How many passes should be used for a render?

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Permalink Reply by Render Plus on September 14, 2012 at 7:08am

There is no quick answer to this. For most models, which include reflection, and indirect lighting, more and more passes will make a better rendering.

Simple Exterior Scene

In this example, with sun light, but no reflections and no indirect lighting, thre is no difference between 2 and 10 passes.

Rendering after 2 passes

Rendering after 10 passes

Reflected Spot Light

In this example, with a spot light reflecting from the far wall, the lighting does not start to smooth out until about 50 passes. And even more passes woud create a smoother effect

Rendering with just 3 lighting passes.
This starts to show the effect of indirect lighting, but still has harsh shadows
on the right hand wall.

Rendering after 20 lighting passes. Light is starting to blend and create realistic lighting.

Rendering after 50 lighting passes. Rendering is fairly smooth and the
shadow on the right hand is invisible.

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