KeyShot 2.

2 - Manual
Welcome to KeyShot 2! 5
About this manual! 5

How it works ! 5

KeyShot licensing! 6

KeyShot content! 6

KeyShot preferences! 6
General Settings! 6

User Interface! 7

Network! 8

Folders! 8

KeyShot scenes and bundles ! 8

KeyShot user interface and tools! 8

KeyShot updates ! 9

Realtime Window! 10

6 button user interface! 10

Right mouse button menu! 10

Performance mode [ALT P]! 11

Library! 11
Options [Spacebar]! 13
Importers! 14

Folder! 14

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Right mouse button menu! 14
Hotkeys [K]! 14
Moving the Camera! 14
Import - Importing data! 16

Importing 3D data or KeyShot scenes (bips)! 16

First time import ! 16
General! 16

Orienation! 16

Advanced! 17

Second and subsequent import ! 17

General! 17

Coordinates! 17

Scene - Working with objects! 18

Scene tree! 18
Moving and Scaling! 18
Material - Working with materials ! 20

Applying materials! 20
Editing and creating new materials! 20
Applying textures! 21
Bump mapping! 22
Labels! 23
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 Environment - Adjust lighting and other environment effects! 25

Backplates - Using images in the background! 27

Realtime - Setting up the perfect picture in realtime! 28

Image Settings! 28
Realtime Settings! 28
Effects! 29
Camera - Working with the camera and camera effects! 30

Render - Rendering the final image! 32

Render! 32
Quality! 32
Default - Use Realtime Render not checked! 33

Use Realtime Render checked! 33

Queue (KeyShot Pro only)! 34

Turntable (KeyShot Pro)! 34
Region Rendering (Pro)! 34

APPENDIX - KeyShot materials! 36

Advanced! 36
Anisotropic! 37
Dielectric (formerly known as Solid Glass)! 37
Diffuse! 38
Emissive! 38
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Flat ! 39
Gem! 39
General! 39
Glass! 41
Leather! 42
Liquid! 42
Metal! 43
Metallic Paint ! 43
Paint ! 44
Plastic! 44
Solid Glass! 44
Thinfilm! 45
Translucent ! 45
X-ray! 46
Wireframe! 46

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Welcome to KeyShot 2
KeyShot is the first interactive image creation tool of its kind that allows anyone
with little or no experience to create photographic images from their 3D digital
data within seconds. It is a continuation of the product HyperShot that was
developed by Luxion from 2006 until 2009.

About this manual

KeyShot works on both, Mac and PC. The functionality is identical. The only
differences are some of the supported file formats as well as the CTRL key,
which is ⌘ on the Mac. This will be clearly documented throughout the manual.

How it works
Keyshot is a realtime raytracing and global illumination application that is
entirely CPU based and thus doesn’t require any special hardware to run. With
the use of scientifically accurate materials and real world light combined with
extreme ease-of-use anybody can generate photographic images from their 3D
geometry within a matter or minutes after first opening the program.
The performance of KeyShot increases when more processors are being added.
KeyShot’s architecture is highly optimized such that when the number of
processors doubles, performance also doubles.
There is no limit on how many CPUs can be addressed in one computer.
KeyShot also supports chip sets with a hyper-threaded architecture with the
same efficiencies as multiple CPUs and multi-core CPUs.
KeyShot raytraces constantly, as soon as you start the application. At any point
in time you are able to stop the realtime rendering by hitting [Shift] + [P].
Resume realtime raytracing using the same key combination.

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KeyShot licensing
The KeyShot license is locked to the MAC address of your computer. The
exception is KeyShot Pro Floating which allows you run KeyShot from any
computer. Please contact sales@luxion.com for more information.
You can deactivate your license from your current computer and activate on
another machine. Please note that an internet activation is needed for this. You
can transfer your licenses between a total of 3 machines. There is no limit on
how often you can do this.
To deactivate a license to move to another computer, simply start KeyShot and
go to the Help menu (PC), or KeyShot menu (Mac), and select Deactivate
license on this computer.
You can now activate KeyShot on a different computer with your permanent
serial code.

KeyShot content
KeyShot, by default, has the following content structure:
• Scenes: Contains all your saved scenes.
• Materials: Contains all materials.
• Textures: Contains all textures and labels used with your materials
• Environments: Contains all you lighting environments
• Backplates: Contains images and photographs
• Renderings: Contains all Screenshot and Renderings

KeyShot preferences
KeyShot allows you to customize the application based on your preferences.
Access the preferences under Edit > Preferences (PC) or KeyShot2 >
Preferences [⌘ ,]. Preference settings allow you to control
• General settings
• User Interface
• Netwok
• Location of the KeyShot Resources
General Settings
• Adjust aspect ratio to backplate: When checked, the realtime window will
automatically adjust to the aspect ratio of a backplate that is added to the
scene.

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• Show advanced settings: Turns on the advanced parameters for each
material when edited in the material tab as well as other advanced settings.
• Ask for screen shot name: This will prompt you for a screenshot name when
taking a screenshot rather than adding the default name and incremental
number from the scene.
• Save camera with screen shot: Adds the current view to the saved list of
views when taking a screenshot. The name will be identical to the name of the
screenshot.
• Enable auto update: Allows KeyShot to automatically check for updates every
week. You can always check for updates manually under Help, Check for
Updates.
• Fast realtime updates: When unchecked, you will not see the “down-res’ing”
of the 3D image when moving the camera. This has a big performance impact,
and is therefore only recommended when running KeyShot on an 8 core
machine or better.
• Idle time in seconds to pause realtime renderer: When set to a value other
than 0, KeyShot will pause after x seconds when no mouse movement is
detected. This is helpful when processing large renderings or the render
queue and have them finish much sooner than you getting back to the
computer.
User Interface
Language and Interface
• Language: Choose between Chinese, English, French, German, Italian,
Japanese, Korean and Polish. You must restart KeyShot for the new language
to take effect.
• User interface style: Select from one of the 3 predefined color themes to
customize the KeyShot UI.
• Transparent windows: Makes the Options dialog and Library transparent.
• Enable object highlight: Turn on highlighting of objects in the realtime
window when selected in the Scene tab.
3DConnexion Settings
• 3D mouse sensitivity: Controls the sensitivity of the 3D mouse
• Restrict to dominant axis: Restricts the movements of the SpaceNavigator to
one axis at a time only.
• Model mode: By default the 3D mouse uses the camera mode which. Check
this box if you want the mouse to behave like you are moving the model,
rather than the camera.

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Network
By default KeyShot will be able to connect with Luxion’s license server when a
proxy server is in place. Please consult your System Administrator if you need
to make any changes to the settings so you can ensure that you will be notified
of new updates, and can activate new licenses.
Folders
In here you can set the paths to your resources folders. KeyShot will look into
these folders when populating content inside the library. You can have these
paths point to a shared location on your network.

KeyShot scenes and packages

Creating a scene inside KeyShot consists of the following:
• Import one or multiple objects
• Assigning materials and textures
• Creating new materials
• Setting the lighting environment and adjusting the position, brightness and
contrast
• Setting a backplate image and positioning the object into the image (optional)
When you Save the scene (.bip), KeyShot will save everything that you set up in
the scene. The scene itself will be save in the location you tell it to save. All
textures, the environment and the backplate image will be referenced based on
their locations on the computer or network.
In addition, KeyShot allows you to save a package (.kps). The bundle is a
package that will combine your scene, all textures, bump-maps, labels, the
environment and backplate in one single file.
When opening a package, you have the option of extracting the bundle to a
single folder, or copy everything to the current content folders (Scenes,
Textures, Environments, Backplates) as set in the Preferences.

KeyShot user interface and tools

This chapter describes the user interface and all the tools inside KeyShot. Please
note the following abbreviations:
• LMB = Left Mouse Button
• MMB = Middle Mouse Button
• RMB = Right Mouse Button
The KeyShot applications has 3 main areas:
• Realtime window

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• Library
• Options

KeyShot updates
You can check for new versions of KeyShot under the Help menu. Check for
Updates will connect to the Luxion server and notify you of new updates along
with a change log if available.
You can also tell KeyShot to Check for Updates automatically by checking
Enable Auto Update in the Preferences.

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Realtime Window
6 button user interface
Open material Open Open settings
library backplate for final render

Import 3D Open Save image Open options

data, or scene environment from the window
library

The realtime window has the main toolbar on the bottom that takes the user
through the 6 steps from importing a model to creating the final image.
• Import: Import a model including KeyShot’s own scenes (.bip files)
• Materials: Open material library.
• Environment: Open the environment library to access lighting environments
• Backplates: Open the backplates library to access images to add to the scene.
• Screenshot: Save image from the realtime window.
• Render: Open the render settings to control the final image output.
When working with objects in the realtime window, you will also have the option
to access important functions via the right mouse button pop up menu when
clicking on the object.
Right mouse button menu
When clicking onto the right mouse button in the realtime window after
positioning the mouse cursor over an object, you will have access to the
following options:
• Edit Material: Edit assigned material in the Material Tab.
• Copy Material: Copy material to the clipboard.
• Paste/Paste and link material: After copying you can paste the material onto
parts in the tree or in the realtime window. Paste will simply assign the
material, Paste and link material will assign the material and link it to the
original material. When you make changes to the material, all parts that carry
this material will change simultaneously. You can brake this by right clicking
on the part and selecting Unlink parts.
• Unlink material: Removes parts from a material group by unlinking them.
• Add material to library: Add the selected material library to the material
library.

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• Hide/Undo hide part: Quickly hide/unhide entire objects or individual parts.
You can select multiple parts and hide them through the right mouse button
menu.
• Show all parts: Show all hidden parts at once.
• Show only: Show only the currently selected part and hide all others
• Delete/Undo delete part: Works like Hide/Unhide. Delete and undeletes
parts.
• Move part: Activates the Move Widget to move the object.
• Scale part: Activates the Scale Widget to scale the object.
• Look at: Positions the selected point at the center of the scene, and sets the
camera pivot point at that location. To reset the camera pivot point, select
Reset in the Camera Tab.
• Look at object center: Similar to look at, this will set the pivot point at the
center of the object your mouse is on when selecting this function. To reset
the camera pivot point, select Reset in the Camera Tab.
• Show in tree: This will highlight the selected object in the scene tree.
Performance mode [ALT P]
While KeyShot constantly raytraces from the moment you open the application
it may be desired to quickly move through the scene. In particular when you set
up the model and paint it, you may not need all the “details” and only want to
get job done quickly.
In this case, pressing [ALT P] will enter Performance Mode, indicated by a P in
the upper right hand corner of the realtime window.
This will turn off ground shadows, detailed shadows, ground reflections, and
detailed indirect illumination. It will also drop the ray bounces to 2. KeyShot will
no perform much faster.
To exit Performance Mode, click [Alt P] again.
This is particularly useful on lower end machines.

Library
The library contains all content for your scenes which can be dragged and
dropped into the realtime window. When first opening the library, right click
into each tab and select Rescan Library Directory. You can also add additional
content, create groups and remove content from the library.
Materials
Drag and drop a material onto an object in the realtime window or one or
multiple objects in the Scene Tree (Options). When dragging materials onto the
object you will notice that the part will adopt the material and show the result

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in realtime. The material is not being applied until you let go of the mouse
button. Right mouse menu options are:
• Remove material: Remove the selected material from the library.
• Copy material: Copy select material to clipboard.
• Paste material: Paste material onto object in realtime window or scene tree.
• Move materials: Move multiple materials from one material group to another.
• Edit material: Edit the selected material directly in the library.
• Rename material: Rename material in library.
• Add group: Create a new material group.
• Remove group: Delete group from library. Note: The group must be empty
prior to deletion.
• Refresh all materials: Re-render all materials in the library under current
lighting conditions.
• Refresh all materials in current group: Re-render all materials in group
under current lighting conditions.
• Sort A-Z/Z-A: Ascending/Descending alphabetical ordering of materials.
• Save material library: Save the material library without closing the current
KeyShot session.
• Import materials: Import one or multiple materials into an existing material
group. This could be from a material file that has been shared between users.
• Export materials: Export an existing material group to a dedicated location
on the computer.
Environments
Drag and drop into the realtime window to see the effect of the lighting in the
scene. Right mouse menu options are:
• Rescan library directory: This is necessary when you changed the content
location under preferences. Rescanning the library directory will display the
relative content of the set location and show all environments in this
location.
• Sort A-Z/Z-A: Ascending/Descending alphabetical ordering of
environments.
• Add files to library: Add new environments to the library.
• Add group: Create a new group.
• Use this: Use the selected environment in the scene.
• Add to favorites: When selected the first time, a new group called “Favorites”
is created. After that, every select environment will be added to this group.
• Remove from library: Remove the selected environment from the library.

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Backplates
Contains your photographs and other background images that you may want to
use to compose the final image. Right mouse menu options are:
• Rescan library directory: This is necessary when you changed the content
location under preferences. Rescanning the library directory will display the
relative content of the set location and show all backplates in this location.
• Sort A-Z/Z-A: Ascending/Descending alphabetical ordering of backplates.
• Add files to library: Add new backplates to the library.
• Add group: Create a new group.
• Use this: Use the selected backplate in the scene.
• Add to favorites: When selected the first time, a new group called “Favorites”
is created. After that, every select backplates will be added to this group.
• Remove from library: Remove the selected backplate from the library.
Textures
Drag and drop textures onto an object with any non-transparent material. Hold
down the CTRL (⌘) key to apply the texture as a bump map to any material.
Right mouse menu options are:
• Rescan library directory: This is necessary when you changed the content
location under preferences. Rescanning the library directory will display the
relative content of the set location and show all textures in this location.
• Add files to library: Add new textures to the library.
• Add group: Create a new group.
• Add to favorites: When selected the first time, a new group called “Favorites”
is created. After that, every select textures will be added to this group.
• Remove from library: Remove the selected texture from the library.
Rendering
Contains all realtime and offline rendered images which can also be used as
back plates. Right mouse menu options are:
• Rescan library directory: This is necessary when you changed the content
location under preferences. Rescanning the library directory will display the
relative content of the set location and show all renderings in this location.
• Add files to library: Add new renderings to the library.
• Add group: Create a new group.
• Add to favorites: When selected the first time, a new group called “Favorites”
is created. After that, every select environment will be added to this group.
• Remove from library: Remove the selected rendering from the library.

Options [Spacebar]

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The options dialog will give you access
• work with the scene and objects in the scene - Scene
• create and edit materials - Material
• adjust the lighting - Environment
• compose the final image - Backplate
• set up the perfect image in realtime - Realtime
• control the camera and save views - Camera
Importers
• Use new importers (beta): While the new importers for IGES and STEP are
failry robust, there may still be cases where the old importer works better
than the new ones. In this case disable the new importers to access the
original importers for IGES and STEP.
• Tessellation quality: Controls the number of polygons upon import. Higher
values mean higher polygon count. This will only have an effect for ALIAS,
Pro/E. IGES, and STEP.
Folder
Under the Folder preference tab you can set the path to your dedicated folders
per project. You will need to rescan your Library for each folder that you
changed in order for the content to be displayed. In the case of a new materials
folder, you will need to restart KeyShot.

Right mouse button menu

The right mouse button menu gives you the ability to quickly interact with the
model and the scene.

Hotkeys [K]
KeyShot relies heavily on hotkeys for fast and efficient workflow. You can access
the list of hotkeys by simply hitting [K]. To close tke hotkey list, hit [K] again.
When using hotkeys, make sure that the realtime window is active. You can
make it active by simply clicking inside of it.

Moving the Camera

KeyShot is a highly interactive and dynamic application. When moving the
camera, you will notice some pixelation that will stop when the camera
movement stops. At that point in time the image will res to perfection until the
camera is moved again. To move the camera use the following mouse and
hotkey combinations:
• [ALT LMB], Mac: [⌥ LMB] : Tumble the camera around the focal point

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• [ALT MMB], Mac: [⌥ MMB]: Pan the camera
• [ALT RMB], Mac [⌥ MMB]: Dolly the camera, i.e. moving the camera closer to
or away from the object. CAD users would describe this as “Zoom”. Make sure
to move the mouse horizontally.

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Import - Importing data
Importing 3D data or KeyShot scenes (bips)
Select import model to import your model in any of the following file formats:
• ALIAS 2011 or prior (.wire)
• CATIA v5
• CREO Elements/Pro (formerly knows as Pro/ENGINEER)
• Pro/ENGINEER Wildfire 2, 3, 4, 5(.prt, .asm)
• Rhinoceros 5.0 and prior (.3dm)
• SketchUp 8 and prior (.skp)
• Solid Edge ST 3 and prior (.par, .asm) - Windows only
• SolidWorks 2011 and prior (.sldprt, .sldasm) - Windows only
• Inventor
• DWG/DXF
• 3DStudio Max (.3ds)
• IGES
• STEP AP203/214
• Obj
• FBX (geometry and saved camera views)
• BIP (KeyShot Scene - import objects with materials and camera
views)
After selecting Import Model, you have the following options depending on
whether this is the first or second time you import a model.

First time import

When you import an object into the scene for the first time, you have the
following options:
General
• Center Geometry: This will put the object into the center of the scene. If you
uncheck it, the object will maintain it’s relative position from the CAD system.
• Snap to Ground: Put the object onto the ground plane.
Orienation
This will allow you to set the orientation of the object based on it’s orientation
in the CAD system. This position will be remembered between sessions.
• X, Y, Z up: Rotate the model accordingly upon import so it is oriented
correctly.

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Advanced
The Advanced options change based on the file format you are trying to import.
• Tessellation quality: The larger the number, the more polygons you will have
in the scene. Only supported for Pro/E, CATIA, Inventor, ALIAS, STEP, IGES.
• Keep individual parts: For OBJ only. When this option is checked, the
importer will respect groups rather than materials upon import. Use this
option when you notice that the OBJ file is not properly broken out once
imported into KeyShot.
• Group by layers/shaders: For ALIAS only. You can import either by layer or
by shader. Shader and layer names are maintained, respectively.
•
• Use old importers: This is an option for SketchUp, SolidWorks, IGES, STEP and
Rhino. It allows you to use an older version of the importers should you
experience any problems upon import of any of these file formats.

Second and subsequent import

When importing a second object, you will have the following additional options
upon import.
General
• Add to scene: Select this option when you want to add multiple models into
the same scene. You may want to move the first imported object first by
moving it.
• Retain materials: Check this option if you want to import design updates,
variants, or simply the same model. It can be used in combination with “Merge
with current scene”. The model will then come in with all materials already
applied based on the model in the current scene. Only new surfaces / parts
will not have any materials. The materials between the objects are linked.
Unlink by right-clicking on the material on the part in the realtime window or
scene tree and selecting “Unlink Material/Part”.
Coordinates
• Automatic: Check this option if you want KeyShot to scale your object
automatically upon import. This will fit the object into the scene, without
respect of previously imported models.
• From previous import: This ensures that the imported object maintains the
same size relative to the previously imported object.

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Scene - Working with objects
The scene tree gives you direct access to all objects and parts in the scene, as
well as the ability to move and scale objects (not parts yet).

Scene tree
The scene tree contains all sub-assemblies and parts, or layers from the 3D
modeling system. The entire structure is maintained down to the part level. In
addition, assembly, part and layer names are also maintained.
All materials that are assigned to the individual parts are listed in a separate
column.
You can do the following by right clicking on the object in the tree.
• Edit Material: Edit assigned material in the Material Tab.
• Copy Material: Copy material to the clipboard.
• Paste/Paste and link material: After copying you can paste the material onto
parts in the tree or in the realtime window. Paste will simply assign the
material, Paste and link material will assign the material and link it to the
original material. When you make changes to the material, all parts that carry
this material will change simultaneously. You can brake this by right clicking
on the part and selecting Unlink parts.
• Show all parts: Display all hidden parts at once.
• Hide/Unhide: Quickly hide/unhide entire objects or individual parts. You can
select multiple parts and hide them through the right mouse button menu.
• Delete part: Works like Hide/Unhide. Delete and undeletes parts.
• Unlink part: Removes parts from a material group by unlinking them.
• Duplicate: Duplicates a single selected object with all its current structure and
assigned materials.
• Move/Scale: Access the Move/Scale widget directly from with in the scene
tree. If you select multiple objects in the tree that have been imported
separately, then you can move those simultaneously when using the Move/
Scale option in the right mouse button menu.

Moving and Scaling

You can move and scale an object in conjunction with or instead of using the
Move Widget in the realtime window.
• Position: Move the object in local x, y, or z direction.
• Rotation: Rotate the object around the local x, y or z axis. Use the up/down
arrows to quickly rotate around 45º.
• Scale: Increase the size of the object in local x, y, or z direction

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• Size: Increase or decrease the overall size of the object.
• Snap to ground: Snap the object to the ground plane.
• Reset: Reset the object back to it’s original position.

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Material - Working with materials
Applying materials
To apply a material to any part of an object, open the material library. Select a
material and drag and drop it onto the object. Notice how the parts adopt the
material as soon as you move the mouse over the part. The part will not be
painted until you let go of the mouse button. Alternatively, you can use [SHIFT
LMB] to select a material and [SHIFT RMB] to apply the material to the desired
portion of the model. If you desire to apply the selected material to several
parts of the model, simple continue to [SHIFT RMB] click onto the desired
parts.
You can also open the Scene tab in the Option menu and drag and drop the
material onto the one or multiple parts, or the entire object.

Editing and creating new materials

Whether you want to create a new material or edit an existing one, the steps are
identical. In essence, whenever you edit an existing material on the object you
are creating a new material. To edit or create new materials double click onto a
material that has been applied to a part of the object in the scene, or right click
onto a part in the scene and select Edit material. Either way you will be taken
to the Material tab in the Options dialog. The selected material’s parameter list
appears. The available choices will depend on which material you selected.
Please see APPENDIX: KeyShot Materials for more detailed information on the
individual parameters for each material.
All material changes and new creation always stay with the object, and are
saved in the BIP file.
KeyShot’s materials are fundamentally different from “shaders” found in
traditional rendering applications. All of KeyShot’s materials are scientifically
accurate, requiring therefore far less work to define a certain material and finish
for an object.
• Name: The name of the material. + allows you to add the material to the
library for later reuse.
• Material type: Choose the material like that you would like to start out with.
Think in terms of real world materials such as metal, glass, plastic etc. Each
material has predefined color and parameter settings. Upon selecting the
material type you will see the immediate effect a core material has.
• Color, IOR, Roughness et al: Tweak the color and parameters, and see the
effects immediately.
• Reset: Reset ALL parameter, texture, bumpmap and label changes to the
beginning when the dialog was first opened.

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Once you made the edits to the core material you have chosen, you can save
the material to the library for later use in other scenes by hitting the + next to
Name.

Applying textures
Non-transparent materials can have a texture applied to replace the base color.
This texture will can be a jpeg, tiff, png or other common file format. To apply a
texture, create a new material or edit and existing material. Then select the
Texture tab.
• Load: Select a jpeg, tiff or any other image file. When you selected an image
once, and then open a different material to map a texture the previous texture
is available for immediate use, yet with default settings. You can select a new
texture if you choose.
• Enable: Turn texture on or off.
• Repeat: Switches between single and multiple copies of the texture.
• Sync: Synchronize all settings with the bump map.
• Projection: Determines how the texture is being mapped:
UV coordinates: Your object may not have any uv coordinates and the texture
may not show up initially. Change the projection type.
Box Map: Mapping uses a “box”.
Planar x, y, z: uses the planar projection from the x, y, or z direction. To
determine the direction, turn on the coordinate system in the View menu, or
use [SHIFT] + C. If the surface you would like to map to is at an angle, you
may want to try and rotate the object so it aligns with the projection direction.
After mapping you can move the object back to its original position. The
mapping will stay.
Cylindrical: Uses a cylinder standing up (y-direction) for mapping. If your
object requires cylindrical mapping in any other direction, rotate the object to
align the object with the projection direction. Move the object back to its
original position after mapping.
Spherical: Uses a sphere with y being the up direction. If your object requires
spherical mapping in a different direction, rotate the object to align the object
with the projection direction. Move the object back to its original position
after mapping.
• Position: Drag the texture on the model into position. Move the camera using
[ALT] + LMB. You can still interact with all other parameters while in this
mode.
• Keep aspect ratio: Maintains the original aspect ratio of the image.
• Modulate: When checked, this will adapt the texture to include the diffuse
color channel of the material.
• Flip horizontal / vertical: Invert the texture.

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• Shift u: Move the texture in horizontal direction over the surface.
• Shift v: Move the texture in vertical direction over the surface.
• Scale u: Change the width of the texture.
• Scale v: Change the height of the texture.
• Angle: Rotate the texture around its center.
• Intensity: Change the brightness of the texture.

Bump mapping
You can apply a bumpmap to any material by using any kind of image, allowing
you to add extra realism to materials, and stunning visual effects. The
bumpmap can be combines with texture maps mentioned above, or used by
themselves.
To apply a bumpmap, create a new material or edit an existing material. Then
select the Bumpmap tab. This will open up a new dialog that looks nearly
identical to the texture map dialog.
Bump Map: Select a jpeg, tiff or any other image file. When you selected an
image once, and then open a different material to map a texture the previous
texture is available for immediate use, yet with default settings. You can select
a new bumpmap if you choose.
• Load: Select a jpeg, tiff or any other image file. When you selected an image
once, and then open a different material to map a bumpmap the previous
bumpmap is available for immediate use, yet with default settings. You can
select a new bumpmap if you choose.
• Enable: Turn bumpmap on or off.
• Repeat: Switches between single and multiple copies of the bumpmap.
• Sync: Synchronize all settings with the bump map.
• Projection: Determines how the bumpmap is being mapped:
UV coordinates: Your object may not have any uv coordinates and the
bumpmap may not show up initially. Change the projection type.
Box Map: Mapping uses a “box”.
Planar x, y, z: uses the planar projection from the x, y, or z direction. To
determine the direction, turn on the coordinate system in the View menu, or
use [SHIFT] + C. If the surface you would like to map to is at an angle, you
may want to try and rotate the object so it aligns with the projection direction.
After mapping you can move the object back to its original position. The
mapping will stay.
Cylindrical: Uses a cylinder standing up (y-direction) for mapping. If your
object requires cylindrical mapping in any other direction, rotate the object to
align the object with the projection direction. Move the object back to its
original position after mapping.

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 Spherical: Uses a sphere with y being the up direction. If your object requires
spherical mapping in a different direction, rotate the object to align the object
with the projection direction. Move the object back to its original position
after mapping.
• Position: Drag the bumpmap on the model into position. Move the camera
using [ALT] + LMB. You can still interact with all other parameters while in
this mode.
• Keep aspect ratio: Maintains the original aspect ratio of the image.
• Normal map: When using an actual Normal Map, make sure to check this
option
• Flip horizontal / vertical: Invert the bumpmap.
• Shift u: Move the bumpmap in horizontal direction over the surface.
• Shift v: Move the bumpmap in vertical direction over the surface.
• Scale u: Change the width of the bumpmap.
• Scale v: Change the height of the bumpmap.
• Angle: Rotate the bumpmap around its center.
• Height: Controls the height of the bunmpmap.

Labels
If you are working with a logo, make sure that the image has transparency, also
known as an “Alpha Channel”. Only .tiff or .png files can have an alpha channel
or transparency. The transparency will allow the color of the material to be
visible.
• Add: Add a label.
• Delete: Delete a label.
• Up/Down arrows: Move label to front/back
• Enable: Turn label on or off.
• Repeat: Switches between single and multiple copies of the label.
• Projection: Determines how the label is being mapped:
Normal Projection: The default setting wraps the label onto any given surface
UV coordinates: Your object may not have any uv coordinates and the label
may not show up initially. Change the projection type.
Box Map: Mapping uses a “box”.
Planar x, y, z: uses the planar projection from the x, y, or z direction. To
determine the direction, turn on the coordinate system in the View menu, or
use [SHIFT] + C. If the surface you would like to map to is at an angle, you
may want to try and rotate the object so it aligns with the projection direction.
After mapping you can move the object back to its original position. The
mapping will stay.

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 Cylindrical: Uses a cylinder standing up (y-direction) for mapping. If your
object requires cylindrical mapping in any other direction, rotate the object to
align the object with the projection direction. Move the object back to its
original position after mapping.
Spherical: Uses a sphere with y being the up direction. If your object requires
spherical mapping in a different direction, rotate the object to align the object
with the projection direction. Move the object back to its original position
after mapping.
• Position: Drag the label on the model into position. Move the camera using
[ALT] + LMB. You can still interact with all other parameters while in this
mode.
• Keep aspect ratio: Maintains the original aspect ratio of the image.
• Two sided: See front and back of label.
• Flip horizontal / vertical: Invert the label.
• Shift u: Move the label in horizontal direction over the surface.
• Shift v: Move the label in vertical direction over the surface.
• Scale u: Change the width of the label.
• Scale v: Change the height of the label.
• Angle: Rotate the label around its center.
• Intensity: Change the brightness of the texture.
• Depth: Determines how far the label should be projected.
• IOR: Determines the level of reflectivity of the label. The color of the
specularity below must not be black to see the effect.
• Specularity: Determines the color of the reflective coat on the label. The
brighter the color the more reflective the label will be. Use in combination
with IOR.

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Environment - Adjust lighting and other
environment effects
The functions in the environment tab control the lighting in the scene. These
are grouped into 2 categories, Environments and Environment Shading.
• Background Color: This function allows you to change the background color.
The background color is hidden by the environment. You will need to hide the
environment (see below) in order to see the background color. The
background color doesn’t affect the scene, nor is it reflected in the object.
• Shadow Color: Controls the color of the ground shadow. This is especially
useful when trying to match the ground shadow color to the shadow color in a
backplate image.
• Visible Environment [E]: Hides the environment when checked, and displays
the background color set above. Note that even when the environment is
hidden the scene will still be fully illuminated, and all shadows and reflections
continue to be present.
• Ground Shadows: Turn the ground shadows on and off. Shadows that are
being cast onto the object itself will still be visible.
• Ground Reflections: Turns the ground plane into a reflective surface. The
amount of reflection is controlled by the color of the background and the
camera angle. To get additional control over ground reflections it is
recommended to add a geometric plane to the scene which can then be
painted with various materials and textures.
• Flatten Ground [G]: This flattens the bottom part of the sphere to give it
“gum drop” shape. You may notice some stretching of the environment
towards the edge of the ground. Flattening of the Ground may be desired to
get a more detailed reflection of the ground in the object. This is often times
desired by people working with cars.
• Sharp glossy reflections (Advanced): Checked by default , this options
ensures proper reflection in surfaces with reflective materials that have small
amounts of roughness applied. When checked, the reflection will stay sharp.
• Gamma: Controls the intensity of the light in the scene. Larger values will
yield less of a contrast between light and dark areas, resulting in softer
shadows. Lower values yield a higher contrast between light and dark areas.
• Brightness [Arrow keys]: Controls the amount of light in the scene. Use the
left /right arrow keys to decrease / increase the amount of light in the scene.
• Height: This functions allows you to move the environment up and down to
control position of the lighting in the environment and reflection in the object.
The number is a relative percentage of the overall size of the environment.

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 Together with the Rotation of the environment this function gives great
control over the position of the lighting.
• Size: Controls the size of the spherical environment in meters. Note that
changing the size will not change the intensity of the light. Changing the
environment size can be used to control the reflections in an object.
• Ground Size (Advanced): This changes the size of the ground plane. The
smaller you make it the sharper the ground shadow will get. Alternatively, if
you have a low light and see the ground shadow clipped off, increasing the
size will enable the shadow to continue. This will also result in a coarser
shadow. You can compensate for that by increasing the Shadow Quality in
the Realtime Tab.
• Rotation [CTRL LMB], [⌘ LMB] (Mac): Rotates the environment around the y
(vertical)” axis of the scene. When rotating the environment you will notice
that the ground shadow doesn’t update until you let go of the mouse button
and finish the rotation.

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Backplates - Using images in the background
Backplates are 2D images that can be used as background image against the
scene. They can also be used to place a 3D object “into the image”, making it
look like that is actually part of the image. Use the Camera controls to adjust
Distance, Perspective, Azimuth, Incline, and Twist to get the perfect fit. Use
the Ground grid for perfect perspective matching.
By default, the realtime window will adjust and assume the aspect ratio of the
backplate. This behavior can be controlled under Preferences.
The functions are:
• Select: Load backplate
• Use backplate: Quickly toggle backplate on/off.
• Adjust brightness: Takes on Brightness and Gamma set in the Realtime tab
when checked.

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Realtime - Setting up the perfect picture in
realtime
Use this tab extensively. The settings in here let you control the scene, so you
can get the perfect picture in realtime. Your final rendering will then look
identical.

Image Settings
Adjustment: These settings affect the overall image including the backplate.
• Width / Height: This allows you to set the size of the realtime window. It is
recommended to set the proper aspect ratio before setting camera angles. A
larger windows will result in slower realtime performance.
When changing the window size, you can chose from pre-set resolution, or
enter your custom resolution.
• Lock Aspect Ratio: Uncheck when changing the aspect ratio
• Brightness: Adjusts the overall brightness of the image.
• Gamma: Determines the overall contrast of the image. A higher gamma value
will result in darker areas appearing less dark, and brighter areas to be less
bright.

Realtime Settings
These settings affect realtime and final rendering.
• Ray Bounces: Determines the number of bounces light makes in a scene. It is
important to gradually increase the number of raybounces until no difference
can be noticed when increasing the number. This number should be used in
the final rendering
• Shadow Quality: Determines the quality of the Ground Shadow. This setting
is independent of the setting in the Render Tab, but is indicative of what value
should be used in the rendering.
• Detailed Shadows [S]: Calculates detailed and inter-object shadows when
checked.
• Detailed Indirect Illumination: Turns on light reflections from objects.
• Ground indirect illumination: Turns on ground caustics.
• Fast updates: This allows fast interaction in realtime. When unchecked, you
will not see any pixelation but have a detailed raytraced scene at all times.
However, this is very computationally intensive, and therefore only
recommended for 8 core systems and higher.
• Sepia: Turns on Sepia effect in realtime.
• Ground grid: Turn on a grid on the ground plane.

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Effects
These settings are realtime imaging effects that will be maintained in final
saved image. These effects are accessing the GPU without the need for a special
graphics card.
• Enable: Enable Effects.
• Bloom Intensity: Controls the intensity of bloom that direct and indirect light
create. This effect is applied to the entire image.
• Bloom radius: This function controls the size of the bloom.
• Vignetting: Use this functions to darken the edges of the image while keeping
the center bright.

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Camera - Working with the camera and camera
effects
The camera tab contains functions for interacting with the camera for fine
tuning the camera position, select different camera types, and save the current
view with its settings.
• View: This pulldown menu contains all saved views that you create
throughout your session. It contains several predefined views, as well as the
last view with which your scene was saved. To go from one view to the next,
simply select a new view. You can also switch to the next view using [ALT N],
[⌥N] (Mac). You can Add (+) a new view, or Delete (-) the current view.
• Lock camera: This will freeze the camera in its current positions so it can’t be
moved. All other functions are not affected.
• Orthographic camera: Switch the camera to Orthographic to work with a
true orthographic camera. You will notice that some functions will become
unavailable.
• Keep above ground: This will keep the camera above the ground plane.
Uncheck if you want to move the camera below the ground.
• Distance: Controls the distance of the camera from the object.
• Azimuth: The horizontal angle from the reference direction (focal point).
• Inclination: The elevation angle of the camera with the focal point as being
the center.
• Twist [CTRL ALT Wheel], [⌘⌥ Wheel] (Mac): Changing the twist angle will
tilt the camera around its horizontal viewing axis.
• FOV - Field of View: The field of view is that part of the scene that is visible
through the camera at a particular position and orientation in space. FOV
works in conjunction with Focal Length. Notice how both sliders move
simultaneously.
• Focal Length [ALT Wheel], [⌥ Wheel] (Mac): Changing the focal length to
change perspective. In Photography terms, this is also referred to as “Zoom”.
When increasing the value, the camera zooms closer to the object and
therefore must be moved away from the object. The larger the focal length,
the less perspective you will have in the scene. If you decrease the focal
length, you will add more perspective. You may need to move the camera
closer to the object to get the desired effect.
• Perspective: Changes FOV / Focal Length and Distance of the camera to the
object simultaneously. It is a combination of those 2 functions in one,
allowing you to change the perspective of the scene while “keeping the object
in place”.
• Pick pivot: Set the pivot point

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• Reset [ALT R], [⌥ R] (Mac): Reset the camera to the view that was last saved
with the scene.
• Enable Depth of Field: This will turn on a realtime Depth of Field effect. Here
is how it works:
Click the check box to Enable Depth of Field. You will see how the entire
scene gets blurry. Unchecking the check box will return to the clear scene.
Pick Focus Point becomes active. Select Pick focus point. Select a point on
an object in the scene on which you want the camera to focus on. You can still
move the camera. You will notice how the area around the select point will
become clear, while the rest of the scene stays blurry. Repeat these steps if
you would like to focus on a different point. Once satisfied, select Done.
Adjust the F-stop value accordingly to find to make the clear area larger or
smaller by entering larger or smaller values accordingly.
Changing the Focal distance to move the focal point closer to the camera or
further away.

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Render - Rendering the final image
The functions in this tab will be used when you are ready to create you final
rendering. When opening the render tab you will find 5 categories: Render,
Quality, Queue, Turntable and Region.
You will notice that all categories have a Render and a Close option. Clicking
Render will render the image(s) with the current settings.
Detailed indirect illumination and Detailed shadows are automatically
activated, independent of whether it is set in realtime or not. Ground shadows,
Ground reflections and Ground indirect illumination are only calculated when
turned on in realtime.

Render
• Folder: Change the output folder where the rendering should be stored. You
can permanently change your output folder in the Preferences.
• File: Save the image under a custom name a non-default location.
• Format: Select the format of the final image: JPEG, TIFF, EXR.
• Resolution: By default the size is identical to the realtime window. Simply
adjust width or height to get the desired output size. The aspect ratio is
maintained from the realtime window. If you want to change the aspect ratio
of your final image, change the realtime window accordingly by unchecking
Maintain Aspect Ratio in the Render Options Tab.
• Print resolution: Works in conjunction with Resolution. When the resolution
is changed, the print resolution will change according to the DPI setting.
Alternatively, you can set the size of the print, select DPI, and the Resolution
will be automatically calculated.
Note: The Alpha channel includes Ground shadows and Ground reflections
when checked in the Environment tab.
• Render in background (KeyShot Pro only):When rendering the image, you
can’t interact with the scene in realtime until the rendering finishes. Check to
continue to work in realtime while the offline rendering is generated. You can
kick off multiple rendering if you chose.
• Use Realtime Render: This render mode will take the image you created in
realtime and render it in the resolution you entered. There is only one quality
setting.

Quality
Depending on the render mode you select you will see different quality settings.
Note: Increasing quality settings may have a significant impact on render times.
It is therefore recommended to increase render quality settings gradually and

© 2006 - 2011 Luxion ApS ! 32

check the result before rendering with values that are only increasing render
times, but don’t affect the quality of the image.
Default - Use Realtime Render not checked
• Samples: Controls the amount of samples per pixel. Scenes with a large
amount of self reflection and refraction may benefit from higher sample
settings. Higher sample settings should also be used in combination with
higher anti-alias settings (see below).
• Ray Bounces: This parameter controls how often objects reflect within each
other.
As a general rule of thumb you should set up the number of raybounces in the
Settings tab in realtime in conjunction with Detailed Indirect Illumination
checked prIOR to creating the final rendering. When the image looks “right” in
realtime, then there is no need to work with higher ray bounce settings in
realtime nor the final rendering. This will only increase render times without
any additional benefit.
• Anti-Aliasing Level: Increasing the anti-alias level will provide less jagged
edges on objects that have a highly reflective materials on edges displayed at
a near horizontal orientation. When increasing the parameter, please also
insure to increase Samples accordingly.
• Shadow Quality: This parameter controls the quality of all shadows in the
scene.
• Global Illumination Quality: Increase this parameter to obtain more detailed
lighting in areas with small detail.
It is in generally not needed but may be used when shadows and light
reflections need improvements.
• Pixel Filter Size: This function adds a blur to the image to make it softer.
Parameters between 1.5 and 1.8 are recommended. When rendering jewelry
you may find it necessary to lower this value to anywhere between 1 and 1.2.
• Depth of Field (DOF) Quality: Increasing the value will result in a less grainy
out of focus area. A setting of 3 is usually enough to obtain highest quality
result. Please note that render times will increase at higher settings.
• Sharp Shadows: This parameter is checked by default and usually doesn’t
have to be touched. It will ensure that shadows in small detail areas render
sharp.
Use Realtime Render checked
There 2 parameters that you can set - frame and time. These 2 parameters can
be used individually, in combination, or not at all. If used in combination, the
rendering will stop based on whatever comes first. If none are set, the image
will continue until the user hits Stop. This will save the image at it’s current
state.

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• Max number of frames: Enter the number of frames or “passes” you want the
KeyShot to process. This is identical to letting a rendering sit in realtime.
Please note that more complex materials and scenes will require a higher
number of frames.
• Max render time in seconds: This will stop the rendering when the time is
reached.

Queue (KeyShot Pro only)

This will allow to add multiple renderings to a queue that can be processed at a
later point in time.
• Add job: Add any rendering from various scenes with individual settings to
the queue be simply selecting this button.
• Process jobs: Process all jobs in the queue. This can’t be stopped. You will
need to quit all render jobs stored in the queue individually in order to stop
the queue.
• View jobs: Review all jobs that have been stored. You can also delete
individual jobs by selecting the job, and hitting Delete.

Turntable (KeyShot Pro)

This will allow you to create a full or partial rotation animation either around
the center of the object or the center of the scene.
Check Turntable rendering to create a turntable animation of your scene. The
output are individual sequentially numbered files that need to be compiled to a
movie in a third party application. The object(s) will rotate around the given
axis.
• Begin angle: Set the angle (degrees) where you want the turntable to start.
• End angle: Set the angle (degrees) where you want the turntable to stop.
• Number of frames: Determines how many frames should be rendered
between Begin and End Angel. The more frames, the higher the quality of the
resulting movie.
• Rotate around environment center: When checked, the object(s) will rotate
around center of the environment. If unchecked, the object(s) will rotate
around the center of the enclosing bounding box of all objects.
Region Rendering (Pro)
• This function allows to render just a portion of the scene as defined through a
customer region. The output will be an image of the given size as defined in
the Render tab with the only the set region being fully rendered. Here is how
it works:
Enable Region Rendering: Check to activate Region Rendering.

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 Set Region: Click Set Region. Notice how the cursor changes. Select the
region that you want to render in the realtime window.
Min X/Y, Max X/Y: Fine tune the selected area, or enter custom pixels
coordinates if you know what region you want to render.

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APPENDIX - KeyShot materials
KeyShot includes a material library that contains many pre-configured
materials. All materials are based on scientifically accurate materials that
contain the accurate mathematical description. Each of these pre-configured
materials contains of several user-definable parameters that allow you to both
customize how the material looks and define certain material types.
Some parameters are considered advanced, and are therefore hidden by
default. You can expose them using the setting Show advanced parameter
settings in the Preferences.
The slider values are often recommended ranges. You can overwrite them by
entering a lower or higher number directly into the text box.

Advanced
The advanced material is the default material that will be applied. It can be used
to simulate a variety of materials.
• Diffuse: Specifies the color of the material’s diffuse reflectivity.
• Ambient: Specifies the material’s constant indirect diffuse illumination.
• Specular: Specifies the color of the material’s specular highlight.
• Diffuse transmission (Advanced): Specifies the translucency of the material.
If the color is all black (0, 0, 0), then the material is solid.
• Specular transmission (Advanced): Specifies the transparency of the
material’s. If the color is all black (0, 0, 0)then the material is opaque.
• Roughness: Controls the roughness of the material’s specular component.
This influences the appearance of the highlight (light reflection). A high
roughness value (larger than 0.5) creates a rough surface with a large
highlight, while a small roughness value creates a relatively smooth surface
with a small highlight.
• IOR: Specifies the material’s index of refraction. Air has IOR=1.0, water has
IOR=1.33, and typical glass has IOR 1.4-1.7. It also affects the reflectivity of
the material, which is tied to the fresnel parameter. In order for the IOR to
have an effect, the fresnel parameter must be checked (non-transparent) or
the Specular Transmission must not be black (transparent).
• Fresnel: Controls the reflectivity of the material when the Specular
Transmission is not white. When checked, the material will appear less
reflective, except when viewed from grazing angles.
• Glossy (Advanced): Activates glossy (blurry) reflections based on the
roughness parameter. Increasing the roughness value makes the reflections
more blurry.

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• Glossy samples (Advanced): Use glossy samples to compute the glossy
reflections on the material. For high roughness, increasing this value to 32 or
higher will reduce noise in the reflections, and give a more accurate
representation of the rough surface finish.
• Use diffuse alpha (Advanced): Currently no effect

Anisotropic
This material simulates brushed finishes on metallic surfaces. To get actual
brush strokes on the material, augments the material with a bump map.
• Diffuse: Specifies the color of the material’s diffuse reflectivity.
• Specular: Specifies the color of the material’s specular highlight.
• Roughness x: Controls the roughness of the grain. Typical values are between
0 and 0.6.
• Roughness y: Controls the highlight of the grain. Higher numbers result in a
broader highlight roughness of the material’s specular component. Typical
values are between 0 and 0.6.
• Angle: Controls the direction of the grain.
• Mode (Advanced): Controls the grain mapping: 0=uv - taking the original uv
coordinates of the model, 1 = linear, 2 = circular. Circular is still under
development, and may not work in all cases.
• Glossy samples (Advanced): Use glossy samples to compute the glossy
reflections on the material. For high roughness, increasing this value to 64 or
higher or more will reduce noise in the reflections, and give a more accurate
representation of the rough surface finish.

Dielectric (formerly known as Solid Glass)

The Dielectric material, formerly know asSolid Glass is a specialized material
that allows the accurate representation of any type of refractive material,
including crystal and gem stones such as emerald, ruby, diamond et al. It also
can be used to simulate various types of clear or translucent plastics.
• IOR: Specifies the material’s index of refraction. Air has IOR=1.0, water has
IOR=1.33, and typical glass has IOR 1.4-1.7. It also affects the reflectivity of
the material.
• IOR out: Specifies the index of refraction of the object in which the glass is
placed. In most cases this “object” is the environment sphere. Therefore the
value stays at 1, which is the IOR of air.
• Transparency: Specifies the color of the glass.

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• Transparency out: Specifies the color of the object in which the glass is
placed. In most cases this “object” is the environment sphere. Therefore the
color stays white, which is the “color of air”.
• Thickness: Specifies the thickness at which the color is given as defined by
the transmission parameter.
• Roughness: Controls the roughness of the material’s specular component.
This influences the appearance of the highlight (light reflection). A high
roughness value (larger than 0.5) creates a rough surface with a large
highlight, while a small roughness value creates a relatively smooth surface
with a small highlight.
• Glossy (Advanced): Activates glossy (blurry) reflections based on the
roughness parameter. Increasing the roughness value makes the reflections
more blurry.
• Glossy samples (Advanced): Use glossy samples to compute the glossy
reflections on the material. For high roughness, increasing this value to 32 or
higher will reduce noise in the reflections, and give a more accurate
representation of the rough surface finish.
• Abbe number: Controls the material’s dispersion, which is the variation of the
refractive index with wavelength. The Abbe number is material specific.
• Dispersion samples: Controls the quality of the dispersion set under the
abbe_number. The default setting is 3. Higher values will have a significant
impact on performance in both realtime and offline raytracing.

Diffuse
This simple material simulates matte opaque surfaces.
• Diffuse: Specifies the material’s color.

Emissive
The emissive material is a light emitting material that can be used for
simulating lights. The emissive material may be used to add additional light to
a certain part of the object. Make sure to check Detailed indirect illumination
in the Realtime tab to see the full effect.
• Intensity: Determines the light intensity of the emissive material
• Color: Color of the light emitting material. Use darker colors when increasing
the intensity to preserve the intended color of the light.
• Two sided (Advanced): Determines whether the surface should emit light on
both sides of the surface or not.
• Visible to eye: When checked the part will be hidden, but light will still be
emitted. It will still show up in the reflection of other parts.

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• Visible in reflection: When checked the part will not show in the reflection of
another object while still emitting light.

Flat
The Flat material is a material that is perfectly suited for masking. It is, as the
name suggests, a material that is completely flat and only has the color
parameter that can be changed.
• Color: Specifies the material’s color.

Gem
A simplified Solid Glass (Advanced) material that allows for quick creation of
scientifically accurate gem stones.
• IOR: Specifies the material’s index of refraction. Air has IOR=1.0, water has
IOR=1.33, and typical glass has IOR 1.4-1.7. It also affects the reflectivity of
the material. Accurate IORs for gemstones can be obtained from the internet.
• Transparency: Specifies the thickness at which the set color is given.
• Roughness (Advanced): Controls the roughness of the material’s specular
component. This influences the appearance of the highlight (light reflection).
A high roughness value (larger than 0.5) creates a rough surface with a large
highlight, while a small roughness value creates a relatively smooth surface
with a small highlight.
• Glossy (Advanced): Activates glossy (blurry) reflections based on the
roughness parameter. Increasing the roughness value makes the reflections
more blurry.
• Glossy samples (Advanced): Use glossy samples to compute the glossy
reflections on the material. For high roughness, increasing this value to 32 or
higher or more will reduce noise in the reflections, and give a more accurate
representation of the rough surface finish.
• Abbe number: Controls the material’s dispersion, which is the variation of the
refractive index with wavelength. The Abbe number is material specific.
• Dispersion samples (Advanced): Controls the quality of the dispersion set
under the abbe_number. The default setting is 3. Higher values will have a
significant impact on performance in both realtime and offline raytracing.

General
The General material is a material that can be uses to simulate a wide variety of
materials.
• Diffuse: Specifies the color of the material’s diffuse reflectivity.
• Specular: Specifies the color of the material’s specular highlight.

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• Ambient: Specifies the material’s constant indirect diffuse illumination. It is
like an emissive shader.
• Alpha: Determines the transparency of the material. When making an object
completely transparent (alpha = 0), the object will still cast a shadow.
• Reflectivity: Controls the reflectivity of the environment in the object.
• Indirect multiplier: The multiplier of how much diffuse light to receive from
the environment. It is recommended to leave the value at 1.
• Texture modulate: The multiplier between the diffuse and texture color. If
textureModulate is checked, you will see the diffuse color of the surface.
• Shadow modulate: When checked, it takes the alpha channel of the applied
texture into consideration to allow light to pass through.
• Texture: Applies texture (diffuse map) to a surface if texture coordinates are
present. Support formats are jpeg, tiff, targa, dds, and hdr. When using an
HDRI as a texture, the object becomes an actual lightsource in the scene.
• Texture shift u: Shift the texture in u direction of the surface. Negative values
will flip the texture.
• Texture shift v: Shift the texture in v direction of the surface. Negative values
will flip the texture.
• Texture tile s: Repeat the texture in u direction of the surface.
• Texture wrapmode u: Determines how the texture should be repeated in u
direction. Wrap modes are:
0: no repeat
1: repeat
2: repeat, mirror in u direction
3: repeat. mirror in v direction
• Texture wrapmode v: Determines how the texture should be repeated in v
direction. Wrap modes are:
0: no repeat
1: repeat
2: repeat, mirror in u direction
3: repeat. mirror in v direction
• Bumptexture: Applies bump texture to the object. It can be used in
conjunction with a texture map, or by itself. Any bump texture that is used
has to be a normal map.
• Bumptexture shift u: Shift the bump texture in u direction of the surface.
• Bumptexture shift v: Shift the bump texture in v direction of the surface.
• Bumptexture tile u: Repeat the bump texture in u direction of the surface.
• Bumptexture tile v: Repeat the bump texture in v direction of the surface.

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• Bumptexture wrapmode u: Determines how the bump texture should be
repeated in u direction. Wrap modes are:
0: no repeat
1: repeat
2: repeat, mirror in u direction
3: repeat. mirror in v direction
• Bumptexture wrapmode v: Determines how the bump texture should be
repeated in v direction.Wrap modes are:
0: no repeat
1: repeat
2: repeat, mirror in u direction
3: repeat. mirror in v direction
• Bumptexture height: Determines the height of the bump texture. Positive
and negative values are accepted.
• Specularmap: Applies the texture of the highlight and reflections. Common
use is for controlling where the reflection should show up on the surface. Grid
patterns are a good example where specular maps are helpful to obtain
realistic results.
• Specular shift u: Shift the specular map in u direction of the surface.
• Specular shift v: Shift the specular map in v direction of the surface.
• Specular tile u: Repeat the specular map in u direction of the surface.
• Specular tile v: Repeat the specular map in v direction of the surface.
• Specular wrapmode u: Determines how the specular map should be repeated
in u direction. Wrap modes are:
0: no repeat
1: repeat
2: repeat, mirror in u direction
3: repeat. mirror in v direction
• Specular wrapmode v: Determines how the specular map should be repeated
in v direction. Wrap modes are:
0: no repeat
1: repeat
2: repeat, mirror in u direction
3: repeat. mirror in v direction

Glass
The Glass material is a specialized material that is optimized for windows. It
can simulate both single paned and double-paned windows (i.e. windows
modeled using either a single polygon or multiple polygons). Typical
applications are the windshield and headlamp of an automobile, or window
glass. The material parameters are:

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• IOR: Specifies the material’s index of refraction. Air has IOR=1.0, water has
IOR=1.33, and typical glass has an IOR 1.4-1.7. It also affects the reflectivity
of the material. When using a surface without thickness (surface rather than
solid), the index of refraction will only affect the reflectivity of the surface but
not refract.
• Two sided: This option should be turned on when working with “solids”. A
“solid” will described as two surfaces close together. In 3D systems that can’t
create “solid”, the user may have created 2 surfaces closely together. Inside
KeyShot, the representation is identical. In this case, two sided should be
checked to give the effect of solid glass. The IOR will now have an effect.
Checking two sided for single surface will turn everything between the outside
surface and the object behind it visually into solid glass. A sphere will turn
into a solid glass ball, for example.
• Transmission: Specifies the color of the glass.

Leather
This material simulates leather procedurally. The parameters are:
• Color 1: The color of the leather surface.
• Color 2: The color of the leather cracks.
• Specularity: Specifies the materials specular (highlight). It determines the
shininess of the leather.
• Roughness: The roughness of the leather surface.
• Glossy samples (Advanced): Use s samples to compute the glossy reflections
on the material. For high roughness, increasing this value to 32 or higher will
reduce noise in the reflections, and give a more accurate representation of the
rough surface finish.
• Bumpiness: The amount of bumpiness, cracks, etc., in the leather.
• Scale: The scale of the leather. Decreasing the scale increases the distance
between cracks in the leather.

Liquid
A specific material to define liquids. This is another derivative of the Solid
Glass (Advanced) material.
• IOR: Specifies the material’s index of refraction. Air has IOR=1.0, water has
IOR=1.33. It also affects the reflectivity of the material.
• IOR out (Advanced): Specifies the index of refraction of the object in which
the liquid is placed.
• Color: Specifies the color of the liquid.
• Transparency: Specifies the thickness at which the set color is given.

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Metal
The metal material is used to simulate metals such as aluminum, gold, and
silver, with different finishes such as polished, powder coated, cast, etc.
• Color: Specifies the metals color.
• Roughness: Controls the roughness of the materials specular component.
This influences the appearance of the highlight (light reflection). A high
roughness value (larger than 0.5) creates a rough surface with a large
highlight, while a small roughness value creates a relatively smooth surface
with a small highlight.
• Glossy (Advanced): Activates glossy (blurry) reflections based on the
roughness parameter. Increasing the roughness value makes the reflections
more blurry.
• Glossy samples (Advanced): Use glossy samples to compute the glossy
reflections on the material. For high roughness, increasing this value to 32 or
higher will reduce noise in the reflections, and give a more accurate
representation of the rough surface finish.

Metallic Paint
This material simulates metallic paints such as car paints, but can also be used
to simulate multilayer plastic finishes.
• Base: The color of the base paint.
• Metal: The color of the metallic flake.
• Roughness: The roughness of the clear coat. Typical values range from
0.0-0.05.
• Metal roughness: The roughness of the metallic flakes. Typical values range
from 0.01-0.2. Lower values give a more uniform, “flat” spread of the metallic
flake, while higher values make the metallic flake spread rougher.
• Metal coverage: The density of the metallic flakes. Typical values range from
0.0-0.6. If a value 1 is chosen, the base paint has no effect on the overall
appearance. If the value is 0, the flake will have no effect on the paint. Use
this for obtaining non-metallic car paints, or plastics.
• Metal samples (Advanced): Use metal samples to compute the glossy
reflections on the material. For high roughness, increasing this value to 32 or
higher will reduce noise in the reflections, and give a more accurate
representation of the rough surface finish.

• IOR: The index of refraction of the clear coat. It determines the refraction as
well as the shine of the clear coat. Typical value ranges are 1.3-1.6 for car
paint, below that for plastics. Values lower than 1 will have no effect.

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Paint
The paint material is a simplified version of Metallic Paint.
• Color: The color of the base paint.
• Roughness: The roughness of the clear coat. Typical values range from
0.0-0.05.
• IOR: The index of refraction of the clear coat. It determines the refraction as
well as the shine of the clear coat. Typical value ranges are 1.3-1.6 for car
paint, below that for plastics. Values lower than 1 will have no effect.

Plastic
The Plastic material is optimized to simulate many plastic types.
• Diffuse: Specifies the color of the material.
• Specular: Specifies the color of the material’s specular highlight.
• Diffuse transmission: Specifies the translucency of the material. If the color
is all black (0, 0, 0), then the material is solid.
• Specular transmission: Specifies the transparency of the material’s. If the
color is all black (0, 0, 0)then the material is opaque.
• Roughness: Controls the roughness of the material’s specular component.
This influences the appearance of the highlight (light reflection). A high
roughness value (larger than 0.5) creates a rough surface with a large
highlight, while a small roughness value creates a relatively smooth surface
with a small highlight.
• IOR: Specifies the material’s index of refraction. Air has IOR=1.0, water has
IOR=1.33, and typical glass has IOR 1.4-1.7. It also affects the reflectivity of
the material, which is tied to the fresnel parameter. In order for the IOR to
have an effect, the fresnel parameter must be checked (non-transparent) or
the Specular Transmission must not be black (transparent).
• Fresnel: Checked by default. Controls the reflectivity of the material when the
Specular Transmission is not white. When unchecked, the material will
appear more reflective.
• Glossy (Advanced): Activates glossy (blurry) reflections based on the
roughness parameter. Increasing the roughness value makes the reflections
more blurry.
• Glossy samples (Advanced): Use glossy samples to compute the glossy
reflections on the material. For high roughness, increasing this value to 32 or
higher will reduce noise in the reflections, and give a more accurate
representation of the rough surface finish.

Solid Glass

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A derivate of Dielectric (formerly known as Solid Glass). This material is best
suited for the creation of scientifically accurate solid glass.
• IOR: Specifies the material’s index of refraction. Air has IOR=1.0, water has
IOR=1.33, and typical glass has IOR 1.4-1.7. It also affects the reflectivity of
the material.
• Color: Specifies the color of the glass.
• Transparency: Specifies the thickness at which the set color is given.
• Roughness: Controls the roughness of the material’s specular component.
This influences the appearance of the highlight (light reflection). A high
roughness value (larger than 0.5) creates a rough surface with a large
highlight, while a small roughness value creates a relatively smooth surface
with a small highlight.
• Glossy (Advanced): Activates glossy (blurry) reflections based on the
roughness parameter. Increasing the roughness value makes the reflections
more blurry.
• Glossy samples (Advanced): Use glossy samples to compute the glossy
reflections on the material. For high roughness, increasing this value to 32 or
higher will reduce noise in the reflections, and give a more accurate
representation of the rough surface finish.

Thinfilm
This material simulates thin film interference phenomena as seen in soap
bubbles, oil slicks, and protective coatings. This material can be used to
simulate the protective and anti-glare coating on headlamps, LCD screens et al.
The material’s parameters are:
• IOR: The index of refraction of the film. Typical values for this material range
from 1.3-1.7.
• Thickness: Thickness of the film (in nanometers).

Translucent
Use this material to generate organic or plastic materials that are translucent.
This includes human skin. Keep in mind that this material is highly dependent
on size and thickness of the object The material’s parameters are:
• Diffuse: Determines the color of the material. Note: If you choose colors that
are fully saturated, i.e. have a value of 255, the material will appear black.
Reduce the saturation of the color to lower value to see the effect.
• Transmission: Determines the inside color of the material
• Translucency: Controls the amount of light that passes through the outer
surface of the object. Higher values will let more light pass through.

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• IOR: Determines how the light is bend when penetrating the object.
• Roughness: Controls the roughness of the surface. 0 means shiny.
• Specularity: Determines the amount of reflectivity of the material.
• Texture color: Creates a blend color between together with the diffuse color

X-ray
The X-ray material represent a material that can be seen in an image generated
by an X-ray machine. The only parameter is the color.
Color: Specifies the material’s color.

Wireframe
This material allows the user to visualize the object in a wireframe
representation based on the tessellation of the object. The material’s
parameters are:
• Width: Determines the thickness of the edges of the polygons.
• Wire color: Specifies the color of the wireframe.
• Base color: Specifies the fill color of the polygons.
• Base transmission: Specifies the transmission fill color of the polygons.
Setting the color to white will make the polygons appear transparent.
• Backside base color: Specifies the backside fill color of the polygons.
• Backside wire color: Specifies the backside color of the wireframe.

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