Difference between revisions of "Grass Clump - Surface Shaders Tab"

From Terragen Documentation from Planetside Software
Jump to: navigation, search
 
Line 1: Line 1:
[[Image:drex_module_192_2_image_0.png|center|Grass Clump - Surface Shaders Tab]]
+
[[Image:drex_module_196_2_image_0.png|center|Card - Surface Shaders Tab]]
  
 
'''Description:'''<br />
 
'''Description:'''<br />
This tab has settings which allow you control the surface texture for the Grass clump.
+
This tab lets you assign a surface shader to texture the object.
  
 +
'''Settings:'''<br />
 +
<ul>
 +
<li>
 +
'''Surface shader:''' You can use this to assign a surface shader to the object.
 +
</li><li>
 +
'''Displacement tolerance:''' If you find that rough or spikey surfaces are showing problems at bucket edges, for example spikes having cut off tops, or gaps in ray traced shadows then increasing this value may help. However this can greatly increase render times.  Relatively flat surfaces may render more quickly with smaller values.
  
'''Settings:'''<br />
+
The default value is 1. However this is an advanced setting and you should not change it unless you have specific problem you need to address. If you are having problems try starting with 2 and then increase it by small increments until they're resolved. A value of 4 would be considered a high value.
 +
</li>
 +
</ul>
  
*'''Surface shader:''' This parameter lets you assign a shader for the Grass clump surface.
 
*'''Displacement tolerance:''' You might find surfaces with rough or spikey displacement occasionally show problems, such as being cut off at bucket edges or causing gaps in ray traced shadows. The Displacement tolerance parameter can help to improve this. Changing this parameter can greatly increase render times so you should only change it if you have a specific need. The default value is 1. If you're having problems try increasing it to 2. If that improves things but doesn't completely resolve them then try increasing it by small increments. You would not generally want to go above a value of 4 or 5 however.
 
  
  
 
Back to: [[Grass Clump]]
 
Back to: [[Grass Clump]]

Latest revision as of 01:28, 8 December 2012

Card - Surface Shaders Tab

Description:
This tab lets you assign a surface shader to texture the object.

Settings:

  • Surface shader: You can use this to assign a surface shader to the object.
  • Displacement tolerance: If you find that rough or spikey surfaces are showing problems at bucket edges, for example spikes having cut off tops, or gaps in ray traced shadows then increasing this value may help. However this can greatly increase render times. Relatively flat surfaces may render more quickly with smaller values.

    The default value is 1. However this is an advanced setting and you should not change it unless you have specific problem you need to address. If you are having problems try starting with 2 and then increase it by small increments until they're resolved. A value of 4 would be considered a high value.


Back to: Grass Clump

A shader is a program or set of instructions used in 3D computer graphics to determine the final surface properties of an object or image. This can include arbitrarily complex descriptions of light absorption and diffusion, texture mapping, reflection and refraction, shadowing, surface displacement and post-processing effects. In Terragen 2 shaders are used to construct and modify almost every element of a scene.

When Terragen renders, it divides the image up into buckets or tiles. Each bucket is rendered separately, allowing multiple buckets to be rendered at once. It also allows memory to be used more efficiently.