Enhance MAXON CINEMA 4D With Modules

While the CINEMA 4D core application gives you a massive range of tools, sometimes you will want a helping hand to tackle specific tasks such as high-end character animation or photo-realistic rendering.

This is where CINEMA 4D’'s modular system comes into play. Simply choose the modules you need to do the job. The great thing about modules is that they fully integrate into the CINEMA 4D toolset. Once installed, they feel like part of the CINEMA 4D interface.

The following modules are available for CINEMA 4D:

• Advanced Render 2.6
• MoGraph
• MOCCA 3
• HAIR
• Thinking Particles
• Dynamics
• NET Render
• Sketch and Toon

Global Illumination

Raytracing simulates most physical properties like reflection and refraction, but lacks support for indirect lighting. In the real world, every object reflects light onto surrounding objects - much of the light in most rooms is reflected from the floor, ceiling, walls and furniture.

The Advanced Render Module provides a radiosity solution based on Global illumination to visualize this transmission of light between objects.

The Advanced Rendering module's radiosity solution is fast and easy to set up compared with other alternatives. You can control each material's illumination strength and type, and a variety of rendering controls allows you to find the best compromise between the accuracy and speed of your render.

MAXON CINEMA 4D's Advanced Render module makes it easier than ever to render realistically.

If your 3D tasks require real-world results, count on CINEMA 4D to deliver them.

Caustics

Caustics provide even more realism to your 3D images by simulating the hyper-focusing of light as it reflects off of surfaces or within the volume of an object. Caustic effects, like the reflection of light from the face of a watch or on the bottom of a swimming pool, are easy to create with the Advanced Render module.

To calculate caustics, the Advanced Render module actually fires photons into your scene. As these electronic rays of light get focused and distorted, the rendering engine displays the lighting effect in the image. MAXON CINEMA 4D can calculate the caustic effects on a surface or within a volume. Caustic transmission, like illumination, can be adjusted within each material's parameters. Additionally you can determine which lights generate caustics and the falloff of the effect from each light. Like radiosity, the caustics engine provides several rendering parameters that can be tweaked to optimize render times and image quality.

By accurately displaying the effects of light as it interacts with specific materials, caustics can add yet another level of realism to your scene.

SubPolygon Displacement

With Subpolygon Displacement (SPD) you do not need to subdivide your object into high- poly-count memory killers in order to create awesome displacement effects.

SPD offers intelligent and efficient algorithms to subdivide geometry as needed for rendering. Your editor remains fast and render times stay short - even without a big render farm and high-end equipment.

The mountains in this movie arise from a plane with only 20x20 polygons. Save memory, render time and maybe the day!

Subsurface Scattering

Renders will look more realistic than ever before with the addition of subsurface scattering. This amazing feature simulates the scattering of light beneath the surface of objects to more accurately represent materials such as wax, fluids, jewels, organic materials and skin. Subsurface scattering is implemented in the Advanced Render module as a standard 2D shader for ease of use and integration with other MAXON CINEMA 4D features.

Ambient Occlusion

Ambient Occlusion (i.e. the blocking of ambient light by neighboring surfaces) is a new method with which realistic shadows can be quickly rendered in Advanced Render. The lighting of neighboring surfaces will be occluded – the closer the surface, the greater the degree of occlusion.
Until now, a realistic simulation of this natural phenomenon was only possible with the use of Global Illumination. A major disadvantage of GI, though, was the long time it often took to render. Although GI still has numerous advantages, a near realistic casting of shadows is often sufficient.

Ambient Occlusion can be created in one of two ways in MAXON CINEMA 4D: Either as a shader for the entire scene (or individual objects) that is calculated during rendering, or as a "baked" texture. In both cases, render times are noticeably shorter than with GI, with comparable shadow quality.

Ambient Occlusion can also be used to "hide" objects. Your scene looks a little too clean? Well, the Ambient Occlusion shader offers several settings that let you add "dirt" to your objects' seams and edges.

SKY - The Heavens Have Never Been So Near!

You will reach the same conclusion once you have taken a look at Advanced Render’s SKY.

Create realistic skies and atmospherics in the blink of an eye. Whether as a 2D background or as 3D volumetric clouds, SKY lets you do it all. Meeting a deadline is not a problem with the help of SKY's 50 presets.

You can use the numerous available settings to create your own fantastic skies. You can define colors, how your clouds should look, even the rays of the sun and its glare. But there is more: You can also accurately create rainbows and even define any location or time zone in which your simulation should take place!

With SKY you can accurately simulate the position of the sun, moon and stars. You can paint clouds or stars onto the firmament, place a rainbow on the horizon or let the sun emit beautiful rays with just a few clicks of the mouse.

It's Getting Hot In Here...

Create stunning special effects like smoke, fire or dust using Advanced Render's PyroCluster functionality.

PyroCluster is a volumetric shading system that uses particles to simulate smoke, dust, fire and other similar effects. Combined with the power of Thinking Particles or MAXON CINEMA 4D's default particle system, PyroCluster can create truly amazing special effects.

It works by adding a procedural volume around each particle. The appearance of the shader can be manipulated to achieve any number of effects. Particles can be generated using CINEMA 4D's default particle system or the Thinking Particles module and manipulated using any of the particle controls for either system, including gravity, wind, friction and collision.

Ignite the flame of creativity in your scenes - with PyroCluster you can create amazing volumetric effects.