Do many folks hereabouts use Bryce? It's billed as a landscape package but I think it can do a hell of a lot more than just landscapes which is proved, I think, by the gallery at Daz. It's currently at V6 but you can get a freebie of version 5 at Downloads.com. You will also need to download the Bryce 5 presets from the same place.

 No affiliation with Daz (or Cnet), just a happy Brycer:-)

Cheers,

Nig
 

I've been a Bryce user since version 2 and no matter what other app I try, there's something about it that has me hooked.  I got sidetracked a little by Vue Infinite for a couple of months but I'm back and Brycing again.
 

Bryce is still a very compelling and capable image making tool, and it has a very wide user base I believe. It is usually one of the first steps into the 3D world for many (including myself).

I switched to Cinema 4D a few years back, mainly because of the higher speed, and more versatile rendering, but having used Bryce 5 for various tutoriials I contributed to Imagine FX over the last year, I still see it's appeal and some ethereal quality I can't quite put my finger on, that is very well suited to science fiction imagery!

The speedups in version 6, and extended rendering capabilities make it an even more versatile tool worthy of consideration by any budding digital artist.

I hope to be covering some of the new features, and the strengths of Bryce in another tutorial or two down the line.

Adam 

Adam, I've really enjoyed your tutorials in the magazine and hope we get to see a few more in the coming year. I think it is the simplicity of Bruce that keeps me coming back and with Bryce 5 being free I think it'll be more popular than ever with budding artists.

And I have to say that of all the other apps I've tried, Cinema 4D would be the one to drag me away from Bryce but art is a hobby for me and it's hard to justify the cost.

I agree with others on this forum that your Tutorials Adam are fantastic, I have had Bryce 5.5 for some time but i dont use, why i dont know. I know Bryce 6 is out and over at the Bryce forum at Daz there are some good reviews about it. Is it worth getting?

I see there are a lot of bugs that need to fixed or that is what other forums are saying, but the rendering capabilities look really good.

Are there any Bryce 6 users within this forum...what do you think of the package

 Great work Mr Benton love your work

Simon

Many thanks for your kind comments guys! - I am very pleased you have enjoyed the Bryce related tutorials. It wasn't the easiest step to take going back into Bryce after sometime away (in Cinema 4D), but as I said previously, there is still some little bit of magic in there, that really helps in a sci-fi type illustration, and despite many criticisms of it's unconventional interface, it never caused me any issues, and still remains quite easy to navigate, although some modifications are overdue by now I think.

I bought Bryce 6 a week or so back, but beyond doing a rendering speed test (it finally uses both of my G5's dual 2.5Ghz processors properly!), I haven't really had time to do anything with it yet - I hope I can do another Bryce tutorial (what say you Rob?) for an upcoming issue, so I'll be giving it a work out then! ;)

I think for the price (essentially $35 at the moment) it's worth the upgrade simply for the speed enhancements and the HDRI options.

The terrain tools still remain very useful too!

Cheers

Adam
 

buckie:

I'm tempted to check it out now,  just for old times sakes you understand...

 
You should - but sadly, you realise that you'll never have that seminal, life changing 'reflective sphere over the sea with a terrain island in the background' experience ever again! ;)

Adam
 

kromekat:

You should - but sadly, you realise that you'll never have that seminal, life changing 'reflective sphere over the sea with a terrain island in the background' experience ever again! ;)

Adam
 

Sooo True! Man, I still have a couple of my very first original printed bryce images that I created before ever really learning Bryce. When I get time I'll scan them and post em for everybody to laugh at.

I remember how excited I would be to hit that orbital view infront of friends or something that had no knowledge of 3D and just thought I was the man for hitting that button..... : )

Good times