Which rendering software gives the best bang for buck?

We are trying to decide which software to purchase to do our marketing images. It's important that the images look identical to professional photo's of the finished products because that's what we have done currently.

We currently have SolidWorks standard and use it for creating the 3D models of the products so a package that works well with SolidWorks would be a big plus.

Cost is one of the bigger deciding factors too because we are a small company.

Thanks,

Stephen.

 

I have used CorelDraw and CorelPaint to improve images from rough fuzzy 2D pictures to clear crisp images. It can be a bit tedious to rectify the image on a pixel by pixel level, but you don't usually have to go that far. I am new to SolidWorks, so I am not sure if they can be imported. AutoCad, Jpegs and Bitmaps can definitely be imported. Latest version of CorelDraw is very costly, but the price drops dramatically on earlier verisions. And they are all good, except for CorelDraw8 which I found unstable and full of bugs. Make sure the version is compatible with the Windows etc version on your computer.

 

Thanks Karen, I have CorelX5 but I need to turn a graphic or Jpeg from SolidWorks into a photo like image by applying textures, lighting, etc and I don't think that can be done on Corel can it? I'm at novice level on Corel.

 

Thanks Gareth. I think there are a lot of rendering programs that are much cheaper than the SolidWorks upgrade unfortunately. That would be my first option if we had the budget.

 

Not 100% sure. We looked into it a few months back and I think it was a few grand.

 

My preference is KeyShot, Fastest renderer I've found yet, I love it, they have a demo you can try. there is a SolidWorks plugin also.
see what it does here, http://keyshot.com/

 

Definately have a look at Maxwell Render. It has a SW plugin and a huge library of free, pre made textures.

PLUS
Two points that I think make it awesome is the multilight feature. When its enabled you can change the scenes lighting intensity (and other things) during and after the render is complete. Its witchcraft.

The second advantage is that you don't have to wait for the whole render to finish to use the output file. The longer you leave it, the higher the quality so if you are on a tight deadline it can be left until the last minute without stressing you out too much.

It comes with 5 render nodes too which could be useful for you're company. You can pick up "servers" from eBay for pennies that would do wonders for efficiency/ final quality.

I'd say for rendering its on the same level as SW for ease of use.

MINUS
The standalone app isn't that intuitive. An architect friend of mine who uses a vast range also says its confusing. Not really a problem as all you need is the SW plugin.

Use and alignment of textures (read decals, vinyl etc.) is dreadful. Photoshop will be your friend for this.

From what I've heard the SW plugin isn't the greatest with 3DMAX being great. Scale of economies I guess.

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It looks to be similar to KeyShot but half the price Not sure how Maxwell fairs for animation though. Definately going to try out KeyShot as it looks great too. I'm sure jcross can help out with its pros and cons.

 

I think keyshot is the best tool for professional rendering and animation.