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Rendering Techniques > Chrome Material Tutorial (3ds max) (Posted By: 3dking)
:: Post Date: 2007-11-10 16:22:39 [Post Comment] [Post Articles]

Chrome Material Tutorial (3ds max)

Software:

Autodesk 3ds Max

Author:

Mario Malagrino

URL:

http://www.mariomalagrino.com/
http://www.florencedesignacademy.com

[Click Here for Large Image]

Chrome is one of the most frequently used materials in the Design field. This material needs only a few settings to be rendered in an optimal way. You can see many samples of chrome in the design gallery of the Florence Design Academy.

Let's begin:

1.) You need a dark gray diffuse color (for a perfect mirror it should be black, but often a dark grey color has a better effect on chrome).

2.) Now go to add glossiness and specular level (there are no fixed values, the correct effect strongly depends on the light that you create. You can begin with the value 40 in both slots).

3.) Go to maps and assign to the REFLECTION map "RAYTRACE". This will allow you to have REAL reflections of other objects in the scene on this material. The value in the reflection slot should be between 85 and 100 (a mirror must have 100)-( image 1).

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Image 1

Very often you need to have a environment which reflects on your object to achieve a good rendering. A good reflection will give a touch of realism to your object and will describe better organic shapes. But what if we don't have any other object in the scene that can reflect on our model ?
We will use a FAKE reflection. This kind of technique simulates the illusion of having an environment, whereby it is reflected on surfaces despite the reality that no such environment exists within your scene. In fact, all we will use is a simple image to create a Fake reflection.

After you have inserted RAYTRACE in the reflection map, you will see that the material editor is showing new settings. These are the settings of the raytrace panel (on the right side of the material editor you can see written RAYTRACE instead of standard). Like on image 2, assign to the NONE button in BACKGROUND a BITMAP (image 2).

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Image 2

After this step, you will see that the material editor is showing you the settings of the Bitmap panel (Image 3). Normally you must reduce the output amount of the fake reflection (this is the setting which will make more or less the image that you've choose as fake reflection to be visible). To make the image "less visible", you must go to "Output" where in the "output amount" slot you must put a value which is a little bit smaller than 1 (for example, 0.7). Normally the standard number 1 is too high a value.

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Image 3

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Picture used as fake reflection for the rendering below.
With this method, you can obtain very good reflection results. Here below, you can see a sample.

[Click Here for Large Image]

On this image you can see the reflection of the gray environment + 2 white boxes + the fake reflection.

[Click Here for Large Image]

[Click Here for Large Image]

Here we have the same scene with the same settings like above. Only the image for fake reflection is different.

Tip1:

Remember that with mental ray, the fake reflection is NOT visible in the material slot as the preview shows. You must make a test rendering to see the result.

Tip 2:

There are many ways to create Chrome. Another way to create Chrome is through a RAYTRACE material (change standard with RAYTRACE in a new material slot). But the result is the same as in the standard material.

Tip 3:

A HDRI image can also be used as a fake reflection. HDRI renderings will be explained in other Florence Design Academy tutorials or lessons.

Tip 4:

If you want to exclude an object from reflection: go to the chrome material, select raytrace that you have in the reflection maps slot. Click on the button LOCAL EXCLUDE. Now just select the objects that must be excluded from the reflection of the chrome material. This will make the selected object invisible in the Chrome material.

Tip 5:

A mirror material is very similar to Chrome: black diffuse color, no specular highlights, and Raytrace 100% in the reflection map.
You can find the information for the illumination&render settings in other Florence Design Academy tutorials.

I hope you have enjoyed this tutorial.

Best Regards

Florence Design Academy

www.FlorenceDesignAcademy.com

Comments: (Currently there are 26 comments.)

[Anonymous]TrNs ( 2008-10-23 21:07:17 ) [Post Comments]
cooOOl thnxx(^_^)
[Anonymous]budi ( 2008-10-21 01:29:01 ) [Post Comments]
great, thanks
[Anonymous] ( 2008-10-12 03:02:18 ) [Post Comments]
do you have to put omni light?? how did you get that reflection on the material so vivid??? and how can i make shadows?
[Anonymous]VSKYoRK ( 2008-07-01 14:17:41 ) [Post Comments]
great great tutorial!! Love it!!
[Anonymous]HENI30 ( 2008-04-27 07:43:51 ) [Post Comments]

This is easy for a simple object but what if you have a tube railing that has horizontal pieces, vertical pieces and curved segments at the ends. How can 1 map accommodate all these different orientations?

[Anonymous]Euroscale ( 2008-04-16 21:34:54 ) [Post Comments]
How easy can it be? Great!
[Anonymous]sneha ( 2008-03-28 21:33:23 ) [Post Comments]
dis was amazin.. its so eary nd plus da file doesnt get heavy.. its really grt!!
[Anonymous] ( 2008-03-27 13:09:59 ) [Post Comments]
Great tutorial, it took only 10 mins, and voila, I had my chrome, and I made some chrome bitmaps to try some diferent references(something realy easy to do on photoshop).

Why so low rating??
[Anonymous]Alfa77 ( 2008-03-26 16:16:57 ) [Post Comments]
This tutorial is simply GREAT !!!!
[Anonymous]sunder singh ( 2008-03-17 22:22:27 ) [Post Comments]
solve color bleeding in seen please?
[Anonymous]sunder singh ( 2008-03-17 22:21:01 ) [Post Comments]
tutorial real like steel
[Anonymous]RackStar ( 2008-03-14 06:57:30 ) [Post Comments]
Great tutorial. Took 10 mins. Slightly confusing in some of the steps...but figured it out.
Don't know why it's rated so low.
[Anonymous] ( 2008-03-09 11:37:42 ) [Post Comments]
This tutorial really helped me^_^
Thanks so much!!!
[Anonymous]I+w+a+n ( 2008-03-02 23:00:48 ) [Post Comments]
Thanks
alin ( 2008-02-28 01:06:19 ) [Post Comments]
thanks for this tutorial!
[Anonymous]bane0611 ( 2008-02-27 00:39:29 ) [Post Comments]
cool,cool.
[Anonymous]bane ( 2008-02-27 00:38:30 ) [Post Comments]
cool,cool
[Anonymous]waterfall22 ( 2008-02-25 02:56:59 ) [Post Comments]
AMAZING tutorial ! :)
thank's...thank's...thank's
[Anonymous]afif ( 2008-02-15 23:35:51 ) [Post Comments]
nice...
[Anonymous]jupiter1981 ( 2008-01-09 18:34:44 ) [Post Comments]
sooo great
[Anonymous]famdi ( 2007-12-12 20:50:39 ) [Post Comments]
a
[Anonymous]The Bons ( 2007-12-08 12:14:41 ) [Post Comments]
great tutorial
thank's
[Anonymous]Beavis [XDX] ( 2007-12-08 11:43:33 ) [Post Comments]
Great!
Good tutorial
samples forms
good, very good
thank's
[Anonymous] ( 2007-11-21 10:33:02 ) [Post Comments]
thanks great tutorial
[Anonymous]art-88 ( 2007-11-14 02:40:15 ) [Post Comments]
great tutorial, thank u ! :)
[Anonymous]GerL@nT ( 2007-11-13 21:25:29 ) [Post Comments]
Jedwab... po prostu jedwab...

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