Introduction
Blender is a powerful 3D modeling and rendering software that supports multiple rendering engines, such as Cycles, Internal Blender Render Engine, and BlenderKit. While these engines are designed to work seamlessly within the Blender environment, there can be discrepancies between the preview and final rendered outputs. This article delves into the reasons behind these discrepancies and how to ensure consistent and desired output.
The Role of Cycles Render Engine
Cycles is the primary and widely-used rendering engine in Blender. It is known for its high-quality output and advanced features, such as global illumination and procedural textures. However, the preview of a material in Blender can sometimes differ from the final rendered Cycles output. This can stem from several factors, including the real-time nature of the preview, settings, and the complexity of the scene.
Blender Internal Render Engine
Blender Internal is the default rendering engine in earlier versions of Blender and is less complex than Cycles. It is commonly used for quick previews and simple scenes. The differences in its output compared to Cycles can be attributed to its lower quality and speed. The preview in Blender Internal is more of a real-time approximation of the final result, which can lead to visual discrepancies in materials, lighting, and reflections.
Blenderkit: A Comprehensive Asset Library
Blenderkit is a comprehensive asset library that provides users with a wide range of 3D models, materials, and scenes. When using Blenderkit assets, you might encounter discrepancies between the previews in the interface and the final rendered output. This discrepancy can arise due to the lossy nature of online image compression, the use of different lighting conditions, and the incorporation of more complex shading networks in the final render.
Exporting Outputs for Final Render
To ensure that your final render matches the preview in Blender, follow these steps:
Export Outputs as Bitmaps: Right-click on a graph and select Export Outputs as bitmaps. This will allow you to save each output channel separately as bitmaps, which can be further edited or inspected for consistency. Customize Export Settings: Within the Export outputs dialog, you can customize several options such as resolution, color space, and format. These settings can help you achieve a more accurate representation of your material outputs. Render Setting Adjustments: Make sure to adjust your render settings to match your desired quality level. This includes settings like sampling, denoising, and light paths. Ensuring these settings are consistent throughout your rendering process can help eliminate discrepancies. Use Final Render Settings: When working with Cycles, ensure that you are using the final render settings rather than the preview settings. Preview settings are optimized for real-time performance and might be lower quality.Conclusion
While Blender offers a range of powerful rendering engines, there can be discrepancies between the preview and final rendered outputs. By understanding the capabilities and limitations of each rendering engine, customizing export settings, and adjusting render settings, you can minimize these discrepancies and achieve consistent and high-quality output. Utilizing Blenderkit and other advanced assets can further enhance your projects but may require additional adjustments to match your expectations.