Autodesk 3ds Max

Tutorials: Lighting and Rendering
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Overexposed scene: shutter speeed 1/100s at f5.6.
Aperture and Shutter Speed | 1177
Lighting and Rendering a Daylight Scene
In this tutorial, you have the scene of an army compound that requires lighting conditions for early, mid-day and late-day illumination. To accomplish this, you will create a daylight system and customize it to specific scene location and time. Then, youll set proper scene exposure and combine the daylight system with a Sky Portal object that will cast light into building interiors. You will fine-tune the late-day illumination by adjusting the aperture setting. After completing these lessons, you will see how easy it is to use mental ray rendering options to create realistic daylight conditions.
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In this tutorial, you will learn how to:
Use daylight systems to illuminate scenes set in the daytime.
Lighting and Rendering a Daylight Scene | 1179
Set up illumination based on the scenes geographic location, orientation, and time of day. Use the Sky Portal object to gather skylight and apply it to the interior of buildings. Adjust scene exposure.
Skill level: Intermediate Time to complete: 1 hour

Files for This Tutorial

All the files necessary to do this tutorial can be found on the program disc. Before doing the tutorials, copy the \tutorials\lighting_and_rendering directory from the disc to your local program installation.
Adding Daylight Illumination
Start by switching from the default 3ds Max renderer to the mental ray renderer. Set up the lesson: 1 From the \tutorials\lighting_and_rendering folder, open the scene file army_compound-lighting_start.max.

2 dialog.

On the main toolbar, click Render Setup to open the Render Setup
On the Common tab > Assign Renderer rollout, click the browse button for the Production renderer (at present the label says Default Scanline Renderer).
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A Choose Renderer dialog opens. 4 In the Choose Renderer dialog, choose mental ray Renderer, then click OK. 5 Close the Render Setup dialog.
On the main toolbar, click Render.
7 Close the rendered frame window. Default lights provide basic illumination in the scene, with textures and materials applied, but the rendered image appears flat and not very realistic. You need to add daylight to the scene. This will be generated by a daylight system comprising two mental ray photometric light sources:

mr Sun, which simulates direct light from the sun. mr Sky, which simulates indirect light created by the scattering of sunlight in the atmosphere.
These two light sources will be accompanied by the mr Physical Sky environment shader, which establishes the physical representation of the sun and sky.
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Create the daylight system:
On the Create panel, turn on Systems.
2 On the Object Type rollout, click Daylight to turn it on. 3 On the Daylight System Creation dialog box, click Yes to accept the recommended mental ray photographic exposure control value of 15. 4 In the Top viewport, click anywhere over the compound and drag slightly in any direction to create a compass rose. 5 Release the mouse button. As soon as the mouse button is released, a Daylight object, or sun, is created. 6 Move the mouse upward to position the daylight object in the sky. You can track the objects position in the Front viewport. The exact height of the daylight object in the sky is not important.
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7 Click once to set the Daylight object position, then right-click to end Daylight creation. Set the time and location of the light source: Now you will reposition the Daylight object, or sun, so its position in the sky corresponds to the geographic location of the scene.
With the Daylight object selected, on the Modify panel > Daylight Parameters rollout, click Setup. 3ds Max displays the Motion panel.
2 On the Motion panel > Control Parameters rollout > Location group, click Get Location.
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3 On the Geographic Location dialog box, Map list box, choose South America.
You will now choose Managua, the capital of Nicaragua, as the physical location of the scene.
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4 On the map, click on Nicaragua, or choose Managua Nicaragua from the City list displayed to the left.
After you click OK, the compass rose and Daylight object are repositioned to scene coordinates that simulate the real-world latitude and longitude of Managua. The Control Parameters > Time group displays controls that let you modify the date and time of day, which also affects the sun position. The first scene you will illuminate and render is morning at 9 AM. 5 In the Time group > Hours spinner box, set the time to 9.

6 In the Location group, set North Direction to 110 degrees.
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This adjustment will reorient the north-south position of the scene so when you render the late-day version of the scene, the sun disc will appear over the barracks as it prepares to set in the west. 7 Right-click the Camera01 viewport and press F9 to render the scene.
The scene looks good, but can be improved.
With the Daylight object selected, go to the Modify panel.
9 On the Daylight Parameters rollout > Sunlight drop-down list, choose mr Sun, and from the Skylight drop-down list, choose mr Sky.
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10 A dialog box appears, asking if you want to use the mental ray Physical Sky shader. Click Yes to apply the mr Physical Sky shader to the scene.
Note how the regions behind the barracks doorways remain unnaturally dark. You could solve this problem by increasing the number of ray bounces next to the Indirect Lighting control. Alternatively, you could add a Sky Portal. This method is described in the next lesson.
Adding Daylight Illumination | 1187
Using Sky Portal and Photographic Exposure Control
Sky Portal is a light object that gathers the sky light (as opposed to direct sunlight) generated by the daylight system. It then directs the light flow to the interior of selected scene objects. NOTE The Sky Portal generally requires less rendering time than the Global Illumination option. It is an effective alternative to quickly visualize a scene. Add the Sky Portal: 1 Continue working on your own scene file, or from the \tutorials\lighting_and_rendering folder, open the scene file army_compound-lighting_daylight.max.
On the Create panel, click Lights. Photometric should be chosen on the drop-downlist.
3 On the Object Type rollout, click mr Sky Portal, then turn on Autogrid. 4 In the Camera01 view, create the Sky Portal by dragging diagonally from the upper-left corner of the far right barracks entrance to the lower-right corner, until the entire opening is covered.
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The Sky Portal should not be much larger than the door. 5 Right-click to complete creating the Sky Portal. 6 Right-click the Top viewport and zoom into the scene until you can clearly see the barracks entrance nearest to the Sky Portal object.

7 entrance.

Reposition the Sky Portal so it lies just inside the barracks
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If the Sky Portal was placed outside the entrance, the sides of the door frame would attract unneeded illumination.
With the Sky Portal object still selected, go to the Modify panel. On the mr Skylight Portal Parameters rollout, turn on On Multiplier and specify a value of 8.

You would typically specify a lower multiplier value if Sky Portal objects were added to other doors and windows in the barracks. 9 Shift+drag the Sky Portal to the left and create two instances of the Sky Portal for each of the two remaining barracks in the scene. Position the portals at their respective entrances.
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10 Activate the Camera01 viewport, press F9 to render the scene, and compare the result with the cloned copy of the previous rendering.
The result is much improved. The Sky Portal is now channeling sky light into the barracks.
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Make a clone of the rendered frame and minimize it.
Set illumination for mid and late afternoon:
Select the Daylight system (select the sun object, not the compass rose). On the Motion panel > Time group > Hour spinner box, set the time to 14 (2pm).
2 Make sure you have camera view active and render the scene.
The shadow of the suspended light next to the jeep indicates that the sun is almost directly overhead. One problem exists however: the Sky Portal is transferring too much light into the barracks.
Select any Sky Portal object, go to the Modify panel, and on the mr Skylight Portal Parameters rollout > On Multiplier field specify a value of 5.0. Because you instanced all copies of the Sky Portal, any change you make to one object will be passed on to the others.
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Render the scene and make a clone of the rendered frame.
Compare the latest rendered frame with the one you cloned earlier. The entrance illumination is subtle but more realistic. You will now generate a third rendered version of the scene, this one showing late-day illumination. 5 Select the Daylight system and in the Motion panel > Time group > Hour spinner box, set the time to 17 (5pm). 6 Render the scene.
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The army compound is too dark for this time of day. You will use exposure control to adjust scene illumination. 7 On the Rendering menu, choose Exposure Control to open the Environment And Effects dialog. 8 On the Exposure Control rollout, make sure Photographic Exposure is turned on and set Aperture (f-stop) to 5.6.

9 Render the scene.

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The lighting conditions better reflect the time of day. Compare the rendered frame with the other cloned frames to see how you have created three distinct moods based on mental ray lighting techniques.
You can create a daylight system to simulate real-world outdoor lighting conditions at any time of day, at any location on the planet. mental ray offers a range of presets that define proper exposure settings, which you can adjust manually as needed. A Sky Portal object can be added to channel daylight into doorways and windows of structures, to enhance their interior illumination.

Lighting and Rendering a Nighttime Scene
In this tutorial, you will illuminate a night scene of an army compound. You will create photometric lights that replicate real-world lighting systems, then add a touch of realism using the mental ray Glare effect.
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Place photometric lights in a scene and adjust light color. Set shadow parameters so lights cast shadows properly. Use render presets to quickly set night scene exposure. Use a bitmap image as the scene background and adjust the bitmap exposure, brightness and contrast to compensate for night lighting conditions.
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Adding Photometric Lights
Start by switching from the default renderer to the mental ray renderer, if you have not already done so. You will then add photometric lights that will provide illumination to the night scene. Set up the lesson: 1 Choose File > Reset, and accept the prompt dialogs to reset 3ds Max. 2 From the \tutorials\lighting_and_rendering folder, open the scene file army_compound-lighting_start.max.

3 dialog.

A Choose Renderer dialog opens. 5 Choose mental ray Renderer and click OK. 6 Close the Render Setup dialog.
Activate the Camera01 viewport, and on the main toolbar, click Render.
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This is the same starting point as the previous tutorial, with default lights providing basic illumination. You will now add photometric light objects to illuminate the scene. 8 Close the Rendered Frame Window. Set up the photometric lights: 1 Activate the Top viewport and zoom in to the overhead lamp next to the jeep01 object.
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On the Create panel, choose Lights.
3 If AutoGrid is on, turn it off. 4 On the Object Type rollout, click Free Light to turn it on.
5 On the Photometric Light Creation dialog box, click Yes to apply the mr Photographic Exposire Control settings to your scene. 6 Click once on the center of the lamp shade to create the light object.
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By default, the light object is created on surface plane of the scene.
Activate the Front viewport and use the Select And Move tool to move the light object on its Y axis until it is just below the lamp light bulb.
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Do not position the light object inside the bulb itself. Otherwise, it will cast unwanted shadows. 8 Go to the Modify panel > Templates rollout and choose Street 400W Lamp (Web).
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Next, you will choose the color of the light to be cast. You have two ways to do this: you can specify color by the type of object that emits the light, such as an incandescent bulb or fluorescent tube. Or you can specify light color by its temperature, in degrees Kelvin. 9 On the Intensity/Color/Attenuation rollout > Color group list box, choose Incandescent Filament Lamp.
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The adjacent color chip updates to match the color temperature of your light selection and displays its corresponding value in degrees Kelvin. 10 Activate the camera viewport and press F9 to render the scene.
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The image is too bright because you have not set the proper exposure for this type of lighting environment. Set scene exposure: 1 On the Rendering menu, choose Exposure Control to open the Environment And Effects dialog. 2 On the mr Photographic Exposure Control rollout > Exposure group, make sure Photographic Exposure is turned on, then specify a Shutter Speed of 1/2.0 second, then render the scene.
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The scene is much improved, but light is only falling on the central part of the compound. You need to add another overhead light. 3 Close the Environment And Effects dialog. Add more lights and introduce shadows: 1 Activate the Top viewport and zoom out until you can see the other light fixture, to the lower right. 2 Shift+move the light object until it is just below the other light fixture. A Clone Options dialog displays.
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3 In the Object group, turn on Instance to create an instance of the light object then click OK. 4 Activate the Camera01 viewport and render the scene again.
The rear area of the compound is now illuminated, but objects in the scene cast no shadows.
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5 With either light selected, go to the Modify panel > General Parameters rollout > Shadows group and turn shadows on.

6 On the Shadow Map Params rollout, reduce Bias to 0 (to set shadows closer to shadow-casting object) and set Sample Range to 12.0. Setting Sample Range to a value of greater than 0 generates soft-edged shadows.

7 Render the scene.

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Note the improvement that shadow casting has on the rendering of the jeep. Next, you will add a light object to each barracks light fixture. 8 Close the rendered frames, activate the Top viewport, and zoom in to the light fixture above the entrance to the far left barracks.
On the C reate panel, choose Lights.
10 On the Object Type rollout, click Free Light. 11 Click once on the center of the light fixture to create the light object.
Activate the Front viewport and use the Move and Select tool to move the light object on its Y axis until it is level with the light fixture.
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13 In the Top viewport, zoom out until you can see all three doorways, then Shift + drag the light to the right, creating two instances of the light, each positioned above one of the remaining two barracks entrances.
With any of the barracks doorway lights selected, go to the Modify panel > Templates Rollout, and choose 100W Bulb.
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Keep in mind that the light you choose in this list possesses the same properties as real-world lights do. In terms of light attenuation, for example, for every 10 meters distance travelled, light intensity from this bulb will drop off to 1/100th of its initial strength. 15 On the Intensity/Color/Attenuation rollout > Color group, assign a Kelvin value to the light cast by the bulb. You want the bulb to project a light blue color, so click to choose Kelvin, and then enter a value of 8000.0. In the range of degrees Kelvin, light color varies from 1000 (pink) to 20,000 (blue).
16 Activate the Camera01 viewport and render the scene.
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All objects in the scene foreground look properly lit.
Adding a Background Image and Lighting Effects on page 1211
Adding a Background Image and Lighting Effects
You will now take a daylight image of a desert panorama, adjust its contrast and exposure to resemble night lighting conditions, then incorporate the result into the scene as a backdrop. Youll introduce a few more photometric lights to illuminate the interior of the barracks, then add a glare effect as a finishing touch. Add background image and set exposure: 1 Continue working on your own scene file, or from the \tutorials\lighting_and_rendering folder, open the scene file army_compound-lighting_no_bkrnd.max. 2 From the Rendering menu > Environment > Common Parameters rollout, click the Environment Map button (at present, the text on the button says None).

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3ds Max opens the Material/Map Browser. 3 On the Material/Map Browser, double-click the Bitmap map type. 4 In the file dialog, navigate to the \tutorials\lighting_and_rendering folder and click desert.jpg to highlight it.
5 In the file dialog, click View. The image is a desert landscape, taken during the day. You will need to adjust image brightness and contrast to make it suit the nighttime scene. 6 Close the bitmap view, then click Open to add the image as a background to the scene. 7 Make sure no object is selected in the viewports, then right-click to display the quad menu. 8 Choose Hide Unselected, then render the scene.
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With objects hidden, you are rendering only the background. However, the rendered frame shows nothing but black because mental ray has undercompensated the exposure.
Press M to open the Material Editor.
10 Drag the Environment Map button from the Environment And Effects dialog onto any unused sample slot in the Material Editor. A prompt asks if this should be an instance or a copy. Make sure Instance is selected, and then click OK. 11 Close the Environment And Effects dialog. You will now use the Material Editor to adjust the color and contrast of the bitmap to compensate for the low-exposure night scene. 12 On the Material Editor > Output rollout, increase Output Amount to 10.0 and RGB Level to 20.0.
These values will restore the output value of the original bitmap. 13 Render the image.
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The image appears washed out. Adjusting image contrast should solve this problem. 14 On the Output rollout, turn on Enable Color Map.
In the Color Map group, click the Add Point button, then click at the midpoint of the color map graph.
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Click the Move Point button and drag the new point down and to the right as shown in the next illustration.
17 Render the image again.
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The color map has generated more contrast, emphasizing features that will still be visible after you deliberately underexpose the image in the next step. 18 On the Output rollout, decrease the Output Amt to 1.0 and RGB Level to 10.0. The result is a heavily underexposed scene, resembling a night sky: a digital version of filming day for night.
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19 Right-click any viewport, select Unhide All from the quad menu, then render the scene again.
The background is properly exposed, adding depth and interest to the scene.
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20 Close the Material Editor. Add glare effects: mental ray provides a number of special effects designed to give light objects added realism. Here, you will add a glare effect to the army compound lights, to simulate their interaction with dust particles and ambient humidity.
Click Render Setup, and on the Render Setup dialog > Renderer tab > Camera Effects rollout > Camera Shaders group, turn on the Output shader button.
3ds Max opens a Material/Map Browser. 2 Close the Render Setup dialog.

3 scene.

Make a clone of the existing rendered frame, then render the
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Compare the two rendered frames to see the glare effect. This effect is most pronounced on the suspended lamp over the jeep. 4 Close the rendered frames. Add interior lights: 1 Activate the Top viewport, then zoom and pan until the far right barracks comes into view.
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3 On the Object Type rollout, click Free Light. 4 Click on the apex of the barracks roof, near the entrance.
Activate the Front viewport and use Select And Move to raise the light object on its Y axis until it is at a suitable height above the floor, as shown below.
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You are about to create a set of fluorescent lights, so the light object should be suspended roughly two feet from the ceiling. 6 Go to the Modify panel > Templates rollout and from the drop-down list, choose 4ft Pendant Fluorescent.
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You will now choose the color of the light to be cast. 7 On the Intensity/Color/Attenuation rollout, choose Fluorescent (White) from the Color drop-down list.
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The scene calls for a standard fluorescent fixture consisting of four tubes. Rather than physically re-creating each tube, you can simply bump up the intensity of the single light object by a factor of four. 8 On the Intensity/Color/Attenuation rollout > Dimming group, update the Intensity spinner box to 400%.
9 Make two more instances of the light object and distribute them evenly along the length of the barracks.
10 On the Shadows rollout, turn shadows On to create shadow maps of the ceiling lights.
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11 Activate the Camera01 viewport and render the scene again.

The inside of the barracks is now illuminated, with light spilling out of the entrance to form a shadow on either side of the door frame.
In this tutorial, you learned how to use photometric lights to illuminate a night scene. You specified the color of the light source and defined how shadows were cast. You also learned how to take a background image, adjust its exposure, brightness, and contrast, and apply it as a background to the night scene. Finally, you saw how a mental ray special lighting effect can be applied to a light object to produce added realism.
1224 | Chapter 7 Lighting and Rendering

Network Rendering

Included with 3ds Max is functionality that lets you render an animation or a high-resolution image over a computer network, using multiple computers simultaneously. Each computer on the network, if properly set up, can render different frames of the animation or different sections of the image, greatly reducing overall rendering time. This lesson provides a brief overview of the process of rendering an animation over a local area network. For detailed information, see the section on network rendering in the help, beginning with ms-its:3dsmax.chm::/WSf742dab0410631334fe17e2d112a1ceaf4d-7f81.htmIntroduction to Network Rendering. Also see http://www.visualz.com/free/down_on_the_farm.pdfDown on the Farm, an informative online white paper in PDF format by Gary M. Davis. NOTE Down on the Farm is a fairly large document; it might take a little while to download after you click the link. Set up the rendering network: 1 Create a local area network or use an existing one. Each machine, or Server, that you plan to use for rendering should meet or exceed the minimum requirements for running 3ds Max. 2 On each Server, install 3ds Max using the Compact installation option. No authorization is required for this option. 3 At least one machine on the network should contain a full, licensed version of 3ds Max for creating scenes to be rendered. 4 Determine which machine on the network will act as Manager. Typically, this machine is different from the machine on which scenes are created, but it can be any machine on the network. On the Manager machine, run the Manager program as an application or service. You can also use the Manager machine as a Server. Do this only if you won't be using 3ds Max at the same time to create or modify scenes. 5 On each Server machine, run the Server program as an application or a service. The Manager assigns tasks to the Server program. Set up for network rendering: 1 Create a scene containing animation that you want to render on the network, and specify where the output image files should go. When

Portions relating to zlib 1995-2004 Jean-loup Gailly and Mark Adler. This software is provided 'as-is', without any express or implied warranty. In no event will the authors be held liable for any damages arising from the use of this software. Portions relating to FireFox 2 are 2005-2008. Mozilla. All rights reserved. Distributed under the Mozilla Public License Version 1.1. Autodesk WiretapCentral 2008 Portions relating to Libxalan-c 1.8.0 are Copyright 2004 The Apache Software Foundation. Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance with the License. You may obtain a copy of the License at http://www.apache.org/licenses/ LICENSE-2.0. Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. 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Autodesk SystemCentral 2009 Portions relating to pySerial Copyright 2001-2004 Chris Liechti cliechti@gmx.net; All Rights Reserved. Autodesk Inferno 2009, Autodesk Flame 2009, Autodesk Flint 2009, Autodesk Smoke 2009, Autodesk Backdraft Conform 2009, and Autodesk WiretapCentral 2008 Portions relating to OpenExr 1.2.1 Copyright 2004, Industrial Light & Magic, a division of Lucasfilm Entertainment Company Ltd. Portions contributed and copyright held by others as indicated. All rights reserved. Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions are met: Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer. Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the documentation and/or other materials provided with the distribution. 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Disclaimer

THIS PUBLICATION AND THE INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN IS MADE AVAILABLE BY AUTODESK, INC./AUTODESK CANADA CO., "AS IS." AUTODESK, INC. DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE REGARDING THESE MATERIALS. Published by: Autodesk, Inc. 111 Mclnnis Parkway San Rafael, CA 94903, USA Title: Document Version: Date: Autodesk Visual Effects and Finishing 2009 Fixed and Known Bugs 4 October 14, 2008

Introduction

About This Document
This document lists the fixed and known bugs for Autodesk Inferno 2009, Autodesk Flame 2009, Autodesk Flint 2009, Autodesk Smoke 2009, Autodesk Backdraft Conform 2009, and Autodesk Burn 2009, as well as any fixed bugs for subsequent service packs. They apply to all applications, OS and platforms, unless otherwise indicated. Download the latest version of this document for a specific release to see the cumulative list of all fixed and known bugs. The most recent bug fixes are listed at the end of this document. Any necessary workarounds, installation considerations, or other issues of note can be found in the most recent release notes, available from www.autodesk.com/me-documentation. The main level bookmarks in this PDF display the versions of this release. You can then use the nested bookmarks to find specific feature areas. You can also use the Search tool to search for specific words.
Contacting Customer Support
You can contact Autodesk Media and Entertainment Customer Support at www.autodesk.com/support. Refer to the following table for additional contact information.

Location:

North America:

Contact Information:

Telephone support: 8 am - 8 pm EST, Monday - Friday (excluding certain holidays) Hotline (from Montreal): 1.800.925.6442 or 1.514.954.7199 Fax: 1.514.954.7254 me.support@autodesk.com Telephone support: 9 am - 5:30 pm, local time, Monday - Friday (excluding certain holidays) Hotline (from London): +44.207.851.8080 Fax: +44.20.7851.8001 me.emea.support@autodesk.com
UK, Europe, Middle-East, and Africa:

India:

Telephone support: 9:30 am - 6:30 pm, local time, Monday - Friday (excluding certain holidays) Hotline (from Mumbai): +91.22.6695.2244 Fax: +91.22.66952211 me.support.india@autodesk.com Telephone support: 10 am - 6 pm, local time, Monday - Friday (excluding certain holidays) Hotline (from Tokyo): +81.3.6221.1810 Fax: +81.3.6221.1800 me.support.japan@autodesk.com Telephone support: 9 am - 6 pm, local time, Monday - Friday (excluding certain holidays) Hotline (from Singapore): +Fax: +me.support.singapore@autodesk.com Telephone support: 9 am - 6 pm, AEST, Monday - Friday (excluding certain holidays) Hotline (Australia local call toll): +1300.36.8355 Hotline (New Zealand toll free): +0800.555.301 me.support.anz@autodesk.com Telephone support: 9 am - 6 pm, local time, Monday - Friday (excluding certain holidays) Hotline: +86.10.6505.6848 me-support-china@autodesk.com

sys00252696

Action: The camera exporter does not save the Aspect Ratio and Aperture values to FBX files.

archive

sys00221808
Restoring a soft-imported media archive may result in the following error: "writing frame in ArchivingDevice::writeVideoFrame().No such file or directory."

sys00230914

Some proxies need to be regenerated when opening a project that has been "file archived." Affected software: Smoke

sys00241456

When opening an archive using the OTOC, the archive becomes read only.

sys00241499

Cannot append an archive to an existing tape archive if that tape has had a previous append operation that failed.

sys00224622

Leaving Batch detaches all audio from output nodes. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno

sys00235059

Loading SFX presets onto one clip crashes the application.

sys00242764

A frame-by-frame audio scrub is inacurate.

sys00224002

When working in a container timeline in Batch, the hot keys are not available. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno

sys00225064

Batch: Action node crashes after trying to overwrite the default setup. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno

sys00225575

Batch: The cached frame indicator doesn't update when working in proxy mode. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno

sys00226249

Batch: When a setup contains a segment effect clip that is upstream from a cached node, leaving Batch, and then re-entering it, clears the Cache. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno

sys00230476

Batch: The level of a group increments everytime you enter an editing node, Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno

sys00235700

Batch: In the Action node, the channel "jumps" as you step through the channel editor.

sys00240636

Batch: In the Colour Corrector node, using Reset Selected enables Auto Key without showing it as enabled. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno

sys00242860

In Batch when using Sparks, the bit depth is not updated correctly. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno

sys00244186

Batch: In the Action node, the Preview button is missing. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno

batch paint

sys00214393
Batch Paint: The hotkey used to Rotate by -180 degrees does not work.

sys00216691

Batch: In a Paint node, you cannot undo the following actions: Wipe, Clear, and Clear Strokes. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno

change tc

sys00233068

sys00216081
Enabling letterbox in the Player causes the output clip menu to always display the letterbox, even if the letterbox option is later disabled in the Player.

wiretap

sys00251639
When using Wiretap Central to write clips in a library, some clips may end up with a ref count of 0. Affected software: third-party Wiretap products such as Tether

sys00222273

Importing an XML with keycode data from FinalCut Pro crashes IFFSBDC.
Known Bugs for Version 2009

sys00250512

Known Bug Description
A Windows Backburner server may crash when receiving a cleaner job from Smoke through a Linux Backburner manager. Workaround: Connect your Backburner server to a Windows Backburner Manager and send a Cleaner job to it. Then revert to the original setup. The problem should no longer occur. Affected software: Backburner, Cleaner XL Affected OS: Windows XP

sys00181580

AAF files with special characters (such as %, $, /, #) cannot be imported. Workaround: Rename AAF files and avoid the special characters. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00256705

The audio from imported AAF does not have the "fade out" duration, and audio dissolves are applied as cross fade and not as fade from cut. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00007820

When accessing the Keyer through Action, the Keyer does not apply the layer slip if the layer is slipped using an expression or if it is otherwise animated. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno

sys00111130

When processing layer matte output in Action accessed from the Desktop, the process uses the clip resolution instead of the Action setup resolution. This problem does not affect Batch Action. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno

sys00149237

When clicking on a numeric field while editing a layer in Action, the calculator does not pop up as specified in Preferences. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno

sys00149666

While in Action, some artifacts appear in the image when previewing a multiplied surface. Workaround: Crop will get rid of the artifacts, but if you set softness to the crop the artifacts will be displayed again. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno

sys00161463

In Action, the "active" checkmark for colour correcting on a layer is left ON when you cancel out of the Colour Corrector module for a layer. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno

sys00220531

In the schematics view of Action/DVE, nodes appended to an existing setup are positioned far from the existing nodes. Workaround: Reposition them manually. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00221108

In Action/DVE, if shading is on and you turn Texture on, luminance values are shifted. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00221488

In DVE, if you render a matte clip from history, the result in history shows the matte only. The correct result will still appear on the desktop, however. Workaround: Turn off matte output in history and apply your changes to the matte separately. Affected software: Smoke

sys00228974

In Action, if you have a specific colour applied as Diffusion on a surface, that same colour will be applied to the matte output for that layer. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00242883

In Action, if you access the Modular Keyer and then return to Action, slipping an image will no longer work. Affected software: Flame, Inferno

sys00255093

In Action, clicking the Animation Button, and then swiping to the lower left or right, causes the broadcast/preview monitor to flicker for one or two seconds. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00255726

In Action, inserting an axis from the right is only possible once. From the left, you can do it multiple times. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00258241

If you set the Keyer's rendering setup to "As Input," it always renders in Progressive mode. Workaround: Set the Keyer rendering setup to Interlaced. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00261438

Action: Applying a layer blur with the Divide option creates corruption. Workaround: Use Add Trans, and then use a Source node to blur a different layer. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

all modules

sys00222423
When switching projects during a work session, setups in memory may not get flushed. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00020353

Opening a file archive on a read-only filesystem is not supported. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00178809

When restoring an archive, a clip will not be restored if a copy of it (or its clip history) already exists on the desktop or within the target library. Workaround: Restore to a new clip library. Make sure a copy of the problem clip does not exist on the desktop. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00183543

The clip history of DVE elements that have different resolutions and were originally soft-imported will not restore when using the "Linked" archive option on a VTR. Workaround: Archive to file or tape. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Smoke

sys00018657

On a Panasonic HD-3700 D5, you cannot output audio only on tracks 5 to 8. Workaround: On the HD-3700 D5, select Home>Setup>F10 (Interface)>Use cursor, and then select Audio-1 at CH7 and Audio-2 at CH8. Press enter to validate the setting. Now selecting A1A2 should enable A7A8 on the VCR. Note: An audio signal must be present on input A7A8. See page 117 in the Panasonic HD-3700 D5 Manual. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00021739

When inputting audio during a capture session, the trim level of the audio input is not applied. Affected software: Smoke Affected OS: Linux

sys00126548

On a Lucid ADA88192, when the front panel displays the menu <System/RS-232>, you may lose remote control of the box and it will become unaccessible at application startup. Workaround: Power cycle the ADA88192 (the front display will now show the meters view) and restart the application. Make sure that you do not leave the ADA88192 front panel display in the System/RS-232 menu before starting the application. Affected software: Flame, Smoke

sys00130528

On Linux systems with DVS, when an input signal does not match the project sync, Playback is affected. Either frames will drop or the clip will not play at all. Workaround: Connect the correct video master or make sure that no video is connected (the cable is left hanging in the patch bay). Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke Affected OS: Linux

sys00162665

On Linux systems, while inputting a clip, switching from embedded 48k to AES 0khz, then back again to embedded 48k will cause a loss of audio monitoring for the clip. Processing the input will restore audio monitoring only for the process period. Workaround: Close the input clip, then re-open. Affected software: Smoke Affected platforms: 6217 single core Affected OS: Linux RHEW 40 64b

sys00172694

Occasionally when starting the application, the following warning messages may appear. These messages can be ignored. Error: artsmessage Sound Server Fatal error: CPU overolad, aborting Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Lustre, Smoke Affected platforms: HP8400, HP9400 Affected OS: Linux RHEW 40 64b

sys00175525

In readback mode with the HP AJA OEM-LH, the broadcast monitor may be four frames off or more. Workaround: The audio broadcast delay value should be set to 4.00 to get correct audio and broadcast synchronization with the AJA OEM-LH. Affected software: Flame, Smoke Affected platforms: HP8400 Affected OS: Linux RHEW 40 64b

sys00012034

In Channel editor, the user definitions and filter settings are not kept for soft effects. Workaround: Save the setup. Affected software: Smoke

sys00110775

When using the "Random" function on channels, you may experience different results between the current release and previous release. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno

sys00174573

The hierarchy positioning of the channel editor is shared between certain modules instead of being independent. Workaround: Ctrl+click on "frame all" in the botton left corner of the channel editor. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

clip history

sys00018863
In Batch, if Fill Cache is enabled and you Expand History for a matte clip, the node's result cache will not be correct. Workaround: Disable and re-enable the cache for this node. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno

sys00048750

In the Text module, when you add a new logo to a layer, process it, and exit, if you re-enter the Text module from History view, the logo is gone. Workaround: Cancel the process and exit, or click the Undo button. Affected software: Smoke

sys00095055

Modifying the clip history of a timeline element that contains multiple clip histories results in corrupted frames. This only occurs when you modify the clip history in the second to last node. All other nodes do not produce this result; however, their intermediates are not replaced in the timeline. Affected software: Smoke

sys00089793

On Linux systems only, when you enable Crop, in either Colour Warper or Colour Corrector, with the Navigator enabled, the Back view is displayed instead of the Result. Affected software: Smoke Affected OS: Linux

sys00001442

Layer priority changes made by doing a Re-entry on a layer are not brought back to the original state after selecting Reset All. Affected software: Smoke

sys00001935

When previewing in DVE with grid enabled, the grid remains in the previewed image. Affected software: Smoke

sys00002862

Shininess makes a re-entered layer disappear. Affected software: Smoke

sys00002998

When you save a DVE setup containing lights and then load it for Action, the way the light is reflected in Smoke is different from the way it is reflected in Inferno, Flame, and Flint. The processed result is different. Affected software: Smoke

sys00003977

Stabilizer setups created in Combustion do not load properly in DVE or Action. Workaround: First load the setup in Stabilizer, then save it. Next, load the setup in DVE or Action. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00004221

DVE front-only setups will not load correctly in the Action module. Affected software: Smoke

sys00005249

Modifying the Blur value too quickly may crash the application. Affected software: Smoke

sys00111147

Dragging the layer transparency to 100 may cause the application to experience a slowdown. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00172602

In Action and DVE, it is not possible to name a layer using a number for the first character in the name. If you try to name a layer using a number as the first character, the number will be replace by an underscore. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00238947

The default DVE indirect keyer should be the Luminance Keyer rather than the Master Keyer. Affected software: Smoke

dve/action

sys00242638
In Animation, with Auto Select enabled and key frames created, the timeline does not update when you toggle between the axis, front, and matte. Workaround: Select the corresponding channel manually. Affected software: Smoke

sys00233316

When managing clips in the List View, selecting and viewing the clips can cause their order to change in the Record area. For example, imagine that you create five frames labelled 1 to 5 and place them in order in the Record area using collapsed view. After selecting and viewing them using the List View, you may find that their order in the Record area has changed. Workaround: re-organize the clips manually. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Smoke

sys00258605

Refresh problems can occur on the Timeline when moving layers around. For example, if you move an effects layer to the top, you might not be able to see the results of the effect. Workaround: Move the positionner up and down to refresh. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00161101

Clicking Confirm when ejecting a tape during a multitape EDL capture does not work. Workaround: Press Enter instead of clicking Confirm. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00256795

EDL: The tape name gets truncated when loading an EDL. Workaround: Turn off B roll detection. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sparks

sys00044655
On Linux systems, if you increase the scale parameters of a circle when using the S_LensFlare Spark, the circle will continue to scale over the menu area. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke Affected OS: Linux

sys00169144

Tinder Fire sparks can cause the application to crash. Workaround: The Tinder Fire plug-in will often crash if multiple frames are rendered at film resolution. There is no workaround other than to render smaller sections and composite them together. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno

sys00185154

In Sparks, adjusting numeric fields using the arrows does not update the content of the field as expected. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00221240

When a Sparks soft-effect has been applied to a clip, it is not possible to delete the last keyframe of the clip in the animation channel. Workaround: Select the keyframe and press the Delete key. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

stabilizer

sys00154711
In Stabilizer, the preferences for Channel Editor do not update when using Filter. Workaround: Click on Channel after clicking Load Prefs or Pan in the Animation window to refresh. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00221580

In the Stabilizer, the channel editor does not support half-frame keyframes. Workaround: 1. Gesturally adjust the tracker on the screen. 2. Use the shift X Y numeric box. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

system configuration

sys00021664
On Linux systems, the following application hot keys are unavailable: ALT+F1, ALT+F3, ALT+F9, and ALT+F12. Note that pressing ALT+F9 also minimizes the KDE shortcuts panel. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Smoke Affected OS: Linux

sys00024827

Linux systems with a 4-port Qlogic card (QLA 2344) may take a long time to start if fibre channel ports are not connected or terminated. This is because Linux can wait up to 2 minutes for each unconnected port to time-out before continuing to boot. Workaround: Place optical terminators on unconnected fibre channel ports. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke Affected platforms: 6217 dual core, 6217 single core, 6221, 6224 Affected OS: Linux

sys00162729

On Linux systems, when setting your broadcast monitor preferences to Always ON, a still frame is displayed when not in the Player or image viewer. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke Affected OS: Linux

sys00096121

The Chinese Input Method window opens behind the Smoke window. Workaround: 1) setenv DL_FORCE_HEIGHT N, where N is the display height minus one. For example, for a 1600x1200 display, N would be 1199. This step allows other windows to open in front of the Smoke window. 2) To eliminate the task bar, right-click the KDE task bar at the bottom of the screen and select "Configure Panel". In Layout, select the "Hiding" panel. Select "Allow other windows to cover the panel". In smoke, press Alt-F1 to raise it above other windows. After completing steps 1) and 2), the Input Method window should correctly pop-up on top of the Smoke window. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke Affected OS: Linux

sys00164921

The Input Method does not work with a soft Text effect. Workaround: Use the Soft Text editor. Affected software: Smoke

sys00170487

In the Text module, when you load a logo into a new layer, then you render Both or Matte, the matte clip may have incorrect mattes for the logo elements. The result is the same as for the front. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00223798

If a text setup uses a font that gets removed from a system, unexpected problems occur, including the inability to switch to a different.afm font file. Workaround: Select a.font file for a font, then select an.afm font file. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00242023

Font does not load when Text Setup reloads. The path to the font file contains spaces. Workaround: Correct the path to remove spaces. Make sure to only use "Unix legal" characters in paths. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00007129

In the Batch timeline, preferences for interpolation and extrapolation are not applied to the timewarp curves. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

unlink / relink

sys00157643
Recapturing an unlinked clip manually does not bring back the expected media. Workaround: Use Strict mode when relinking with the Relink tool. Other workaround: In the Recapture dialog use "Relink" to get the correct media on the edited clip. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00179872

If a whole timeline is selected for processing and it includes an unlinked segment, processing may not complete as expected. Workaround: Move all the unlinked segments to a layer above all the linked material that needs processing, or select only the unrendered segments and then process. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Smoke

video certification

sys00119903
On Linux systems, Outputing video only to a Betacam SP will not work if the PC running the application does not receive a valid audio AES signal back from the DVS. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Smoke Affected OS: Linux

sys00130371

On Linux systems, you may lose audio monitoring when inputting clips from a VTR if you change the scan mode. The input result is not impacted. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke Affected OS: Linux

sys00161725

The VTR I/O status bar may wrongly display and maintain a "Framestore is too slow" message when a drop occurs, even though the drop has been re-cued and addressed. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

video_io

sys00006558
You cannot format an archive if the VITC timecode is not present or is incorrect. There is no way to force LTC only instead of VITC or VITC/LTC. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00020113

When feeding an SD composite reference and an HD tri-level reference to the AJ-HD2700 in 720p_60P, the deck loses the sync every 10 seconds in Record mode. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00025895

When inputting a clip, the broadcast monitor stutters if audio cables have been attached after DVS initialisation. Workaround: Exit the application and restart. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke Affected OS: Linux

viewing

sys00093307
A sequence exported or published from IFFFS containing both scanned frames and exported/published frames, will cause a split frame to occur when imported into Lustre. Lustre reads the first frame and then assumes that all following frames share identical header information (aside from the TC). When a different header type is present in the sequence, Lustre does not rescan the frame. Workaround: Soft-import all shot frames and then use the Lustre Publish function to ensure that no mixed headers are present in the sequence. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

vtr i/o engineering

sys00069646
On Linux workstations, when working in an HD project you cannot use an NTSC or a PAL SD sync signal. Workaround: Use a Tri-level sync signal and device. The application's syncing default is Tri-level. Affected software: Flint, Smoke Affected platforms: 6224 Affected OS: Linux

sys00258126

Using HDCAMSR 1080i with a PGLD of 14 can result in inaccurate frames on clip input/output. Workaround: Increase the PGLD value (for example, to 19) until you get accurate frames. Do this in the init.cfg file for the VTR keyword HDCAMSR 1080i. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

vtr input

sys00007744
When inputting a clip, if the workstation from which you are capturing is accessed via the network it will drop the capture and start to retry. It will retry until it reaches its maximum retry count then show "Capture completed", even though the capture was never done. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00008971

A framecode mode change on a given source tape is not properly managed during EDL capture. Workaround: Manually restart the second framecode mode batch capture. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00163664

When outputting to VTR, the Tape EE button may become disabled, so you won't be able to monitor your output. Affected software: Backdraft Conform, Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00263259

When outputting a clip whose audio is longer than its video, the last video frame is repeated until audio output is finished. Workaround: Add a video black clip to fill the end gap. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno
Fixed Bugs for version 2009 SP1

sys00271340

Action setup created in the 2008 version of the application results in UI glitches.

sys00273508

When you click on a DVE layer's proxy in Action's schematic view, you are not always selecting that DVE Layer. It may select a completely different one.

sys00271844

When appending to an existing file archive, the next.seg file that is created causes the software to go into an infinite loop. The application can only be stopped by using the kill command.

sys00265158

In some circumstances when the audio sample is too small, the step scrub wil not be usable. Affected platforms: 6217 dual core

sys00267832

RGB Blur: Scaling problem with the MHeight parameter incorrectly changing when reloading setup

sys00273654

Batch: The Batch module crashes if a BFX setup is created with a clip that has an attached history, but no intermediates. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno

Clip Metadata

sys00275145
Tethered clips audio offsets are not done in a consistent manner.

sys00272894

Colour Corrector: After loading a saved Colour Corrector soft effects setup, when the user tries to modify the input value in the shadow channel, the image won't update; then if the user changes the input value using the histogram, the result will be black frames. If the user tries to change the Gain value in the shadow channel, the application crashes to the desktop. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00210789

Imported EDL does not support more than 2 audio tracks. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno

Export

sys00265067
WiretapCentral: Audio Clips are not playing when trimmed. The exported Audio Clips will not have proper audio. Affected software: WiretapCentral

filesystem

sys00260573
After a clean install of the Operating System, DKU and the application, the sw_framestore_dump reports the FS as No and the user is unable to connect to the filesystem in the application.

sys00268408

Soft-import: SNSF has a minumum file size of 1MB. When using an SNFS SAN setup and doing a soft-import of a file less than 1MB, the file will be treated as if it were 1MB and the user will experience a slow soft-import (20 minutes).

sys00269437

Modular Keyer: within the same application, when loading the same two images and using the same two action setups, the second action render is different from the first one. Affected software: Flame, Inferno

sys00269445

Modular Keyer: When loading the same image and using the same action setup into 2007, 2008 or 2009 versions of the application, the action render results are different in each application version. Affected software: Flame, Inferno

sys00260988

In some circumstances, Paint clip results are not saved to the work area after exiting the Paint module.

sys00273900

Paint: All strokes drawn before committing should be undoable

sys00265286

Video stutter when playing back with audio.
Fixed Bugs for version 2009 SP2

sys00281428

Batch: Applying 2 consecutive CC nodes with Curve colour corrections result in one of the 2 nodes to fail to process. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

consolidate

sys00282480
Batch FX: A clip loses its clip history when a user applies consecutively 2 commands from the Library Tools menu to it.

sys00281602

Batch FX: BFX loses its setup when using a Library Tool on more than 1 clip. Affected software: Flame, Flint, Inferno, Smoke

sys00282395

Library: A relinked clip loses its clip history when it is rendered with the Render command from the library Tools menu.

stonifise

sys00281598
Library: A clip's history is lost when using the Stonifize Tool.
Fixed Bugs for version 2009 SP3

sys00283270

The Reformat tool in the Library Unlink/Relink menu does not work.