Alembic export to take advantage of the physical animation of the clothes and the hair, but the weight of the files generated and the problem of the non transferred textures made me leave this track.
So today, I'm exporting the animated characters in fbx directly from the built-in Iclone 7. I save the bitmap of the weight cards and I found a miracle function in a Cinema4D plug'in to convert me these bitmap in weight map for vertex (used for the physical dynamics in Cinema4D)
Dynamic animations are generated from the movement of the fbx by the physics engine Cinema4D ... and it works really very well! Light and efficient!
(The only thing is that this weight map conversion function is a function of the X-particle particles plug'in .. it is certain that if you only buy this plug'in for that ... it's is a bit pricey ...)

Ogier
By 3d guy1 - 7 Years Ago
I work with Cinema 4D.

............ok

when I integrated Iclone 6.5 into my workflow, it was a little hard work. Today is very different.

On the one hand the quality of rendering allows me to make certain project only with Iclone

...................to the PBR rendering fits your compositing workflow?


and others in part because we can now recover animated cameras without problem

................ok not sure what you mean.  is this import/ export of FBX?


. We can do rendering with alpha for integration in post prod (it still lacks renderings by layers and masks objects ... but it is planned in the next version).

...................So version 7 is the first for alpha channel renders?

On the other hand, I was able to refine my workflow for exporting 3D animation
.
I had tried the Alembic export to take advantage of the physical animation of the clothes and the hair, but the weight of the files generated and the problem of the non transferred textures made me leave this track.

................so Alembics not working out?   file sizes too big?

So today, I'm exporting the animated characters in fbx directly from the built-in Iclone 7.


............so 7.2 the FBX export of characters works for you?   to C4D?

I save the bitmap of the weight cards and I found a miracle function in a Cinema4D plug'in to convert me these bitmap in weight map for vertex (used for the physical dynamics in Cinema4D)


Dynamic animations are generated from the movement of the fbx by the physics engine Cinema4D ... and it works really very well! Light and efficient!

(The only thing is that this weight map conversion function is a function of the X-particle particles plug'in .. it is certain that if you only buy this plug'in for that ... it's is a bit pricey ...)

............little confused here.   But your saying FBX TO C4D is working well current?

thanks
By 3d guy1 - 7 Years Ago
grabiller (3/13/2018)
wd70 (3/13/2018)
../..PS  will Iclone 8 have Brigade render?

Unfortunately Reallusion has chosen the iRay path for now, probably to be in par with Daz3D.
Nothing prevents them to add Brigade later on though, but there has been no indication nor announcement so far about such initiative.



well Iray,  certainly wont be realtime.   some say its around the speed of Octane,  but I dont know.

I dont understand why no one submitted ICLONE for an Octane plugin.   everyone else has it now.

By GOETZIWOOD STUDIOS - 7 Years Ago
wd70 (3/15/2018)
grabiller (3/13/2018)
wd70 (3/13/2018)
../..PS  will Iclone 8 have Brigade render?

Unfortunately Reallusion has chosen the iRay path for now, probably to be in par with Daz3D.
Nothing prevents them to add Brigade later on though, but there has been no indication nor announcement so far about such initiative.

well Iray,  certainly wont be realtime.   some say its around the speed of Octane,  but I dont know.
I dont understand why no one submitted ICLONE for an Octane plugin.   everyone else has it now.

Because hardcore iClone film makers dont really care about Octane, iRay, Indigo and such. What they want is a realtime renderer that works and be in par with state of the art nowadays realtime renderers (ie Unreal) as the true nature of iClone, at least at first, was to create realtime aniimations and renderings (machinima).

Newcomers like you often think iClone is just another DCC tool with some magic features that will allow them to create more easily things they have hard time to create in other DCC tools, so they tend to bend iClone towards other "standard" DCC tools. Which we do not want of course. Or else better use the other DCC tools.

That said, it is just a matter of time, 5 to 10 years from now it is probable that Octane, iRay and such renderers will be able to produce the needed renderings below a 2 seconds time frame if not in realtime. At this point iClone will be useless in terms of "realtime renderer", that's probably why they try to develop features not easily found in other DCC tools (mocap + facial capture handling, puppeteering, character creation toolkit, etc..) and have opened their business to the gaming market.
By 3d guy1 - 7 Years Ago
Because hardcore iClone film makers dont really care about Octane, iRay, Indigo and such.


What they want is a realtime renderer that works and be in par with state of the art nowadays realtime renderers (ie Unreal)

................ is there something preventing this now?

as the true nature of iClone, at least at first, was to create realtime aniimations and renderings (machinima).

Newcomers like you often think iClone is just another DCC tool with some magic features that will allow them to create more easily things they have hard time to create in other DCC tools, so they tend to bend iClone towards other "standard" DCC tools.

.....................apparently IRAY and TRACKING are on the 2018 roadmap.  Those arent exactly gaming
or machina tools.


Which we do not want of course.

......................who is we?   See Roadmap above.



Or else better use the other DCC tools.

That said, it is just a matter of time, 5 to 10 years from now it is probable that Octane, iRay and such renderers will be able to produce the needed renderings below a 2 seconds time frame if not in realtime. At this point iClone will be useless in terms of "realtime renderer", that's probably why they try to develop features not easily found in other DCC tools (mocap + facial capture handling, puppeteering, character creation toolkit, etc..) and have opened their business to the gaming market.         

                      --
guy rabiller | radfac founder | 3d technical director | youtube channel
By GOETZIWOOD STUDIOS - 7 Years Ago
wd70 (3/16/2018)
Because hardcore iClone film makers dont really care about Octane, iRay, Indigo and such.
What they want is a realtime renderer that works and be in par with state of the art nowadays realtime renderers (ie Unreal)
................ is there something preventing this now?

Reallusion.

wd70 (3/16/2018)
as the true nature of iClone, at least at first, was to create realtime aniimations and renderings (machinima).
Newcomers like you often think iClone is just another DCC tool with some magic features that will allow them to create more easily things they have hard time to create in other DCC tools, so they tend to bend iClone towards other "standard" DCC tools.
.....................apparently IRAY and TRACKING are on the 2018 roadmap.  Those arent exactly gaming or machina tools.

That's the point. We don't need those. But the roadmap is made by Reallusion, not by us.

wd70 (3/16/2018)
Which we do not want of course.
......................who is we?   See Roadmap above.

iClone hardcore film/machinima makers. Again, we do not make the roadmap, Reallusion does.
By 3d guy1 - 7 Years Ago
well it sounds like you have some unaddressed beefs.

1.  If iclone doesn't have the high end renderer you want --- maybe the staff can't create it.    In that case Get them to license it:

  Brigade,  Evee  ,  or ?

2  Games and film-making are merging - just a fact.    if you want the old toon look - use filters.

 I like the road-map, personally.  Its leaning me towards 7, although Im not totally sold yet.



By GOETZIWOOD STUDIOS - 7 Years Ago
wd70 (3/16/2018)
well it sounds like you have some unaddressed beefs.
1.  If iclone doesn't have the high end renderer you want --- maybe the staff can't create it.    In that case Get them to license it:
  Brigade,  Evee  ,  or ?

By offering them flowers ?

wd70 (3/16/2018)
2  Games and film-making are merging - just a fact.    if you want the old toon look - use filters.

Not sure what your point is here. Obviously you have no clue about what I want.

wd70 (3/16/2018)
I like the road-map, personally.  Its leaning me towards 7.

Good for you then.

wd70 (3/16/2018)
..although Im not totally sold yet.

Damn. What is missing ?
By Pixtim - 7 Years Ago
_ PBR rendering
----> I do not necessarily use PBR rendering in C4D. Before the PBR rendering came on the market, we were already doing pretty nice pictures :). It depends on what we do.
But there are Octane or Cycle 4D engines for Cinema 4D when you want to use it.

_ Animated camera
---> yes you can now import into Iclone an animated camera with fbx format.

_Alpha channel
--->
no this possibility existed before, I just say that it is a possible method to use Iclone in a set of work

_Alembic
--->

_ Alembic is very heavy in use. It exports each frame individually and without bone skeleton (each frame is like an object). In addition, the current formats do not support textures. You have to reassign each channel.

_
a fbx export that works for C4d ???
--->

_ yes, the fbx format works very well for me. There is a problem with the rotation of the mesh of the fingers when we arrive in Cinema 4D..
The trick that I found is simple: I export all my annimation with in frame 01 the initial pose T. In Cinema 4D, it is then enough to redefine the pose of each polygonal object related to the skeleton ....
Then everything works very well ... you will tell me your tests :)

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