Keyshot by Luxion

+KeyShot is a standalone 3D Rendering solution that provides an easy to use but VERY powerful workspace for anyone from designers, all the way to photographers. It enables the user to create photo realistic 3D renders in a matter of minutes.

In my time as a computer geek, I have tried a few different renderers, but most need you to have a shelf of knowledge before you can get any decent results out of them, and it can get a bit messy.

Luxion seems to put an end to that way of thinking, and enables everyone from first time users, all the way to veteran designers to get a stunning render with minimal effort.

Of course it will take a while to master Keyshot, but it gives you the basis of what you need to get up and running without needing to know a lifetimes worth of rendering parameters off the cuff.

You get a real time update on your screen of what is going to be rendered, you can change the material objects (or parts) are made of, change the lighting setup, the environment, and get an immediate picture of what it going on.
This helps immensely in the design process of a render, you can move things about, get your camera placement, background and materials looking exactly as you want, with very minimal effort.

This is a far better way of doing things, rather than having to set parameters, and hoping for the best as you start a render that may well take a few hours before you get a sense of what it looks like.

 Keyshot has a built in material library that is scientifically accurate and the lighting is physically accurate, which means that the material and lighting you choose will look as realistic as possible.

This is something that a few solutions have claimed in the past, but with limited success. With my experience of Keyshot, I can safely say this has definitely been the only solution in my mind that can safely make that claim.
No matter the material you choose, from brushed metal, concrete, liquid, plastics, they all look spot on and will be easily mistaken for a photo if you take the time to adjust your lighting.

As Keyshot uses physical lighting, it does take a bit of practice to know where you want lights placed but the process is very simple, and can be as easy as painting on part of the lighting panel, which is a very neat feature.
You can add, remove, edit lights to your exact specifications, for things such as marketing this is MUCH needed and Keyshot delivers.

As a photographer by trade, I can find it quite easy to pick up on inconsistencies in renders, and I feel overly critical at times. Keyshot is just stunning, and once someone puts in a few minutes to tweak settings, it can really make a photo realistic render, that even I have trouble detecting. 

This is a fantastic accomplishment, especially with an interface and system that is SO easy to use.

Keyshot also includes an animation and VR capability, I didn’t get to experiment with it too much in the time I had it, but perhaps if we can wrangle a longer license from Luxion, we can delve more in-depth in a future review.
For now though, I can tell you that it is a neat set of tools! The animation system doesn’t use conventional keyframes, it applies all movements and changes to the parts and cameras, which all play back in a real time raytraced environment. This cuts down on the need of waiting and the complexity of such scenes.

The VR component is quite interesting and will interest many a company I am sure.
It enables the user to create a 360 degree interactive shot of the product / model they are rendering, and generates code for embedding on your site, that will enable your viewers to manipulate the object to get a better view.

Overall, from my brief experience with Keyshot, I can say that I would LOVE to continue working with this renderer, it is immensely powerful and super easy to get to grips with. Wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone that can make use of this incredible tool.

Be sure to check out the site at: http://www.keyshot.com/

Follow them on Twitter: @Keyshot3D