Using 3ds max Render Elements

combustion web tutorial

Note: 3ds max 4 and combustion v1.011 are required for this lesson.

Render a scene to elements in 3ds max and generate a combustion workspace. Then, apply and animate effects to layers of the composite in the combustion workspace. There is a layer for each image file from the 3ds max render.

Using 3ds max Render Elements

Overview
There are three ways that combustion v1.011 and 3ds max 4 can be used together: Use a combustion workspace as a material map, a displacement map or an environment map in 3ds max; import 3ds max scenes rendered in rich pixel file (RPF or RLA) format into combustion; render 3ds max scene elements, such as Refraction and Shadows, as individual image files in a composite and generate a combustion workspace. This lesson shows how to render a 3ds max scene to elements and generate a combustion workspace file, and how to modify and animate the combustion composite by adding operators to the render element layers to create a main title type of animation.
Note: Although 3ds max runs only on Windows systems, once a combustion workspace has been generated from 3ds max, the workspace can be used on a Macintosh system.

In this lesson:

Examine and render a 3ds max scene to elements and generate a combustion workspace file Examine the render element layers in combustion Use a discreet Color Corrector operator to match the Diffuse render element layer to the background Animate the opacity of the Self-Illumination layer Add a Paint operator to the Refraction layer Import and key additional fire footage
Time to complete the lesson: 90 minutes.
Note: The screenshots in this lesson are from combustion and 3ds max on a PC running the Windows 2000 operating system. On a Macintosh, the combustion user interface is the same as on Windows. Also, the monitors were set to 1280 x 1024. Monitor resolution affects the size of the clips in the viewports, so some screenshots may not match your screen.

Play the Result Movie

If you want to preview the result movie of this lesson prior to starting the lesson, open the Lava folder and play the Lava.mov file using Microsoft Windows Media Player or Apple Quicktime.

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View the 3ds max Scene

View the animation and the material parameters of an object in the Lava scene. 1. Start 3ds max. 2. Choose File | Open, or press CTRL+O, navigate to the Lava folder, and open the Lava.max scene. The Lava scene is displayed in the four viewports.

3. Set up the Camera viewport:

a) Click the Camera viewport to make it active. b) Press W to maximize the Camera viewport. c) Right-click the Camera label and ensure Smooth + Highlights is enabled.

Using 3ds max Render Elements

4. Play the animation by doing one of the following:

Scrub the Time Slider. In the Time Controls, click Play Animation.
The text rotates and the bubbles rise from the lava surface. 5. Press HOME to return to the first frame.

Examine the Material Parameters of a Bubble

View the material parameters of one of the bubbles in the Lava scene. 1. In the Main Toolbar, click Select by Name or press H to open the Select Objects dialog. 2. Select Bubble4 from the objects list and click Select. A Transform Gizmo icon appears in the viewport around Bubble4, indicating Bubble4 is selected. 3. Choose Rendering | Material Editor, or press M to open the Material Editor dialog. The material sample slot with solid white triangle corners is the material assigned to the currently selected object, Bubble4.

Bubble4 material sample slot

Note: The corners of a material sample slot that have an outlined white triangle indicate the material is used in the scene.

4. Click the material sample slot assigned to Bubble4. The Bubble4 material rollouts are available.

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5. Expand the Blinn Basic Parameters rollout.

Notice that Self-Illumination is set to 85 and the Self-Illumination Color is disabled. When the SelfIllumination Color is disabled, the material uses the diffuse color for self-illumination. Also, in the Specular Highlights group, Specular Level is set to 25, Glossiness is set to 75, and Softness is set to 0.1 (default). Specular Highlights add shiny highlights to the object, enhancing the bubble effect. The highlight increases as the Specular Level increases and it gets smaller and more focused as Glossiness increases. 6. Collapse the Blinn Basic Parameters and expand the Maps rollout.

Notice the object has a Reflect/Refract map applied to the Diffuse Color and Reflection components.

Using 3ds max Render Elements

7. Choose Rendering | Render or press SHIFT+R or F10. 8. In the Render Scene dialog, in the Render Output group, enable Virtual Frame Buffer and click Close. This enables the image to be rendered to appear in a display window. 9. On the Main Toolbar, click Quick Render, or press either SHIFT+E or F9 to render a single frame of the animation. The current settings in the Render Scene dialog are used and the frame begins to render immediately. The rendered frame appears in a virtual frame buffer.

Self-Illumination makes Bubble4 appear lit from within. The Reflect/Refract map causes the object to reflect the scene.

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Render the 3ds max Scene

Render the 3ds max scene using the Render Elements feature. Select the render elements to be rendered as separate image files and enable output of a combustion workspace file that references the rendered elements. 1. Choose Rendering | Render, or press either SHIFT+R or F10 to set the rendering options. 2. In the Render Scene dialog, expand the Common Parameters rollout. 3. In the Time Output group, select Range and set the frame range from 0 to 29. 4. In the Output Size group, select NTSC D-1 (video) from the Output Size list, and click 720x486. The following rendering settings are displayed in the Render Scene Common Parameters group.

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5. Set up the path and filename for the render output:

a) In the Render Output group, click Files.

The Render Output File dialog appears.

b) Create a folder called Lava Render. c) Select and open the Lava Render folder. d) In the File Name field, type Lava and in the Save As Type field, select Targa Image File from the

list.
e) Click Setup if it is available. If Setup is not available, click Save.

The Targa Image Control dialog appears.

f) Select 32 Bits-Per-Pixel in the Image Attributes group and click OK.

This sets 3ds max to create 32-bit image files. Both the RGB color channels and the alpha channel information will be included in the rendered files. Also, in Render Scene dialog, Render Output group, Save File is automatically enabled since a file name, path and format have been set. When Save File is enabled, 3ds max renders the complete scene. 6. In the Render Scene dialog, disable Save File in the Common Parameters Render Output group. Disabling Save File disables the render of the complete scene, but retains the file name and path set in the Render Output. The Render Elements feature uses this file name as the basis for the names of the rendered element image files. This feature eliminates the need to individually name the files.
Note: Although a complete scene rendering is not required for this exercise, you can choose to leave Save File enabled and render the complete scene. The render element files and the complete scene are generated in the same render pass, so render time is not increased.

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Set the Render Elements

Use the Render Elements feature to render scene elements as separate image files and generate a combustion workspace. 1. In the Render Scene dialog, collapse the Common Parameters rollout and expand the Render Elements rollout. 2. In the Render Elements rollout, click Add. The Render Elements dialog appears.
Note: The Render Elements feature is only available with Production or Draft rendering mode. When Draft rendering is set to other than the Default Scanline Renderer, or ActiveShade is enabled, the Render Elements rollout is not displayed.

3. Select Alpha and click OK, or double-click Alpha. The Alpha element is enabled and a file name is set automatically. The Render Elements feature uses the file name and path assigned to the files in step 5 in the Render the 3ds max Scene section. The Alpha render element generates a grayscale representation of the transparency of the scene.

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4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 for the following elements:

Background (background of the scene) Diffuse (color of the objects in direct lighting) Reflection (scene reflected onto the surface of the object) Refraction (scene mapped onto the surface of the object in a way that looks like you are seeing it
through the surface, rather than reflected off of it)

Self-Illumination (an object appears to glow from within; the object is not affected by lights in the
scene and does not receive shadows)

Shadow (shadows cast by lights in the scene; saves only black and white shadow information) Specular (color of shiny highlights)

The selected render elements are listed and the file name and path of each render element is set in the Selected Element Parameters group. The three elements not rendered in this lesson are described in the Additional Render Elements info box.
Note: Any element in the Render Elements list can be enabled or disabled using the Enable option in the Selected Element Parameters group.

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Additional Render Elements

The following describes the Atmosphere, Blend and Z Depth render elements. Render Element Description The atmospheric effects in the rendering, such as fog and fire. A custom combination of render elements. A grayscale representation of the depth within the view of objects within the scene.

Atmosphere Blend Z Depth

Note: The Blend and Z Depth elements display an additional Parameters rollout.

5. In the Render Elements group, ensure Elements Active and Display Elements are enabled. Elements Active must be enabled for the elements in the list to be rendered. When Elements Active is disabled, all of the selected Render Elements are off. Although not required, enabling Display Elements displays each rendered element in its own virtual frame buffer for previewing. 6. Enable Output to combustion and click Files. The *.cws dialog appears. Notice the file type is already set to Combustion Files. 7. Open the Lava Render folder, type Lava in the File Name field, and click Save. 8. In the Render Scene dialog, click Render. The Rendering dialog displays the render status of the scene, and the virtual frame buffer for the scene builds. After the 30 frames are rendered, the individual render element frame buffers appear on top of each other. 9. Choose File | Save, or CTRL+S, to save the rendered elements from the 3ds max scene, and exit 3ds max.

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Preview the Result combustion Composite

If you want to preview the result combustion workspace file for this lesson, download the additional Render_Elements_Result.zip file and open the Lava_result.cws workspace file in the Lava Result folder.
Note: Although 3ds max runs only on Windows systems, a combustion workspace and render element image files generated from 3ds max can be used on a Macintosh system.

1. Start combustion. 2. Choose File | Open Workspace, or press CTRL+SHIFT+O (Windows) or +SHIFT+O (Macintosh), and select the Lava Result folder in the folder list and then click Lava_result.cws to open the workspace file. 3. Play the clip (SPACEBAR) to view the result.
Note: If you do not have enough RAM to view the entire clip in real time, minimize combustion and review the Lava.mov.

The clip features an animation with bubbles rising out of molten lava and simple 3D text animation. Notice the colors and textures on the lava, bubbles and text. 4. Choose File | Close Workspace (CTRL+W / +W).

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Examine the Lava Composite

Set the combustion preferences, open the Lava combustion workspace file rendered from 3ds max and examine the ordering of the rendered elements. 1. Choose File | Preferences (CTRL+P / combustion preferences: +P) to open the Preferences dialog and set the following

Display Time As: Frames (From 1) Default Keyframe Interpolation: Bezier Default Still Image Duration: 30
Note: Setting these preferences ensures the software behavior matches the steps in this lesson.

2. Choose File | Open Workspace (CTRL+SHIFT+O /

+SHIFT+O) and open the Lava.cws file.

The composite of the 3ds max elements is displayed in the viewport. The resolution and duration of the composite is the resolution and duration set in the 3ds max render.

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The composite contains a layer for each render element image sequence, a default light and the default camera.

Together with the transfer modes, the stacking order of the layers makes the render elements combine correctly in the composite.
Note: The Alpha layer is turned off because it is not required in this composite, but is very useful for compositing additional layers. The Z Depth and Blend render elements are also not required for a composite, so the layers are turned off in the combustion composite when these elements are rendered in 3ds max.

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3. View the transfer mode of the Background layer:

a) In the Workspace panel (F3), click the Background layer. b) In the Composite Controls panel ( F7), click Surface.

The Background layer uses the Normal transfer mode. The Background layer is not trimmed against the other layers (meaning, it has no alpha channel), so it must be composited under the other layers. Therefore, it is at the bottom of the layer stack. 4. In the Workspace panel, click the Diffuse layer to view its transfer mode. Notice the Diffuse layer is directly above the Background layer. Since the Diffuse layer uses an alpha channel, it is composited using the Normal transfer mode. That is, the Background layer is visible beneath the Diffuse layer. 5. Click the Specular layer to view its transfer mode. The Specular layer is composited using the Add transfer mode. The Self-Illumination, Refraction, and Reflection render element layers are also composited using the Add transfer mode, which is independent of the stacking order. 6. In the Workspace panel, select the Refraction layer and drag the layer above the Self-Illumination layer. By changing the order of these two layers, the composite is not affected because both layers use the Add transfer mode.
Note: If this lessons composite had an Atmosphere layer, the layer would appear above the SelfIllumination layer. The Atmosphere layer must be composited over all the other layers that are turned on (see Note in step 2 for details about layers that are off). The Atmosphere layer uses the Normal transfer mode.

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7. Examine the Shadow layer to understand the importance of its stacking order, alpha channel, and transfer mode:
a) Select the Shadow layer. b) In the Composite Controls panel, click Transform and set the Y Position to 100.

The shadows are clearly visible on the background image. The Shadow layer is composited above the Specular layer to dim color in the shadowed areas.
c) In the Composite Controls panel, click Surface and set the transfer mode to Add.

By default, the Shadow layer uses Normal transfer mode because its alpha channel controls how much the black and white shadows dim the Specular and Diffuse layers beneath it in the stacking order. When the transfer mode is set to Add, the shadows cannot be seen.
Note: For the composite to match the 3ds max scene, the Shadow layer must stay below the Reflection, Refraction, and Self-Illumination layers. Otherwise, these three layers would also be dimmed. d) Press CTRL+Z /

+Z twice to undo the changes in steps b and c.

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8. (Optional) View the alpha channel of the Shadow layer:

a) In the Workspace panel, double-click the Shadow layer.

The Shadow layer is displayed in Layer view. The viewport becomes black.
b) In the viewport, right-click (Windows) or CTRL-click (Macintosh) and choose View Mode |

Alpha.

As explained in step 7, this alpha channel controls how the shadows dim the layers beneath it in the stacking order.
c) Right-click / CTRL-click and choose View Mode | Normal to return to Normal view mode.

The viewport still displays the Shadow layer because the Shadow layer is in Layer view.
d) In the Workspace panel, double-click the 3dsmax - Render Elements composite to make it the

current operator.

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Modify and Animate the Lava Composite

To fine tune the lava scene, color correct the Diffuse layer and animate the opacity of the SelfIllumination layer. Add text and composite additional footage into the lava scene.

Color Correct the Diffuse Layer

Apply a discreet Color Corrector operator to the Diffuse layer and use color matching to better integrate the Diffuse layer with the background of the composite. 1. Right-click / CTRL-click the Diffuse layer and choose Color Correction | discreet Color Corrector. A discreet Color Corrector operator is applied to the Diffuse layer and the Color Correction Controls panel appears. 2. In the Color Correction Controls panel (F7), click Basics and click Master to adjust the entire image uniformly.

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3. In the Master controls, click the Source color picker and click on a light red spot in the lava.

Source color picker

The values of the source pixels appear in the Source and Result patches.

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4. Click the Back color picker, and click on the yellow-orange color just below the text in the Background layer.

The values of the back pixels appear in the Back patch.

Note: To sample an average of a source color area, CTRL-drag / COMMAND-drag over a portion of the image.

5. In the Master controls, under Color Match, click Match All. An average of the Source and Back colors appears in the Result patch. The overall tonal range of the Diffuse layer is now better matched to the Background layer.

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6. In the Color Correction Controls panel, click Histogram. The yellow line in the histogram Output represents the Source color sampled in step 3 and the blue line in the histogram Output represents the Back color sampled in step 4.

blue line

yellow line

7. In the histogram, drag the minimum input slider slightly to the right, until the value is approximately 22, so the gray input slider moves toward the position of the blue line in the histogram Output.
Minimum input slider

Maximum input slider

A new average of the Source and Back colors appears in the Result patch. The colors in the Diffuse layer to the left of the slider are remapped to black. As a result, the Diffuse layer becomes darker and is further matched to the Background layer. 8. Disable the Back color picker.

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Animate the Self-Illumination Layer

Animate the opacity of the Self-Illumination layer so the bubble in the lava appears to cool as it rises and moves away from the lava. 1. Select two-viewport layout. With the two-viewport layout, you can view the composite in one viewport and the selected layer in the other viewport. 2. Click the right viewport to make it active. 3. In the Workspace panel, double-click the Self-Illumination layer to view the Self-Illumination layer in Layer view in the right viewport.

4. Go to the first frame (HOME). 5. In the Composite Controls panel, click Surface. Notice that the Opacity for the Self-Illumination layer is set to 100 percent.

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6. Go to frame 30 (END) and enable Animate. When Animate is enabled, keyframes are automatically set when you change values at different frames in the composite.

7. In the Composite Controls panel, set Opacity to 10 percent. In the composite, the bubble rising from the lava appears less luminous than at the beginning of the clip, when it was closer to the lava.

Add Text to the Refraction Layer

Add a Paint operator to the Refraction layer and add text to the composite. 1. Go to the first frame (HOME) and disable Animate. 2. In the Workspace panel, double-click the Refraction layer to show it in Layer view. 3. In the Workspace panel, right-click / CTRL-click the Refraction layer and choose Paint. A Paint operator is applied to the Refraction layer and the Paint Controls panel appears.

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4. Click Settings and set the Default Object Duration to All Frames. By default, paint objects only appear in the frame at which they were drawn. Setting All Frames extends the duration of paint objects to the length of the Refraction footage operator.
Note: You can also choose Objects | Auto Durations to extend the duration of an object. Objects created after Auto Durations is enabled are automatically extended to subsequent frames as you advance through the clip.

5. Set the text options:

a) In the Toolbar (F2), click the Text tool. b) From the Font list, select a font. c) Enable left-aligned justification. d) Set the font size to 100. e) In the Paint Controls panel, enable Anti-Alias to smooth the edges of the text . f) Click Reset to ensure the Paint draw mode and Solid source are used for the text object.

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6. Click the right viewport, and type lava. The word lava appears on the layer.

Note: Changes to the text such as font, alignment, kerning or leading can only be made before exiting the text tool. To change the size of the text after exiting, scale the text with the Arrow tool or use the Transform controls.

7. Click the Arrow tool or press ESC to exit the Text tool. A bounding box appears around the text object. 8. Click on the rotation handle of the bounding box, press SHIFT, and rotate the text object 90 degrees.

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Note: To constrain the rotation to multiples of 45 degrees, press SHIFT while dragging.

9. Click in the center of the bounding box and drag the text object over the third bubble from the right of the viewport. 10. With the text object still selected, click Modes in the Paint Controls panel. 11. Select Overlay from the Draw Mode list.

The Overlay draw mode combines the colors of the Refraction layer with the white text object to create new tints. The text appears in the bubbles and looks somewhat distorted due to the shape and refraction of the bubbles.

Import a Fire Clip

Import a fire clip into the composite. Use the Add transfer mode to affect the interaction of the fire clip with the composite. 1. In the Workspace panel (F3), right-click / CTRL-click the 3dsmax Render Elements composite and choose Import Footage. 2. In the Import Footage dialog, navigate to the Lava folder and open the Fire folder. 3. Select the Fire.[####].jpg image sequence and click OK. In the Workspace panel, the Fire.0001 layer appears as the top layer.

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4. Key the Fire.0001 layer:

a) Click the right viewport and in the Workspace panel, double-click the Fire.0001 layer. b) Right-click / CTRL-click the Fire.0001 layer in the Workspace panel, and choose Keying | discreet Keyer.

A discreet Keyer operator is added to the Fire.0001 layer and the Keyer Controls panel appears. The default Keyer Mode is RGB.
c) Select Luma from the Keyer Mode list.

The Luma Keyer mode builds the key according to the luminance values of the fire clip.
Note: The Luma Keyer mode is useful for clips with high contrast or filmed against a black background. d) In the Keyer Controls panel, click Matte.

The Matte controls appear.

e) In the Output options, click Matte to monitor the transparency for the key.

The matte is visible in both viewports because the output of the Keyer operator is set to Matte and because the Fire.0001 layer is at the top of the composite.
f) In the histogram, drag the maximum input slider to the left (until the value is approximately 187)

to remap alpha values.

The distribution of luminance values is adjusted, and some of the gray is removed from the white areas of the matte.
g) In the Output options, click Result.

The fire is keyed over the Background layer of the composite.

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Brighten the Fire Clip

Brighten the fire by setting the transfer mode of the Fire.001 layer to Add. 1. Click the left viewport and select single-viewport layout. 2. In the Workspace panel, select the Fire.001 layer to display the Composite Controls panel. 3. In the Composite Controls panel (F7), click Surface. 4. Select Add from the Transfer Mode list. The fire clip appears brighter in the composite. 5. Save the Lava workspace (CTRL+S / +S).

Preview the Result

1. Play the clip (SPACEBAR) to view the result. The clip plays slowly the first time while it caches to RAM and then plays in real time. 2. (Optional) Render the clip as a QuickTime movie.

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Things to Remember
Create a combustion workspace using the Render Elements feature in 3ds max. The render elements
created in 3ds max are the layers which comprise the combustion composite.

Double-clicking a layer in the Workspace panel shows the layer in Layer view. Use Match All in the discreet Color Corrector to color match RGB values, match gamma, gain and
offset, and match shadows, midtones and highlights from a source layer to a back layer.

Use the discreet Color Corrector histogram to reset the black point and white point in an image. Animating Surface properties of a render element layer in combustion can be easier than animating
material properties in 3ds max.

Use a Paint operator to add text and adjust the draw mode to change the look of the text on the layer. Set All Frames in the Paint Controls panel to extend the duration of paint objects to the length of the
operator.

Key clips with high contrast or clips filmed against a black background using the Luma Keyer mode
in the discreet Keyer.

Clean up a matte generated in the discreet Keyer by adjusting the minimum and maximum input
values for the matte with the histogram in the Matte controls.

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Copyright 2001 Autodesk, Inc. All rights reserved

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Title: Version Date:

combustion Web Tutorials 1. April 2001