[Guide] Rendering LDraw models using POV-Ray

[C3POwen]

GUIDE UPDATE: I have updated the LGEO-Update.zip file in the Downloads section with 3 new parts and 2 fixed parts.

The FIXED and NEW LGEO parts as of 2012-07-24

[Palathadric]

Ah, the long-awaited classic minifig head, at last! Thanks so much, C3POwen!

[C3POwen]

GUIDE UPDATE: I have updated the LGEO-Update.zip file in the Downloads section with 15 new parts, 2 updated parts and 5 fixed parts.

The FIXED, UPDATED and NEW LGEO parts as of 2012-08-11

Edited August 12, 2012 by C3POwen

[Palathadric]

Great new additions. It's always fantastic to see new LGEO files.

Edited August 12, 2012 by Palathadric

[Palathadric]

When rendering Black Knights' Castle I get an error for part lg_3959 (The Minifig Torch). Does anyone else have a problem with this part as well or know what I can do to fix the problem?

[C3POwen]

When rendering Black Knights' Castle I get an error for part lg_3959 (The Minifig Torch). Does anyone else have a problem with this part as well or know what I can do to fix the problem?

I've just tried rendering it myself, and it went through without a hitch. Which version of POV-Ray are you using, and what is the error that you get? Is it possible for you to attach a screenshot?

I tried it in POV-Ray 3.7 RC6, first without declaring a "#version" statement, and then again declaring versions 3.1, 3.6 and 3.7, and each time it was fine.

[Palathadric]

I'm using POV-Ray 3.7 RC3. Used to use RC5, but whenever I'd open a file in it, it would automatically render it instead of opening it for editing. I couldn't find out how to do it normally, but that's probably my fault.

Here is the screen shot:

[C3POwen]

I'm using POV-Ray 3.7 RC3. Used to use RC5, but whenever I'd open a file in it, it would automatically render it instead of opening it for editing. I couldn't find out how to do it normally, but that's probably my fault.

Firstly, I'd recommend updating to RC6. When I first installed it I found that it rendered automatically too, but it seems that it does not create proper registry entries to tell you what to do when opening a file. However, I have created a registry file that should fix it, as long as you fully uninstall the previous version.

• Register POV-Ray file type (POV-Ray 3.7 RC6 only)
  

Just download and run the above file, and it should fix it. If it doesn't, just PM me the path of your POV-Ray installation and I'll PM you another version.

Here is the screen shot:

It also appears you are not using the latest version of lg_3959, as Lutz Uhlmann updated it again in 2008. Could you try this version and put it into your "lg" directory?

If that works, then I'd recommend downloading the most recent "official" LGEO files from Lutz's site and installing those. If you've installed any of my fixed or updated files, then you'd need to install those again as they would be over-written.

[Palathadric]

The version of LGEO I was using was from the All-In-One-Installer for 2012, don't know how old the version of LGEO they have on there is, but I figured it was fairly recent.

I'm downloading the recommended version of POV-Ray.

The path I usually use these days for installing POV-Ray is D:\LDraw\POV-Ray

I suppose this file is for C:\Program Files\POV-Ray, or what? If so, since I will be uninstalling the current version and installing the new one instead, I can always change it to the correct place. Presently, I am operating with a 64-bit system though.

Hope this made sense.

[C3POwen]

The version of LGEO I was using was from the All-In-One-Installer for 2012, don't know how old the version of LGEO they have on there is, but I figured it was fairly recent.

I'm downloading the recommended version of POV-Ray.

As far as I'm aware, the All-In-One Installer has an older version of the LGEO library by default.

The path I usually use these days for installing POV-Ray is D:\LDraw\POV-Ray

I suppose this file is for C:\Program Files\POV-Ray, or what? If so, since I will be uninstalling the current version and installing the new one instead, I can always change it to the correct place. Presently, I am operating with a 64-bit system though.

Hope this made sense.

The registry file is just a text file anyway, so should be easy enough to modify. I've just updated it so that the path to the default icon is easier to change.

Either 32-bit or 64-bit should be fine, as POV-Ray has a 64-bit version which installs to the same location that it would if it was on a 32-bit system. Therefore, if you install it to the default location then the registry file should work straight away.

[Palathadric]

-snip-

It also appears you are not using the latest version of lg_3959, as Lutz Uhlmann updated it again in 2008. Could you try this version and put it into your "lg" directory?

If that works, then I'd recommend downloading the most recent "official" LGEO files from Lutz's site and installing those. If you've installed any of my fixed or updated files, then you'd need to install those again as they would be over-written.

I used the latest LGEO update and the file worked. Also I downloaded and installed RC6 and it's working great as well with your .reg file.

I've continued with renders, however an error has come up with "lg_3185: Fence 1 x 4 x 2"

Does it work fine for you?

[C3POwen]

I've continued with renders, however an error has come up with "lg_3185: Fence 1 x 4 x 2"

Does it work fine for you?

I just ran a test render of that part by itself, and it rendered without issue.

The version of lg_3185.inc that I have installed has the following header:

/*******************************************************************************/
/*                                                                             */
/* LGEO Libray Include File     (C) lgeo@digitalbricks.org (Lutz Uhlmann)        */
/*                                                                             */
/* 19970927 Lutz Uhlmann                                                       */
/* 20041126 Lars C. Hassing   Corrected name of clear part                     */
/*                                                                             */
/* This file is in no way related to the LEGO(tm) Group.                          */
/* It is provided for private non-commercial use only.                         */
/*                                                                             */
/* lg_3185: Fence 1 x 4 x 2                                                    */
/*                                                                             */ 
/*******************************************************************************/

Is this the version you have installed?

[Palathadric]

The one I have says this:

© Chaot!X@weird.cologne.de (Lutz Uhlmann)

Instead of this:

© lgeo@digitalbricks.org (Lutz Uhlmann)

Don't know why, I downloaded it from the LDraw site.

Edited August 20, 2012 by Palathadric

[C3POwen]

The one I have says this:

© Chaot!X@weird.cologne.de (Lutz Uhlmann)

Instead of this:

© lgeo@digitalbricks.org (Lutz Uhlmann)

Again, it looks like an older version. Try installing all of the LGEO files from the last official release.

And if you've installed any of my files you'll need to reinstall them afterwards from my updated parts pack.

[Palathadric]

Okay, silly me, I found what the problem is. I had the correct version of lgeo, but then I had an lgeofix.zip file, containing all these "fixes." I had downloaded this when I had downloaded the lgeo.zip file, but apparently it must have been for an older version of lgeo and not necessary for the newer version, or something.

Sorry for bothering you all the time with this, but thanks for your patience.

[C3POwen]

GUIDE UPDATE: I have updated the LGEO-Update.zip file in the Downloads section with 12 new parts.

The part I'm most pleased to have created (from scratch!) is 30367 Cylinder 2 x 2 with Dome Top. This part never translates well using LDView's automatic primitive substitution, so the LGEO version shouldn't stand out or look out of place when rendering.

Most of the FIXED, UPDATED and NEW LGEO parts as of 2012-08-28

[legolijntje]

For some reason I always like that update pictures, I really don't know why, but I really like them

May I ask how you create a new LGEO part? I'm just curious.

Edited August 28, 2012 by legolijntje

[C3POwen]

For some reason I always like that update pictures, I really don't know why, but I really like them

I'm glad someone other than me appreciates them!

May I ask how you create a new LGEO part? I'm just curious.

LGEO parts are created using geometrical shapes: usually spheres, boxes (cubes and cuboids) and tori (plural of torus, not a girl's name ). You then use other functions that POV-Ray understands, such as "difference" and "intersection" to "sculpt" the shapes.

For instance, to make a tube, you would create a cylinder and then a second cylinder with a smaller radius. Using the "difference" function, you take the space of the smaller cylinder away from the larger cylinder, creating a tube.

LGEO includes its own definitions for sizes and distances, which makes it much easier to define shapes quickly.

[Palathadric]

For some reason I always like that update pictures, I really don't know why, but I really like them

Same here, but I thought everyone would look at me in this: light, if I said so.

Interesting also, the part about creating LGEO parts. Good work!

[C3POwen]

Interesting also, the part about creating LGEO parts. Good work!

Thank you!

GUIDE UPDATE: I have updated the LGEO-Update.zip file in the Downloads section with 4 fixed parts.

The 4 FIXED LGEO parts added on 2012-08-30

There were a few parts that would not render correctly when using POV-Ray 3.6 (or higher) that brought up an error, which would only work if you specified #version 3.1; at the beginning of the POV-Ray file:

Also there seems to be an error with lg_4475.inc do you know what I can to fix this?

It turns out that all that was missing from these files were a few semicolons [;] in the right places, which broke compatibility, and I have now fixed four of the parts that I've come across. If anyone comes across any errors that highlights text that looks a bit like that shown below (usually starting with #declare), then please let me know and I should be able to fix it.

Example:

#declare ROT = 0

[Palathadric]

It turns out that all that was missing from these files were a few semicolons [;] in the right places, which broke compatibility, and I have now fixed four of the parts that I've come across. If anyone comes across any errors that highlights text that looks a bit like that shown below (usually starting with #declare), then please let me know and I should be able to fix it.

Example:

#declare ROT = 0

Will do.

[C3POwen]

Hello all. It's time for another small...

GUIDE UPDATE: I have updated the LGEO-Update.zip file in the Downloads section with 4 new parts.

This addition focuses on tyres, as I've added four to the parts pack (which can be seen at the top of the image). Two of the tyres are not yet available in LDraw (not even on the Parts Tracker), but as they are essentially modifications of older parts it seemed obvious to quickly add them.

Most of the FIXED, UPDATED and NEW LGEO parts as of 2012-09-02

The two to the very right (Tyre 24 x 14 with Shallow Staggered Treads [and Centre Band]) are new to the LGEO library, and it took me some time/head-scratching to get the two tread layers looking right. They're still not perfect, but I'm pretty happy with them:

[Palathadric]

Wow! Those tyres are looking really good! Nice work!

[Palathadric]

Was rendering this set, and was a bit...disturbed...by the colour results for the crown. I used chrome gold, but don't know if I should use a different colour or if there's some way the colour can be fixed?

[Shroud]

I cant believe I finally got POV-Ray to work, UAC (User Account Control) was the issue and once I turned it off the rendering work straight away.

Off to make a Flickr account I go!