I really need some help! Like some of you might have read, I´m fighting with the right render settings for animations since a couple of weeks. I´ve especially problems with AO and IDL which both cause strong flicker artefacts. But perhaps the whole workflow is wrong: I use the Animation function of Poser and render 1 second clips with 30 fps and MP4 H.264-AAC compression. Should I render single images with superfly? What techniques do you use for rendering animations?

When rendering an animation, I export a series of PNGs, then composite later in a video editor program.

If you can stand the time cost, you might try rendering a second set of frames, using slightly different number of samples in each category (left column of the Superfly render settings). I tend to use prime numbers, hoping to avoid "resonance" repeating grain/flicker at the same spots. Unclamp the samples by setting both clamp direct samples and clamp indirect samples to zero. My technique may or may not help you.

Load the first PNG set into the video editor, then overlay the second set at 50% transparency.

I have on occasion rendered four sets of PNGs, merged sets 1 & 2, merged sets 3 & 4, then merged the two results.

This is more feasible if you are rendering on a network (via Queue Manager), so that the time required is not so bad.

If rendering a single set of frames, set mesh light samples fairly high (20-30?), as that will somewhat smooth out lighting. Also use maybe =>4 diffuse bounces. This will cost extra render time.

Do you have the Pro version of P11? If so, do you have access to any other computers which could be used as render slaves?

Thank you, seachnasaigh! This is a totally new technique. I think I´ll try to render a single set of frames first.

Oh, I forgot to tell: I use Poser 11 Pro on an iMac. I have a Dell Notebook which doesn´t has so much power, but it might be enough for a slave.

Do you always use superfly rendering?

Steve_Vaii posted at 8:28PM Wed, 11 September 2019 - #4361671

I use Poser 11 Pro on an iMac. I have a Dell Notebook which doesn´t has so much power, but it might be enough for a slave.

Do you always use superfly rendering?

I mostly do a single set of frames, with a generous number of mesh light samples and overall scene pixel samples. Just gotta wait it out. "Good things come to those who wait."

I use Superfly more often than Firefly, but I do use both. To use the second-stringer computer (Dell notebook), install DLM (DownLoad Manager) and insert the Queue Manager serial/key -not the Poser key- and run the DLM. Make sure the Queue version offered by DLM has the same build number as your master machine's Poser Pro build number. Run the master's DLM to update if need be. The build numbers must match!

When you first launch QM on the remote/slave/rendercow, watch for your firewall to pop up a query as to whether to permit Queue Manager to have network connections. Make sure to give QM firewall permissions, on both machines! Poser Pro on the master machine and QM on the remote must be allowed to communicate.

The first time you send a multi-frame render job to queue, the remote's firewall will challenge regarding network permissions for FFRender64; give FFRender64 network permissions; this enables QM and the render engine to communicate with each other.

These are the two problems most often encountered when people have trouble with network rendering: all machines' QM/Poser installations must have the same build number, and all installations of Poser/QM/FFRender64 must have firewall permissions for network communications.

If you can gather -or just borrow use of- more machines, you use the Queue Manager serial on as many machines as you can get hold of.

Thanks for this detailed description :) At first I will make some render tests with the superfly engine. I had some problems with superfly in the past, for example milky looking eyes. I have to deal with that first.