3DS Max Domemaster3D Install
- 3D Studio Max Installation Instructions
- Using the Shaders in 3DS Max
- Domemaster Stereo Shader Controls
- Manual Install for 3DS Max 2009 to 2018 x64
- Uninstaller Details
The Domemaster installer makes it easy to use the 64-bit Domemaster3D shader with 3DS Max 2009-2017. The installer allows you to choose which version of Max you want to use with the fulldome rendering shader.
If you customized the location of your of 3DS Max program folder, you can specify which folder you want to use for your 3DS Max mental ray shader & include files. This is useful if you moved your copy of 3DS Max from the default C:\Program Files\Autodesk folder.
The Domemaster3D installer creates a new folder on your hard drive to hold the Domemaster3D documentation, texture maps, source code, and the uninstaller program.
The folder is located at:
C:\Program Files\Domemaster3D
A copy of the Domemaster3D mental ray shader lib & include files are stored in the following folder so you have the option to manually install them on 3DS Max based render nodes:
C:\Program Files\Domemaster3D\max\shaders
The Domemaster3D release for Windows has been compiled with Visual Studio 2012. If your system doesn't have the Visual Studio 2012 (VC++ 11.0) x64 Redistributable Package installed you can download it. If you have trouble loading the lens shader .dll files in 3DS Max this is usually the cause of the problem.
The Domemaster3D installer software was created with the assistance of Bitrock InstallBuilder's open source developer program.
When you start 3D Studio Max, you will have 6 new mental ray lens shaders:
Domemaster Stereo ShaderdomeAFL_FOVdomeAFL_WxHLatLong ShaderLatLong Stereo Shaderrob_lookup_background
Since the Domemaster3D lens shaders are mental ray based we need to open the render setup window and switch the current renderer over to NVIDIA mental ray.
We can add one of the Domemaster3D lens shaders to our current 3DS Max scene by opening up Renderer tab in the Render Setup window and scrolling down to the Camera Shaders section.
Next to the word "Lens" is a button. If there is a node connected, the len shader's name will be listed on the button. Otherwise the button name will be set to "None".
To add a new lens shader, click on the lens shader button and the Material/Map Browser window will display a collection of lens shaders. The Domemaster3D lens shaders are highlighted in green.
The DomeAFL FOV lens shader is an updated version of the 2D fulldome angular fisheye lens shader.
The DomeAFL WxH lens shader is an updated version of the 2D fulldome angular fisheye lens shader that calculates the field of view based upon diameter and height controls.
The Domemaster Stereo Shader is a lens shader that is used to render a set of stereoscopic angular fisheye images. You can control which camera view is rendered with the Camera control set to render either Left or Right view. If you set the camera mode to Center you can render an optimized 2D DomeAFL FOV style fulldome image.
The LatLong Shader shader is a spherical/equirectangular/latlong shader that can be used to create panoramic backdrops or HDRIs from your scene.
The LatLong Stereo Shader shader is a stereoscopic spherical/equirectangular/latlong shader that can be used to create immersive stereoscopic renderings of your scene. You can control which camera view is rendered with the Camera control set to render either Left or Right view. If you set the camera mode to Center you can render an optimized 2D LatLong Shader style image.
The rob lookup background lens shader is a utility shader that is used to double check the Separation Multiplier, Turn Multiplier, and Head Tilt texture maps are projected into "screen space" coordinates before they are applied to the Domemaster Stereo Shader.
Field of View: Controls the field of view for the rendered angular fisheye image. A "Domemaster" formatted image has a 180 degree field of view, and a "light probe" style angular image has a 360 degree field of view.
Flip X: Flips the view horizontally
Flip Y: Flips the view vertically
Camera: Choices are Center/Left/Right. Selects the camera to use for rendering. Center skips 90% of the calculations and gives you a highly optimized standard angular fisheye shader.
Dome Radius (focus plane): This is actually the distance at which the camera's line of sight converges. This is also known as the zero parallax distance so the control isn't really the dome size.
Dome Forward Tilt: Dome tilt in degrees. Note that this value is not used unless you enable Dome Tilt Compensation.
Camera Separation: The initial separation of the left and right cameras.
Separation Multiplier: A value between 0-1 that multiples the Camera Separation. This attribute is meant to be used with a grayscale texture mapped to the screen space. It's used to control the amount of 3D effect, and eliminate it where desired.
Turn Multiplier: A value 0-1 that controls the amount of the head turn. This attribute is meant to be used with a grayscale texture mapped using the screen space. Typical use, keep the head straight while looking at the top of the dome.
Head Tilt: A value 0-1 (with 0.5 being the "neutral" value) that tilts the cameras (or head) left/right. This attribute is meant to be used with a grayscale texture mapped using the screen space. 0 means 90 degrees to the left, 1 means 90 degrees to the right.
Dome Tilt Compensation: Enabling this option, shifts all the calculations by the # of degrees specified in Dome Forward Tilt. Basically, it keeps the fulldome cameras / viewer's head vertical while the dome rotates forward.
Important: Maps used for the various multipliers and tilt settings will have to be custom made for the proper dome tilt.
Vertical Mode: Enables the vertical dome mode which automatically adjusts the head turn setting and adds a turn compensation for the upper and lower part of the dome. It's a simplified and optimized version of the Dome Tilt Compensation with a 90 degree tilt angle, but with a different automatic handling of the top and bottom pinch correction. It is faster and easier to use.
Field of View Vertical: Controls the vertical FOV angle (in degrees) of the rendered Latitude/Longitude image.
Field of View Horizontal: Controls the horizontal FOV angle (in degrees) of the rendered Latitude/Longitude image.
Flip X: Flips the view horizontally
Flip Y: Flips the view vertically
Camera: Choices are Center/Left/Right. Selects the camera to use for rendering. Center skips 90% of the calculations and gives you a highly optimized standard latlong image.
Zero Parallax Distance (focus plane): This is the distance at which the camera's line of sight converges.
Camera Separation: The initial separation of the left and right cameras.
Separation Multiplier: A value between 0-1 that multiples the Camera Separation. This attribute is meant to be used with a grayscale texture mapped to the screen space. It's used to control the amount of 3D effect, and eliminate it where desired.
Zenith Mode: This attribute allows you to adjust the LatLong Stereo lens shader to work with either a horizontal orientation (Zenith Mode OFF), or an upwards / vertical orientation (Zenith Mode ON) that lines up with the upright view orientation of the DomeAFL FOV / Domemaster Stereo Shader shaders.
You can control the stereoscopic effect seen in the LatLong Stereo and Domemaster Stereo shaders with the help of control texture maps. The LatLong Stereo shader's Separation Multiplier, and the Domemaster Stereo Shader shader's Separation Multiplier, Turn Multiplier, Head Tilt attributes support control texture mapping. The images have to be applied using screen space coordinates.
This special screen space mapping is achieved in 3DS Max by opening up the bitmap texture's Coordinates section and enabling the Environ radio button. The mapping attribute is then set to Screen.
To get you started there is a collection of pre-made control texture maps for the Domemaster3D shaders in the following folder:
C:\Program Files\Domemaster3D\sourceimages\
You can also create your own control map images if you want to precisely control the stereoscopic effect across your scene and sculpt the stereo depth in your renderings.
Important: if you get jagged edges in your renderings where the maps have a gradient, make sure you have the proper map filtering or use 16-bit grayscale maps.
head_tilt_map.png
separation_map.png
turn_map.png
latlong_separation_map.png
Step 1. Extract the ZIP file and copy the included "Domemaster3D" folder to:
C:\Program Files\Domemaster3D\
Step 2. Copy the .mi 'include' files to your 3DS Max mental ray include folder.
The Domemaster3D .mi include files are stored in the folder:
C:\Program Files\Domemaster3D\max\shaders\include\
The Domemaster3D mental ray shader .mi include files should be copied in one of the following the 3DS Max folders:
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 2018\Plugins\NVIDIA\Shaders\shaders_autoload\mentalray\include
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 2017\Plugins\NVIDIA\Shaders\shaders_autoload\mentalray\include
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 2016\NVIDIA\shaders_autoload\mentalray\include
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 2015\NVIDIA\shaders_autoload\mentalray\include
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 2014\NVIDIA\shaders_autoload\mentalray\include
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 2013\NVIDIA\shaders_autoload\mentalray\include
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 2012\mentalimages\shaders_autoload\mentalray\include
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 2011\mentalimages\shaders_autoload\mentalray\include
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 2010\mentalray\shaders_autoload\include
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 2009\mentalray\shaders_autoload\include
Step 3. Copy the .dll 'library' files to your 3DS Max mental ray shader folder.
The Domemaster3D .dll shader lib files are stored in the folder:
C:\Program Files\Domemaster3D\max\shaders\lib\
The Domemaster3D mental ray shader .dll files should be copied in one of the following the 3DS Max folders:
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 2018\Plugins\NVIDIA\Shaders\shaders_autoload\mentalray\shaders
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 2017\Plugins\NVIDIA\Shaders\shaders_autoload\mentalray\shaders
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 2016\NVIDIA\shaders_autoload\mentalray\shaders
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 2015\NVIDIA\shaders_autoload\mentalray\shaders
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 2014\NVIDIA\shaders_autoload\mentalray\shaders
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 2013\NVIDIA\shaders_autoload\mentalray\shaders
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 2012\mentalimages\shaders_autoload\mentalray\shaders
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 2011\mentalimages\shaders_autoload\mentalray\shaders
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 2010\mentalray\shaders_autoload\shaders
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 2009\mentalray\shaders_autoload\shaders
Step 4. Add the Domemaster3D "bin" folder to your Windows System path:
C:\Program Files\Domemaster3D\bin
This is done by opening the System Control Panel, and selecting Advanced System Properties > Environment Variables and then editing the current Path system variable.
The installation program creates a start menu folder for the Domemaster3D shader. If you want to uninstall the Domemaster3D software you can use the item in the Windows Start menu or the uninstaller application in the Domemaster3D program folder.
The Start Menu item is the easiest way to remove old versions of the Domemaster3D shader.
You can uninstall all of the components in the Domemaster3D shader using the uninstall application in the Domemaster3D program folder.
On Windows the Domemaster3D uninstaller is located at:
C:\Program Files\Domemaster3D\uninstall.exe
If you have run the installer multiple times you may notice a few rollback files left in the Domemaster3D folder after the uninstallation is complete. At this point you can can delete the rollback folders and the Domemaster3D folder without any issues.