DOF + Unreal + Alpha/Transparency

 

Trying to get some DOF effect with MixedCam Unreal.
It seems like certain materials (for example transparent ones) create errors in the bokeh when depth of field is turned on. For example, weird bright halos around windows.

With a strong DOF, the keyed talent on the billboard also gets a halo. How can these weird halo effects and other issues be avoided and fixed?

It seems like DOF is blurring the billboard to generate the background somehow instead of just the background behind the billboard. A separate issue is around transparent objects.

   jim4586

 
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TwentyStudios
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This is just how translucency is handled in UE4 and is not specific to Aximmetry. If you want translucent objects to blur with depth of field you need to uncheck Render after DOF in the material.

The halo occurs when you set the focus point beyond the Billboard. Just disable Render to depth on the billboard to remove the effect. Screen space reflections from the billboard won’t render correctly in this case. This is due to how screenspace effects are rendered in UE4. 

UE4 is a game engine with lots of compromises in how it renders a scene, to be able to render at a reasonable frame rate. There’s really not much Aximmetry can do about this.

 
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jim4586
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Where do we uncheck Render after DOF in a material instance such as this?



 
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jim4586
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Turns out the material instance with parented to another material in the USD importer material folder that was set to opaque.
An opaque material does not allowed the "Render after DOF" option to be unchecked.
So we had to create a new material copy set to translucent to allow switching Render after DOF off, then parent the material instance to that new material.  This is an out-of-box issue with the USD importer and translucent properties.