This article is a collection of tips and recommendations that will help you get the best results with RenderStreet - from the very first time!
1. For all new projects, do a test run first. The test run can be a couple of frames from the scenes you have in your project, or a low-res, low-samples render of the entire project. This won't cost much, compared with the final cost of the render, and it can help identify a number of issues, like: missing files/textures, scripts or plugins not uploaded/not working, animation issues that need to be corrected, objects that are hidden when they shouldn't be, etc. When you are satisfied that everything is ok, just clone the test job in the RenderStreet job control panel, set the parameters for the final render and launch it. You don't need to reupload anything in order to do this, and it's a 10 seconds process.
2. For consistent results, use the same Blender/Modo version for rendering. When sending your project out for rendering, try selecting on RenderStreet the same version of Blender/Modo that you used to create the file. There is always a chance that new versions will add small incompatibilities or bugs, and using the same version gives you the highest rate of success. Note: for Blender, if you send the job with our plugin, it automatically selects the same version for rendering
3. Take download time into account. If you have a larger animation - especially if you output to multilayer EXR files - consider breaking it down in several chunks. This way you can download each chunk as it finishes, instead of waiting for the entire job to finish. It will cost the same, and the overall time will be shorter. Alternately, you can set up
automatic download on FTP and you'll get the frames as soon as they are rendered. All rendered files are also available
via FTP.
4. Make sure your account is sufficiently funded to finish the job. If your account balance reaches zero, your job will be automatically paused. The frames currently rendering will get finished, possible causing the balance to go slightly into the negative. If the balance goes negative too much, the entire job will be canceled. The frames not finished at that time will have their progress lost. This may cause you to spend time updating your balance, resuming the job, etc. And it can make a difference if you have a deadline.
5a, For the On-demand and Studio plans: If you have several animations to render, they will finish faster if they are launched all at once. This is a feature of our job management system, which will detect this and will be able to optimize the server allocation for better performance. Before doing this, remember the #1 tip: do a test.
5b, For the RenderStreet One plan: You have an option in your subscription page, which allows you to either queue (render one after another) or parallelize (render all at once) your One jobs.
6. We are automatically applying the optimal speed settings for every project. There is no need to set the tile size in your project, we will do it for you. Also, if your project can run on GPU, we will automatically do it, even if you don't have a GPU on your computer. Note: GPU rendering is not available for RenderStreet One.
7. (Blender): If you are using a 3rd party plug-in: We
support some of the most popular ones. If you need to use one that is not supported on RenderStreet, chances are we can make it work.
Contact us with the details and we'll get back to you quickly with an answer.
8. Image splitting gets best results when your image takes more than one hour to render on our servers.
9. If your project has very fast frames (under one minute / frame), enable the frame grouping option. It will optimize the rendering process and reduce the costs (for on-demand rendering). Experiment with the group size. Typically, the shorter the frame, the bigger the group you can use.
10. When in doubt, get in touch with us. We are usually quick to answer and can sort out all the problems.