Can someone please clear this up for me?
What’s the difference?
Which is better?
basically, it’s the same. I use Keyshot 3 now and nothing is easier or faster.
I’ve been using Keyshot. Keyshot 3 is pretty nice.
It’s interface is dead simple. You can get a really decent render in just a few seconds.
But if you want something of very high quality that can take quite some time in my opinion.
Keyshot only runs on the computers CPU (Processor).
Bunkspeed shot runs on both the CPU and GPU (Nvidia Graphics Card)
Or you can run it on either one individually.
Graphics cards are designed for that type of work so I’m surprised more rendering engines don’t take advantage of it.
With Bunkspeed you can easily upgrade your computer with more rendering power. I find it’s alot less expensive to add multiple graphics cards then it is to add multiple processors.
The main issue I’m having with Keyshot is that, while I can set up a que of several different renderings to process,
It will sit there at take up 100% of my CPU for more than several hours even all night. This makes my computer unusable for other work. With Bunkspeed you should be able to render away on your graphics card leaving your CPU free to do other tasks.
It’s hard to get a gauge of how much a GPU will help with rendering.
I’ve heard that with shot
CPU only = 30 minutes
GPU only = 8 minutes
GPU + CPU = 5 minutes
Keyshot is the next gen of Hypershot - so if you used Hypershot this is where you want to jump.
Shot is a completely new program developed by the former Bunkspeed team.
You should be able to get a trial of Shot if you want to play with it. It does want a very powerful graphics card however for best performance.
I’ve used both (and several other rendering programs) and have reviewed them at SolidSmack. Last year, I decided to work for Luxion (makers of KeyShot) because they’re using their own technology, it uses all the CPU cores available, all of them, and when I was in Engineering the clients always like images out of KeyShot better (and management like that it was happening faster.) It all added up to a lot less hassle and being able to use the equipment we already had.
The difference? Besides KeyShot using it’s own rendering technology and Shot using Nvidia’s iRay tech, KeyShot relies on CPU, Shot on GPU. By using the CPU KeyShot can use more advanced algorithms that end up being faster than using a GPU. KeyShot has quite a few more features than Shot as well, along with support for more file types.
I gotta say that I am really impressed with how far Keyshot has come since it’s first release. They keep coming out with updates that add some really useful features. The ability to edit the HDRI (adding additional lights and changing hues) in the latest release is a big deal in my opinion and it comes close to replacing the need for some very expensive additional software.
I suppose if you are buying into one specific software program you would have to consider how that program is being updated. Keyshot seems like a winner in that regard.
I think Keyshot has some really powerful algorithms. When you crank up the settings it really starts to look fantastic (cranking up the settings in Photoview doesn’t seem to do much). I just can’t get enough CPU power.
I currently have Keyshot v 1.9.
I am pondering whether I upgrade it to 3, or move to something else altogether.
That said, I am only on a laptop (Lenovo W510).
Are there any systems that are better suited for this kind of environment, or do I need to move to a desktop scenario to get a true productivity boost?
Desktop hardware is so dang cheap now if rendering is a serious enough portion of your workflow you’d be remiss to not pick up a dedicated rendering box IMO. You can spend thousands on similar mobile hardware, but these days a 8 core 2600K workstation with the juice cranked up can be had for under a grand - a lot of horsepower bang for buck wise.