Chaos Group V-Ray

V-Ray - a modern system for visualizing images with a wide range of functions, used in many studios around the world. The V-Ray renderer is based on the Monte Carlo method (Quasi Monte Carlo - QMC and its further proprietary modification - DMC), which allows to achieve the optimal ratio of image quality to rendering speed using advanced computational methods. V-ray has its own lighting sources, a system of sun-sky for realistic lighting with natural light, and a physical camera with parameters similar to real photo and video cameras.
V-Ray provides users with the technology of constructing images of 3D models based on the method of ray tracing or raytracing, calculates the illumination and color of an arbitrary point of the 3D scene in four components (direct illumination, mirror refraction and reflections, secondary diffuse reflections and caustic image effects - for example, glare), and also allows the selection of various algorithms for calculating primary and secondary reflections of global illumination (Global Illumination):

• Light Cache
• Photon Map (photon map)
• Irradiance Map
• Brute Force (QMC)

V-Ray works as a plug-in for Autodesk 3ds Max, Cinema 4D, SketchUp, Rhino, TrueSpace7.5, Autodesk Maya, and as a separate module. The processed images can be converted to the OpenEXR format and imported into the desired program.
The main areas of application of V-Ray: - architectural visualization
- film production
- TV projects
- creation of video games
Key features of V-Ray:
Architecture

• Object-oriented API.
• Multithreaded data processing.
• Unified sampling system by Monte Carlos method
• Distributed rendering.
• Fong's shading mechanism, based on the ray tracing method.

Geometry

• Geometry support - ability to create on demand, download from file.
• Creating a displacement map.
• Subdivision of surfaces using the Catmull-Clark algorithm and creation of cyclic surfaces.
• Create custom geometric primitives using the V-Ray development toolset.

Image selection

• Different sampling methods.
• Full-screen anti-aliasing of the scene.
• Progressive path tracing.
• Support for additional rendering elements (dispersion, reflection, general lighting, etc.).

Lighting

• Tools for creating physically correct lighting.
• Various general lighting algorithms: path tracing, irradiance cache, photon maps, light cache.
• Possibility of re-use of samples of general lighting.
• Real display of the light source.
• Create custom backlight patterns using the V-Ray development toolset.

Retouching

• Various settings for materials (Advanced material).
• Blurry reflection / refraction.
• Creating the correct backlight.
• The effect of subsurface scattering.
• Create custom patch samples using the V-Ray development toolset.

Camera Effects

• Effects of depth and glare.
• Creates an accurate blur effect caused by the movement of an object.
• Create custom camera effects using the V-Ray development toolset.

Additional functions

• Toon-effect
• Hair creation tool.
• Advanced matting and shading options
• Support for Render-to-Texture mode
• A frame buffer with the ability to adjust colors and display multiple rendering elements simultaneously.
• Direct rendering in memory (for large images).