Virtual Frame Buffer Dialog

Save Bitmap—Allows you to save the rendered image displayed in the virtual frame buffer.

Clone Virtual Frame Buffer—Creates another virtual frame buffer window containing the displayed image. This allows you to render another image to the virtual frame buffer and compare it with the previous, cloned image. You can clone the virtual frame buffer any number of times.

Enable Red Channel—Displays the red channel of the rendered image. When turned off, the red channel is not displayed.

Enable Green Channel—Displays the green channel of the rendered image. When turned off, the green channel is not displayed.

Enable Blue Channel—Displays the blue channel of the rendered image. When turned off, the blue channel is not displayed.

Display Alpha Channel—Displays the alpha channel.

Monochrome—Displays an 8-bit grayscale of the rendered image.

Clear—Clears the image from the virtual frame buffer.

Channel Display List—Lists any channel rendered with the image. When you choose a channel from the list, it is displayed in the virtual frame buffer.

For most kinds of files, only the RGB and alpha channels are available. If you render a Rich-Pixel-format file or RLA-format file, additional channels can be present.

The virtual frame buffer displays non-visual channels, such as Material Effects or the G-Buffer, using colors it randomly assigns to distinct values.

Layer—This spinner appears on the Virtual Frame Buffer toolbar when you render to the RPF or RLA file format. It lets you see the information at different layers of the following channels:

Layer shows no additional information for other channels. It is useful primarily when the scene contains objects that occlude each other, and you have turned on the Render Occluded Objects toggle for these objects. (See Object Properties) Be aware that rendering occluded objects increases render time.

Tip: Rendering occluded objects can help you create 3D effects when you composite images with the Discreet combustion product.

Color Swatch—Stores the color value of the last pixel you right-clicked. You can drag this color swatch to other color swatches in the program. Clicking the color swatch displays the Color Selector, which displays more information about the color.

The Color Selector is not modal, so you can leave it displayed while you right-click over other pixels in the virtual frame buffer. (Changing the current value in the Color Selector changes the color swatch on the virtual frame buffer's toolbar, but it does not change the color of pixels in the rendered image.)

Frame-Steps (arrows)—For sequentially numbered files (such as image0005.jpg) or IFL files, the arrows display the next file in the sequence or the previous file. Holding down CTRL and clicking an arrow jumps to the first image or the last image in the sequence.

Available if the virtual frame buffer is invoked using View File in the File menu.

When you right-click the virtual frame buffer, the color swatch is updated, and information about the rendering and the pixel beneath the mouse is displayed.

If you hold the right mouse button down while dragging, the information changes with each new pixel the mouse crosses.

The display includes the following information:

Width—The width of the image in pixels.

Height—The height of the image in pixels.

Type—The type of image, based on color depth. For example, 24 bits (RGB) or Paletted Image (256 Colors).

Aspect—The pixel aspect ratio.

Gamma—The gamma value carried in the bitmap file.

Red—The red component value (0 to 255) and the percentage of red.

Green—The green component value (0 to 255) and the percentage of green.

Blue—The blue component value (0 to 255) and the percentage of blue.

Alpha—The alpha component value (0 to 255).

Mono—The monochrome value of the pixel, using the same formula used by monochrome material map channels such as bump and opacity maps.

If the rendering contains additional channels, such a Rich Pixel Format or RLA format file, the informational pop-up also displays a group called "Optional Pixel Data." This shows all the possible channels. If a channel was not saved, its value is displayed as "N/A," for "not applicable."

Z—Displays Z-Buffer information in repeating gradients from white to black. The gradients indicate relative depth of the object in the scene.

Material Effects—Displays the Effects Channel used by a material assigned to an objects in the scene. The Effects Channel is a material property set in the Material Editor.

Object—Displays the G-Buffer Object Channel ID assigned to objects using the Object Properties dialog.

UV Coordinates—Displays the range of UV mapping coordinates.

Normal—Displays the orientation of normal vectors.

Non-Clamped Color—Displays the "real" color value delivered to the Renderer in Red, Blue, and Green order. The Renderer uses a floating point range of 0 to 1 to represent the range of each color channel. Thus, 1 is 100%, or 255 (color values can be greater than 1, but are clamped by the renderer to 1).

Coverage—Displays the coverage of the surface fragment from which other G-buffer values (Z Depth, Normal, and so on) are obtained. Z-Coverage values range from 0 to 255.

Node Render ID—Displays an object’s G-Buffer Object channel.

Color—Displays the color returned by the material shader for the fragment.

Transparency—Displays transparency returned by the material shader for the fragment.

Velocity—Displays the velocity vector of the fragment relative to the screen.

Sub-Pixel Weight—Displays the sub-pixel weight of a fragment. The channel contains the fractions of the total pixel color contributed by the fragment. The sum of all the fragments gives the final pixel color. The weight for a given fragment takes into account the coverage of the fragment and the transparency of any fragments that are in front of a given fragment.

Sub-Pixel Mask—Displays the sub-pixel alpha mask. This channel provides a mask of 16 bits (4x4) per pixel, used in antialiased alpha compositing.