Custom RenderWorks Options

Custom render settings provide greater control over fine-quality rendering. These settings are used exclusively by the Custom RenderWorks rendering mode. Custom geometry settings override the 3D conversion res setting on the 3D tab in VectorWorks preferences. These settings apply only to the current drawing and remain in effect in the current drawing until the settings are changed. In addition, the settings are saved when creating templates (see Using Drawing Tablets).

Custom RenderWorks includes final gather rendering, which offers superior indirect lighting calculations for a better, more detailed, end result. Scenes which are too complex to render with radiosity can still take advantage of indirect lighting effects by rendering them with Custom RenderWorks and final gather rendering.

Parameter	Description
Texturing
Use Textures	Applies the textures assigned to objects; deselect for faster rendering
Use Transparency	Select to render transparent textures and shadows where applicable; deselect for faster rendering without transparency
Geometry
Curve Detail	Select Low, Medium, High, or Very High faceting and shadow resolution. Low produces an image with less detail and a faster rendering speed. Very High produces an accurate image but requires more time to render.
Use NURBS	Select to use NURBS surfaces during rendering, providing a higher quality rendering for curved surfaces; deselect for faster rendering. To smooth mesh objects, enable mesh smoothing in the document preferences (see Display Preferences).
Lighting
Use Shadows	Select to render shadows, and select the type of shadow to create
Ray Traced Shadows	Select to create sharp-edged shadows. Ray tracing determines if each pixel is in shadow. Rendering times are longer due to this pixel-by-pixel sampling, but sharply defined shadows are created. The Cast and Receive Shadows option in the Edit Texture dialog box only works for ray traced shadows.
Transparent Shadows	When creating ray traced shadows, transparent shadows are an option; select to show the texture and color of the shadowing object in the shadow
Shadow Mapped Shadows	Select to create soft-edged shadows. Shadow mapping determines whether a pixel is in shadow by comparing the pixel position to a shadow map. Shadow maps are saved and require buffer memory (for example, a point light requires six shadow maps). Lower Map Detail levels produce softer shadows, render faster, and require less memory. Higher Map Detail levels require more memory and produce sharper shadow edges.
Sampling Quality	Select the level of detail for area, line light, and environment (HDRI background) geometry; higher detail provides better resolution, with texture detail and softer shadows, but requires more time to render
Lighting Options	Click Layer Lighting Options (from a design layer) or Viewport Lighting Options (from a viewport) to quickly access the associated lighting options dialog box. See Setting Lighting Options for more information.
Final Gather
Use Final Gather	Produces single-bounce indirect lighting effects
Detail Size	Controls the terminating resolution for light and shadow detail. Setting the size lower captures more indirect lighting details, resulting in a higher-quality image that also takes longer to render.
Accuracy	Affects the resolution of indirect lighting effects. Enter a value, or drag the slider to the right to increase the quality and smoothness, but also the render time.
Calculate Rough Specular Highlights	For reflectivity shaders, increases the number of traced specular rays, resulting in a more accurate specular highlight. The Roughness setting for reflectivity shaders (see Importing Images for Reflectivity Shaders) affects this parameter.
Rendering
Use Anti-Aliasing	Select for smoother edges on objects and textures; deselect for faster rendering with rougher edges
Use Ray Tracing	Creates more realistic-looking reflective objects; rendering speeds will be affected, but improved quality will result.
Max Refractions	Increase the refraction level for drawings with transparent objects, including overlapping image props, so that they do not appear opaque. In general, set the refraction level to that of the number of overlapping objects; if there are four overlapping image props, for example, set the recursion level to four.
Max Reflections	Enter the number of levels of reflection among objects; a higher value slows rendering, but yields a more realistic image, especially for glass or mirrored objects
Auto-Adjust Exposure	Automatically adjusts the rendered image exposure for overly illuminated scenes (this is particularly useful for light types with intensity options specified)
Brightness	Adjusts the exposure brightness, if the automatic adjustment does not produce the desired result; enter a value or drag the slider to the right to increase the brightness (above 100%) or to the left to decrease the brightness (below 100%)

Parameter

Description

Texturing

Use Textures

Applies the textures assigned to objects; deselect for faster rendering

Use Transparency

Select to render transparent textures and shadows where applicable; deselect for faster rendering without transparency

Geometry

Curve Detail

Select Low, Medium, High, or Very High faceting and shadow resolution. Low produces an image with less detail and a faster rendering speed. Very High produces an accurate image but requires more time to render.

Use NURBS

Select to use NURBS surfaces during rendering, providing a higher quality rendering for curved surfaces; deselect for faster rendering. To smooth mesh objects, enable mesh smoothing in the document preferences (see Display Preferences).

Lighting

Use Shadows

Select to render shadows, and select the type of shadow to create

Ray Traced Shadows

Select to create sharp-edged shadows. Ray tracing determines if each pixel is in shadow. Rendering times are longer due to this pixel-by-pixel sampling, but sharply defined shadows are created. The Cast and Receive Shadows option in the Edit Texture dialog box only works for ray traced shadows.

Transparent Shadows

When creating ray traced shadows, transparent shadows are an option; select to show the texture and color of the shadowing object in the shadow

Shadow Mapped Shadows

Select to create soft-edged shadows. Shadow mapping determines whether a pixel is in shadow by comparing the pixel position to a shadow map. Shadow maps are saved and require buffer memory (for example, a point light requires six shadow maps). Lower Map Detail levels produce softer shadows, render faster, and require less memory. Higher Map Detail levels require more memory and produce sharper shadow edges.

Sampling Quality

Select the level of detail for area, line light, and environment (HDRI background) geometry; higher detail provides better resolution, with texture detail and softer shadows, but requires more time to render

Lighting Options

Click Layer Lighting Options (from a design layer) or Viewport Lighting Options (from a viewport) to quickly access the associated lighting options dialog box. See Setting Lighting Options for more information.

Final Gather

Use Final Gather

Produces single-bounce indirect lighting effects

Detail Size

Controls the terminating resolution for light and shadow detail. Setting the size lower captures more indirect lighting details, resulting in a higher-quality image that also takes longer to render.

Accuracy

Affects the resolution of indirect lighting effects. Enter a value, or drag the slider to the right to increase the quality and smoothness, but also the render time.

Calculate Rough Specular Highlights

For reflectivity shaders, increases the number of traced specular rays, resulting in a more accurate specular highlight. The Roughness setting for reflectivity shaders (see Importing Images for Reflectivity Shaders) affects this parameter.

Rendering

Use Anti-Aliasing

Select for smoother edges on objects and textures; deselect for faster rendering with rougher edges

Use Ray Tracing

Creates more realistic-looking reflective objects; rendering speeds will be affected, but improved quality will result.

Max Refractions

Increase the refraction level for drawings with transparent objects, including overlapping image props, so that they do not appear opaque. In general, set the refraction level to that of the number of overlapping objects; if there are four overlapping image props, for example, set the recursion level to four.

Max Reflections

Enter the number of levels of reflection among objects; a higher value slows rendering, but yields a more realistic image, especially for glass or mirrored objects

Auto-Adjust Exposure

Automatically adjusts the rendered image exposure for overly illuminated scenes (this is particularly useful for light types with intensity options specified)

Brightness

Adjusts the exposure brightness, if the automatic adjustment does not produce the desired result; enter a value or drag the slider to the right to increase the brightness (above 100%) or to the left to decrease the brightness (below 100%)