Photorealism in 3ds max

Is there some way to make an object in max look like something other than plastic?" This quip, posted on the Discreet support Website some time ago, has since become legend. It raises the significant question of how to avoid the stereotypical, artificial CG look. The synthetic aesthetic championed and made mainstream by the likes of Pixar might suit Buzz Lightyear, but for many applications this look is not right.

For CG work that aims to blend seamlessly with a live-action plate, or for architectural visualisation and product design, the skills of photorealism play a key role. Knowing how to make metal and wood look real relies on an understanding of materials and rendering - skills that are critical to any scene's success.

But you just have to look at photography's wide gamut of visual possibilities to realise that photorealism doesn't necessarily have to be perceived as real. It needs to be perceived as something that imitates one of this medium's qualities. This tutorial, involving the rendering of a table at breakfast time, involves several fundamental techniques in 3ds max, which you should then be able to take and apply elsewhere.

This tutorial can be found in issue 68 of Computer Arts Magazine, March 2002. To order a copy, please contact backissues@futurenet.co.uk. For more expert tutorials on 3D, Web and Photoshop, plus interactive CD ROM, subscribe for 13 issues here.

Download the tutorial pdf here. You'll also need the accompanying work file below.

3dskills.zip