TUSTIN, CA, Oct 3, 2018 – Luxion, a leading developer of advanced rendering and lighting technology and maker of KeyShot, the first real-time ray-tracing and global illumination program for 3D rendering and animation, announced the release of KeyShot 8, introducing new tools and enhancements that provide the advanced features and flexibility 3D professionals need to take their visuals while delivering on KeyShot market leading speed and quality.

KeyShot 8 adds advanced technology and features such as displacement mapping, materials with embedded flakes and bubbles, volumetric materials including volume caustics, liquid interfaces, interactive cutaways, interactive image color and intensity curve adjustments, material ways for advanced product configurations, and much more. Together these features represent capabilities that streamline the workflow, producing more flow and less work, while eliminating the dependence on switching between apps to create the detail and appearance needed.

As more companies rely on 3D visualization to make real-time design decisions, KeyShot continues to bring advanced CG solutions to Designers and Engineers. KeyShot brings real-time speed in the most easy-to-use interface designed for an efficient workflow, with the most accurate materials and advanced lighting capabilities. By providing users with results faster than any software available, KeyShot has become the visualization software designers, engineers, marketing specialists and 3D artists trust to fit seamlessly into their workflow. KeyShot 8 builds on this foundation to expand the features that keep users in the software producing the needed results, removing the dependence on outside software, to create the most accurate materials, textures, and lighting for the most incredible product visuals possible.

“KeyShot 8 is a milestone release that expands the capabilities for KeyShot users and increases stability to both streamline the 3D rendering process and the 3D rendered results,” says Claus Wann Jensen, co-founder and CEO of Luxion. “The involvement from hundreds of amazing KeyShot users has helped set the foundation for the new capabilities in KeyShot 8 and for the improvements to come.”

KeyShot 8 Overview

KeyShot 8 includes features and updates specific to five areas – materials and volume, lighting and optics, advanced geometry, image and output, and collaboration. Within these five areas KeyShot 8 has five primary features along with other updates that hold to the focus on maintaining a workflow within KeyShot.  Image styles allow users to add and adjust appearances in real-time within KeyShot. Cutaway is a new simplified approach to creating cutaway views. Scattering Medium creates new options for scene and material appearance. New geometry shaders add displacement, bubble, and flake capabilities. And, the KeyShot Viewer with KeyShot Configurator and glTF/GLB output offer new collaboration capabilities.

KeyShot 8 Feature Highlights

The following highlights the top features in KeyShot 8. A feature overview video and examples of the new capabilities in KeyShot 8 is available at keyshot.com/whats-new/. The entire list of features and improvements in KeyShot 8 and information on how each feature works is available in the KeyShot 8 What’s New Guide. The top features include:

Image Styles

Image Styles is a new feature that allows users to make photographic adjustments to the KeyShot scene in real-time prior to or after rendering. Multiple Image Styles may be created and added to a list for a range of different styles that can then be used in KeyShot Studios. The Photographic option includes adjustments for tone-mapping, curve control, color adjustments, Background color override, and the ability to apply a Frontplate. Learn more here.

Cutaway

Cutaway is a new approach to creating advanced cutaway graphics which allows users to use parts and 3D primitives to cutaway geometry by assigning the Cutaway material to the object. The Cutaway material also allows users to add and define the Cutaway Caps as a shaded color, the same material as the object to be cut or as a custom material. Additionally, all cutaways may be animated. Learn more here.

Scattering Media

KeyShot now supports the creation of scattering media that allows users to simulate particle scattering and volumetrics such as smoke and fog. This can be used in conjunction with physical lights for visualizing rays/beams of light. With this, users have the option to apply a Density Texture, and apply it just as they would to any other material. Additionally, users may extend the control of the scattering media with full support for OpenVDB files applied to the Density Texture as a Volume Map. Learn more here.

Geometry Nodes

KeyShot 8 introduces an entirely new approach to working with geometry in KeyShot. Through the Material Graph, the advance material editor in KeyShot, users now have three new types of geometry nodes (shaders) to modify the geometry of an object with displacement, bubbles or flakes. Learn more about Geometry Node Types here. The Geometry Nodes include:

Displace – Displace allows a user to modify the geometry through the use of displacement maps (textures). Displacement maps define the topology of a material similar to a bump map but instead of simulating the height of a surface it actually modifies it.

Bubbles – Bubbles allows a user to modify the geometry by automatically adding spherical cavities within an object. Control is provided over bubble size, variation, density, and limit. Additionally, a texture can be used to define the density of the bubbles.

Flakes – Flakes allows a user to modify the geometry by turning any object into a three-dimensional volume of square or spherical flakes. Control is provided over flake shape, size, variation, density, and limit. Additionally, a texture can be used to define the density of the flakes.

KeyShot Viewer

KeyShot Viewer is a new, feature-rich application to compliment design reviews, make presentations more interactive, and increase the ability to collaborate. With it, users can open, view and interact with a KeyShot scene in real-time using mouse, touch, pen or stylus to explore the scene or change materials and lighting. Users can create Studios and Configurators from within KeyShot for use in KeyShot Viewer as well. Learn more here.

Additional Features

Other features users can find in KeyShot 8 include an all-new Migration Assistant to migrate custom resources from KeyShot 7. KeyShot Cloud is now also fully integrated into the KeyShot interface with no login required to browse resources. A new Spotlight Material Type offers advanced light control with gobo (stencil) support. The new Multi-layer Optics Material Type has also been added for simulating high-end optics elements. Liquid Interfaces now eliminates the need to separate liquid geometry into different surfaces. Choosing colors is now enhanced by the ability to use and reveal RGB hex color codes. The Bloom effect now has a Bloom Threshold parameter to control the amount of bloom (glow) around highlights. An update to the screenshot capability allows users to include Alpha transparency with screenshotoutput and save metadata in an easy to read format. The new glTF/GLB export option allows sharing of interactive KeyShot scenes to platforms like Facebook or added to PowerPoint presentations. Additional 3D file format support has also been added for Rhino 6 (Mac and Windows) and Autodesk Inventor 2019 (Windows).

Availability

KeyShot 8 is available immediately for download and purchase at keyshot.com and through all certified KeyShot resellers. All customers who purchased KeyShot on or after August 15th, 2018, as well as all customers who purchased KeyShot for Education or KeyShot for ZBrush, will receive the upgrade to KeyShot 8 free of charge. All KeyShot customers with active annual maintenance will automatically receive the upgrade to KeyShot 8. All other customer may upgrade to KeyShot 8 for an incremental fee. For more details on pricing please contact sales@luxion.com. For information on the new features in KeyShot 8, please visit keyshot.com/whats-new/.

About Luxion

Luxion is a leading developer of advanced 3D rendering and lighting technology. KeyShot is the first real-time ray tracing application that uses a physically correct render engine based on scientific research in the areas of scientifically accurate material representation and global illumination. Addressing the visualization needs of designers, engineers, marketing professionals, photographers and CG specialists, KeyShot breaks down the complexity of creating photographic images and animations from 3D digital data. Luxion’s customer list includes many of the Fortune 1000 product manufacturers and major industrial design companies including Chrysler, Fossil, Microsoft, Motorola, Procter & Gamble, Skullcandy, IDEO and SMART Design. Visit keyshot.com for more information.