Hi folks,

I just posted an update to the Shaders Plus package of lighting models for Carrara 4. This update features an improved Anisotropic shader and a new global illumination enabled shadow catcher.

The update is free for existing customers. You can download the update or try out Shaders Plus from the following links.

Carrara 4.0
PC
http://digitalcarversguild.com/downloads/c4/shadersplus.zip
Mac OSX
http://digitalcarversguild.com/downloads/c4/shadersplus.sit

Be sure to check out the new tutorial on how to get started with the GI Shadow Catcher at

http://digitalcarversguild.com/tutorials/spgishadowstart/

Shaders Plus is a collection of lighting models for Carrara 4. It includes the following lighting tools.

Alternative Luster is a different highlight model good for simulating metals and satins. This is the original Shaders Plus Anisotropic lighting model renamed.

The Anisotropic shader simulates materials whose highlights are larger in one direction than they are in another. It is useful for metals, satin, and velvet materials.

Flat is simply flat shading. The only light it responds to is Ambient and GI illumination.

GI Brightness controls how much the sub shader's glow contributes to Global Illumination.

The GI Shadow Catcher lets you build a shadow catcher that responds to Global Illumination.

Mask blocks out a shader with a solid color that is unaffected by lighting.

Shadow Glow suppresses the glow channel when illuminated. Areas in bright light will have no glow, areas in shadow will have full glow.

Selective Lighting lets you control which lights interact with your shader.

Regards,
Eric Winemiller
Digital Carvers Guild
3D plug-ins for Carrara
http://digitalcarversguild.com

Looks nice! About time GI can do this!

I tried Eric's tutorial. Fun stuff! You can plop a car into that HDRI scene and the shadow comes out perfect. I've never done that with HDRI's before.