Hi,
Rendering a simple scene with scanline and RenderToElements-ZDepth included. Render times are about six times greater than simple rendering with no additional elements included. It is a surprise for me and can not understand why it happens?!
regards!

Schoolfish 10 March 2012 01:02 AM

Render times are about six times greater than simple rendering with no additional elements included. It is a surprise for me and can not understand why it happens?!

Max is being forced to process and store additional data when you use Render Elements.  In some cases, it can just put aside information it is already calculating.  But in the case of Z-depth, it may not necessarily need that information for the general render, so adding that Element means Max has to do more calculations for each pixel (i.e. distance along with color).

It really shouldn’t be a surprise.  Think of it like towing a trailer.  You may not be able to go as fast because your car is doing more work.

3ds Max Design 2012 64-bit - Subscription Advantage Pack / PU10
Dell Precision T5500, Dual Six Core Xeon X5650 @ 2.67GHz, nVidia Quadro 5000, 24 GB RAM, Win 7 Enterprise 64-bit
Minneapolis, MN, USA