Documentation

Settings

Job Name

By default, the archive is created with the name of your scene. If you want to use a custom name for your archive file, you can use “Job Name” to change the name of the archive file. After uploading your archive the project will be named with the name of your archive with a unique ID.

Archive destinations

By default, the archive is created on the desktop of your computer. If you want to use a custom destination, you can enable the “Archive destination” option to select a new path.

Still Image

There are 2 ways to render still images on the RANCH: MultiBand or MultiCam. Depending on your needs, one may be better than the other. See below to get further information.

MultiBand (strips renderings)

The MultiBand is built to render very high resolution still image very quickly! It splits your image up into horizontal strips (~60-120) which are rendered independently on different nodes, simultaneously. Once all the strips have been rendered, they are stitched together to produce the final image.

There are some limitations (due to the stitching part):

  • Only 7 output file formats supported: PNG/TIF/TGA/BMP/JPG/EXR and HDR
  • Multi-layered EXR or TIF with layers may only produce the main pass
  • Stereoscopic image with both view (left and right) is not working due to the command line renderer
  • Two-dimensional filters/post effects like [Lens Effects] will not work properly because any filter will be applied on the strip and not on the whole image
  • Any prepass map (from GI, caustic or SSS materials) must be calculated beforehand on your computer in order to avoid lighting discontinuities between stitched strips.

While rendering, you can observe, in near real-time, the progress of your render by clicking on the Preview button. The preview image is updated every minute or so.

Single node

This option is checked by default. Your project will be rendered on one server, and this will override the limitations of MultiBand rendering (this option is more appropriate for images with a short rendering time).

Priority

The priority only appears if the user is logged in. For more information, please refer to this page. Choose a priority.

Takes

If the “Use takes” option is enabled, RANCHecker will allow you to select the number of takes included in your project. The RANCHecker will upload one project per takes.

Info: your takes must not have the same name (including chields takes) and must not have special characters.

FTP Assets

If you have a slow internet connection and you need to render several scenes all using the same resources (textures, etc.), you can use the possibility to upload the assets only once. The archive will only contain the main files that don’t change (.c4d scene file).

1. Creation of your FTP directory

Please contact us by e-mail if you need a temporary FTP directory for asset storage. We will create it and send you back the necessary information to access your directory.

2. Preparation of the project

  • Activate the “Separate asset from the archive” button.
  • Use the login and password provided by the support team to connect to your FTP account.
  • Add the name of your folder.
  • Click “Create Archive”.

RANCHecker creates a folder containing the assets (the .vuc archive only contains the .c4d file). You can now upload the .vuc archive file using your RANCH account from our website. The project will use FTP resources. If you wish to reuse the resources for another project, simply use the correct folder name when preparing your project with RANCHecker : The resource folder will be generated on your computer and uploaded to your FTP account.

Please note: You can use several subdirectories of assets at the same time. This feature is not intended to be used as a permanent online storage medium. Please delete your content when it is no longer needed.