Hi, I'm a photographer and would like to incorporate computer generated backgrounds (old castle interiors, fantasy etc) into my portrait work. Is there any software that comes with a comprehensive library of these that I can use/tweak without drawing from scratch. I'm proficient at Photoshop, but a complete beginner at this.
thanks
Roy McKeown
www.portfolio-gallery.com

What about stock photography? ... Stock Xchng .. Account creation is FREE and is required for downloading (also FREE)

otherwise .. you're looking at EXTENSIVE learning curve to create a believable interior using 3D software

Hi Roy. I've visited your website. Great stuff!!!
Please, don't hesitate to share some of your photos on caedes.net... :-)

Keith is right, there's no "easy" way to render your own CG backgrounds. It'd be much simpler to find a place that provides a selection of prerendered scenes that you can add your photos to, I'm sure there would be a few around. Stockxchange might be one, but there would be others.

drat, I'd rather not use stock if i can help it since the final image would not be completely mine. maybe i'm being pedantic.
anyway, which software would have the most samples with it for tweaking, highest output quality and least learning curve?

thanks for the comment ppigeon. You can see some more figurescapes here..
http://www.web-models.co.uk/gallery.asp?id=542

as Pierre said you have some stunning works

Well .. I see you're in Ireland .. and Ireland has the occasional castle and other old buildings .. what about doing your own stock work for this project? .. you have the photographic eye .. you will spot the details you need in any establishment, be it bar or barn and will eventually accumulate quite a pile of backgrounds

My knowledge of what comes inside the 3D packages isn't all that great .. but I can almost say for certain they don't contain what you're looking for in the detail your looking for but a couple hours out with your camera will yield many candidates when you factor in moody developement techniques

I'm not kidding when i say the learning curve is such that you will not be able to call yourself a photographer any longer by the time you've created your believable interiors .. due to lack of time with a camera

HERE is a sample look at the design screens for 'making' a pair of dice .. just to give you an idea of what modeling is like if you haven't seen it before ... please forgive me if you have


;o)