Cache, then edit before render?
-
Just cached a 600-frame scene and would like to render it with some modifications. Can you tell me if these params can be edited before rendering, or will changes have no effect on the final render once cached?
- Change W and H in the Render settings
- Change Threshold in the RS Render settings
- Enable 8-bit Dithering in the Render settings
- Change substeps in the Simulation tab
- Change lighting position/settings (add new lights?)
Thanks very much for any info.
-
Hi recording-team,
It is hard to answer without seeing anything that is a general question, and most points are not related to render resolution. What have you cached? Just having something cached is not telling a lot.
If it is Pyro: You can test this by setting up the render resolution to something small and caching the scene to a drive. Then, change the settings to something much larger and cache again, and so far, I can tell the cache size will be the same.
If the details (Pyro) are sufficient for the delivery resolution, that is not a general answer, as it depends on your idea of quality. But there is an option to up-rez. This would be - if we talk about Pyro:
https://help.maxon.net/c4d/2025/en-us/Default.htm#html/OPYRO-PYRO_OBJECT_CACHE_GROUP.html#PYRO_OBJECT_UPRES_FACTORThe Redshift threshold is per pixel; changing it is unnecessary.
Typically, if the texture resolution works for the camera distance to the objects, that should be fine. It's not a question of caching, but it's worth mentioning, as that would be my main concern.
Speaking of quality, if you have any post-production in mind, don't render it in 8bit/channel, and any color correction or gradient will not be nice with dithering. If the rendering is long, preferably use higher bit depth and float.
Changing the substeps will typically change the animation's speed to the resolution, but again, you ask for something while sharing very little content.
Lights don't change brightness based on resolution. I have never seen in three decades of rendering 3D scenes. Light might change on the scale of the scene but not on render resolution settings.
My tip: Do not change anything (except the resolution); set the rendering to a few frames somewhere in the scene with the most visual interest for you, perhaps 30. Then, increase the result and render again. Explore if you see any problems. This will tell you if there is anything that is not working.
My concerns would be more about Motion Blur and Depth of Field qualities. There small resolutions might not show all the qualities. But that is not based on caching - again.
My best wishes
-
I was really just wondering, in theory, what changes to what parameters would need to be recached to take effect (got a little more than I bargained for ;-)) I cached a scene containing pyro and particles and wanted to make some edits - the ones mentioned above - without having to recache the entire scene. Empirically, I couldn't tell if some of them were having any effect, hence my question. Thanks.
-
You're very welcome, record-team.
I think your questions show a clear need to address those with tutorials. Thanks.
My best wishes
-
The more tutorials, the merrier! Another tut I would request is a deep dive into when to use which of the Pyro Output Object Properties settings for exactly what type of operation (when rendering directly, when caching then rendering, etc.). Endlessly confusing, and I've read the docs many times. Definitely some other things come to mind as well...
-
Hi recording-team,
Thanks for sharing. Yes, this needs some attention. The long list of parameters and several places to adjust pretty much ask for a bird's eye overview first to see the essential groups.
Caching is an optional step and is not required constantly. If you send content to a render farm, then I highly recommend it, or if the scene is complex and shows Priority problems. But besides of faster preview after caching, there is no "Must do" for this.
Perhaps have a look at this three-part series:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnBM9chjT8cEnjoy
-
Thanks for the link. The woman who starts speaking after about 12 minutes of chit chat in this one https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLk2q7--hW0, is neatly unintelligible. Very bad audio issues. Wish I could understand her!
Thanks anyway - I've found a lot of tuts that are better produced and have good audio.
She's good: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PKZE0c9p5U&t=776sand so is https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjJDGlNR4SU who I now follow.
Just still some confusion on when I actually do need to render... wish the docs just laid it out!
-
Hi recording-team,
Off topic. Please keep things to the original theme or open a new thread; to place new content here makes it hard to read along. Thank you.
Yes, audio is crucial, and I'm typically the one who complains about it. It is often not simple with guests and live shows. Anyway, I have no excuse; I am just stating that I understand your perspective. In the past years, I have tested a lot of USB mics, and I often use our meetings to get feedback, half of them have noise. My findings are, with no surprise, that you get what you pay for, and I wish we could send around good gear before each show. Anyway, here the mic was just to far away, to the reverb ruined it.
To your question:
Click the CC option, and you get all the text.Enjoy.
