#LENZFX2
11 messages in this thread
Hi all LenzFX crew at Digimation.
I've had a chance to play with LFx2 for a little bit now and have noticed
something peculiar as it compares to version 1.3:
My version 2 does not seem to accurately be reading keyframe data while version
1.3 has no problem with the same data: Lights objects etc. LFX2 Flare is not
recognizing the position of spot or omni lights accurately. As I said the same
scene renders great with the effect in position using 1.3. Perhaps I have
ignored something in setting up my effects in 2.0 that is DIFFERENT from 1.3?
It seems as though keyframe data is not being passed through- but even if I
advance to the next frame or previous frame the effect renders in the wrong
place in the scene using version 2.0.
Also, version 2.0 with Inferno requires siginificantly greater rendering time
for even simple scenes. Is this normal? 🙁 I hate to think what a highres 3k
by 3k or greater will represent with Inferno. 1.3 on a system with 40M RAM
would not render such high res scenes with much success. 🙁
Note that with 1.3 I am using the default flare and with version 2.0 I am using
NOVAFLRE.
Also what is an approach to being able to access .Lzf files for each version.
I tried placing all the .lzf 's for version 2.0 in a subdirectory of
\PROCESS\LENZFX called\ LENZFX2. Version 2.0 could not access them however. I
got an error message when trying to load anything from the subdirectory.
If I put all the .LZF files for both versions in one directory EYBROWSE halts
the system in 1. 3 and I can't load anything. Also .lzf's for version1.3 will
not load at all in version 2.0. I get nothing but a blank effect.
Is there a way to make both versions accessible while not entirely
interchangable? What approach do you recommend?
Talk to you guys soon- Jeff
Hi Jeff,
I know we talked on the phone today and fixed your problems but I thought that
I would answer it here on the forum for the benefit of others.
For LenZFX to accurately track a light or object, the light or object cannot be
linked to anything.
INFERNO is basically fractal noise which can take a while to render. Use
QUALITY settings of 5 or less (even though the slider goes to 100) and you
should have VERY fast rendering times.
An update will be realeased this month that allows you to save LenZFX settings
anywhere – not just in the LenZFX subdirectory.
Eyebrowse cannot read the new LenZFX .LZF file format. If it tries, it will
hang up. The best way to solve this problem is to delete or rename the file
called LZF.BXP in the PROCESS subdirectory.
David – Digimation
P.S. There is also a problem with light and object positioning if you use YOST
Flame or Vapor AXP's. In other words, don't use Flame or Vapor if you want to
use LenZFX.
>> There is also a problem with light and object positioning if you use YOST
Flame or Vapor AXP's. In other words, don't use Flame or Vapor if you want to
use LenZFX. <<
Ouch! Will this be addressed soonly?
– ej
Greetings.
Saw your note.
Unfortunately, LenzFX's flare utility is incompatible with any AXP that uses
world coordinates, including not only Yost Vapor and Flame, but also our Make
Tracks and Particles II. We think this is due to the flare utility basing on
lights rather than objects, and lights don't show up in the bitmap object
location file provided by Studio for the use of IXPs. It's involved. Fixing
this would mean major changes to either Studio or to LenzFX. With MAX coming,
we're not likely to see this changed in Rel 4.
Eric Peterson
Sisyphus Software
>> We think this is due to the flare utility basing on lights rather than
objects, and lights don't show up in the bitmap object location file provided
by Studio for the use of IXPs. <<
So does this mean that if the lenzfx guys just allowed for a choice of using
some other object like a transparent sphere instead of a light it would happily
coexist with AXP's?
– ej
>>For LenZFX to accurately track a light or object, the light or object cannot
be linked to anything.
This is a VERY serious limitation… How would you attach a flare to a
portion of an object (like an engine of a spaceship that consisted of several
objects, if you can have the flare track a linked object or light?) I don't
seem to recall this limitation in 1.x. Is this problem being adressed by the
programer(s)?
David,
BLUR
Hi David,
The limitation of not using linked objects has been in LenZFX since the
beginning, it's not new to 2.0.
To get around this, instead of linking objects together use the TRACK commands
to copy the animation of one object to another. It's easy to do.
David – Digimation
Hi David…
We have version 1, and the problem seems to be there. It's kind of hard to
tell, because sometimes the flare will work, and other times not, and you're
left scratching your head and going "Why? WHy? WHY?!!". The only way we've
found to get arund it is the copy tracks thing.
Also, there's something I've been trying to do, and maybe you can help.
There's a light that comes up from black to some bluish color over the course
of about 100 frames. What I want to happen is for the flare intensity to also
increase as the light's intensity increases. I realise that I can do this with
an envelope, but that's kind of a pain. I'm trying to do it with the "L"
control that causes the flare's intensity to cue off the light's luminosity.
The thing is, I can't make it work. Have you tried this? Is there a trick to
it? The light starts at 0,0,0 (black), and comes up to a blue with an
intensity of about 128, saturation 255.
Thanks for any ideas.
Matthew P. Samia @ Blizzard Entertainment
Just got LENZFX2 at work and you can't animate the fractal noise size. Ypu can
create and edit the curve, but it does not affect the flare. Need this to
create noise that emminates from the center of the effect instead of passing
over it. What's the deal?
Mark Anderson
Hi Mark,
Check your private email.
David – Digimation
sounds like some pretty UNHAPPY campers here!!