9

Rendering Parameters Rollout (Radiosity) 73
The radiosity mesh is the foundation for the
regathering process.
In the following i l lustrations, solutions were
processed w ith an Initial Quality of 0%. There
is a high variance between smal l surfaces when a
dense mesh is used. Regathering gives acceptable
results regardless of mesh density. But more subtle
details appear with a denser mesh; for example, at
thebaseofthesculpture.
No mesh
Left: Model subdivision
Middle: Viewport result
Right: Result of regathering
Coarse mesh
Left: Model subdivision
Middle: Viewport result
Right: Result of regathering
Fine mesh
Left: Model subdivision
Middle: Viewport result
Right: Result of regathering
R ay s per S ample—The number of r ays 3ds Max
casts for each sample. 3ds Max casts these rays
randomly in a l l directions to calculate (“regather”)
the indirect illumination f rom the scene. The more
rayspersample,themoreprecisethesamplewill
be. Fewer rays per sample produce more variance,
creating a more grainy effect. Pro cessing speed and
precision are affected by this value. Default=64.
Filter Ra dius (pixels)—Averages each sample with
its neighbors in order to reduce the noisy effect.
Default=2.5 pixels.
Note: Pixelradiusvariesaccordingtotheoutput
resolution. For example, a 2.5 radius is OK for
NTSC resolution, but it might be very large for
smaller images, or too precise for very large
images.
Pixel radius of 2
Left: 10 rays per sample
Middle: 50 rays per sample
Right: 150 rays per sample
Pixel radius of 5
Left: 10 rays per sample
Middle: 50 rays per sample
Right: 150 rays per sample