PhotoWorks (ray tracing software)

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PhotoWorks

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Transmission made in SolidWorks and rendered with PhotoWorks
Developer(s) Dassault Systèmes SolidWorks Corporation
Type raytrace, rendering

PhotoWorks is a raytrace rendering program created by Dassault Systèmes SolidWorks Corporation, formerly supplied as a photorealistic rendering add-in for SolidWorks. The program is based on the Mental Ray rendering engine. It has a library of scenes and materials that can be used with user-created SolidWorks files to create still frame images within the SolidWorks GUI.

Ray tracing (graphics) rendering method

In computer graphics, ray tracing is a rendering technique for generating an image by tracing the path of light as pixels in an image plane and simulating the effects of its encounters with virtual objects. The technique is capable of producing a very high degree of visual realism, usually higher than that of typical scanline rendering methods, but at a greater computational cost. This makes ray tracing best suited for applications where taking a relatively long time to render a frame can be tolerated, such as in still images and film and television visual effects, and more poorly suited for real-time applications such as video games where speed is critical. Ray tracing is capable of simulating a wide variety of optical effects, such as reflection and refraction, scattering, and dispersion phenomena.

Rendering (computer graphics) The process of generating an image from a model

Rendering or image synthesis is the automatic process of generating a photorealistic or non-photorealistic image from a 2D or 3D model by means of computer programs. Also, the results of displaying such a model can be called a render. A scene file contains objects in a strictly defined language or data structure; it would contain geometry, viewpoint, texture, lighting, and shading information as a description of the virtual scene. The data contained in the scene file is then passed to a rendering program to be processed and output to a digital image or raster graphics image file. The term "rendering" may be by analogy with an "artist's rendering" of a scene.

Dassault Systèmes SE, "The 3DEXPERIENCE Company", is a European software company headquartered in Vélizy-Villacoublay, France that develops 3D design, 3D digital mock-up, and product lifecycle management (PLM) software.

Since the 2011 release of SolidWorks, PhotoWorks has been replaced by the PhotoView 360 rendering utility. [1] A 2010 review comparing PhotoWorks with three other rendering programs for SolidWorks (including PhotoView 360) gave the program high marks for render speed and built-in materials, but low marks for realism and user interface. [2]

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References

  1. "PhotoView 360". www.solidworks.com. Retrieved 2014-08-03.
  2. "What is the Best Rendering Program for Solidworks?". embody3d.com. 30 April 2010. Retrieved 2014-08-03.