It’s an open-source modeling program that comes on-board with its very own proprietary rendering engine called Cycles. It’s impossible to talk about free rendering software without first mentioning Blender. These programs are great for visualization newcomers, or those looking to build out there skillset with something they don’t have sell their first-born child to download.

Luckily, there are several great alternatives to V-Ray that don’t come slapped with a hefty price tag and a user’s manual the size of an ancient tome. However, for many casual renderers or those looking to dip their toes in the proverbial water, dropping the cost and time commitment required to best utilize V-Ray is a daunting uphill climb that typically results in regret and disappointment.

Very few people who are even closely associated with computers and graphics technology know what Chaos Group’s flagship software is, and how dominant it is in terms of user-base and capability. V-Ray has been lining the bed of the visualization and rendering industry since the early days of computer generated graphics.

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