Artlantis vs Cinema 4D

[archislave]

I would like to settle on a good software to work with Sketchup and Archicad. I have tried Artlantis and it is easy to use and works well with archicad. One thing I don't like is that you can't move or change any of the archicad elements. The renderings are of much better quality than Archicad and quick. I would dare say Artlantis is such a step above and easy to use that why anyone would torture themselves with trying to get high quality renderings from Archicad is beyond me.

I know almost nothing about Cinema 4D except that it works well with Archicad - I hear. I am not considering Maxwell until it is at least in Version 2.

Any insights are appreciated.

[Karl Ottenstein]

archislave wrote:
Karl, that is really good information. I am still kind of confused as to the difference between a shader and texture. I just need to learn more about Artlantis. I heard the new book is not that good?

I haven't seen the book, so don't know. If publisher or author is reading: I welcome free gifts. 😉

A texture is simply an image file - e.g., photo of bricks. A shader includes all of the settings that affect the surface to which the texture(s) are applied - mapping of pixels to real world dimensions, orientation, wrapping method, shininess, reflectivity, color blending, bump, opacity, etc...

Karl

[Dwight]

And to add to the description of a "shader," a texture map is not always required to simulate a specific material.

The complete name for shader is "procedural shader." This means that it employs a mathematical procedure (a formula) to generate and control the surface pattern. The advantage of shaders is that they create an infinitely-varied and seamless effect. In quality rendering programs, shaders are easily edited.

[Anonymous]

Maps are pictures - jpg, tiff or some other file format.

I think you need to buy a book for the some beginner's training in rendering.

[Anonymous]

archislave wrote:
Any insights are appreciated.

This movie was done in Artlantis R.
It is an illustration of a real project, submitted to a competition.
I am an architect, not an illustrator, so 90% of my time was spend on designing the beast.
The whole movie was done in small bursts (programming each clip), which added up maybe to 2 working days, tops.
The rendering was done by my machine during nighttime, when I was deep asleep. It took some 3 weeks to render.
I don´t know about you, but for me this is good enough.

http://bimania.blogspot.com/2007/04/bim-example.html

[Rakela Raul]

@ miguel, durn good to me

[Anonymous]

I vote, great work. Best I have seen in a very long time.

[Dennis Lee]

Miguel, that's very impressive! Not just the rendering, but the whole presentation was very insightful and easy to follow. Hope you get the job!

Sidenote: Your work (amount of) re-affirms my belief that with the right software (AC, Artlantis) small offices can handle much bigger jobs than one can w/ the wrong ones. Great job!

[Anonymous]

Dennis wrote:
Your work (amount of) re-affirms my belief that with the right software (AC, Artlantis) small offices can handle much bigger jobs than one can w/ the wrong ones.

Ditto

I work alone, and all the other companies that entered this competition have more than one designer (some have several architects).
Therefore, my fees are smaller than theirs, therefore I will probably win the competition (mine is the lowest price by far). I deliver more for less.

This smaller office/better fees + automatic drawings/automatic renderings is a winning combination all the times.

[Anonymous]

Thanks everyone for the positive feedback. It is one thing to see laymen salivating in aw, it is quite another to hear positive reviews from you peers.

[Anonymous]

I hope it is not a butt-in to add this about Cinema 4D. The attached were done in Cinema - r 9.2 - and using some cad basic forms imported from that "other" cadware. I've been using C4D since 2002 and I think you guys are really lucky to have a plugin for it. I also have tried VIZ with a whole lot of grief. I'm presently exploring a terrain generator called GeoControl which will import information to create really beautiful terrains into Cinema. If interested, check out the Cinema 4D forum at CG Architect or the site for GeoControl 3D and look into the galleries there. Soon, if not already, there will be a plugin for VRay render engine for Cinema.

I can recommend Cinema completely for ease of use and power. But of course, try the free downloads of others too.

Good luck,
Lloyd