Chaos releases Corona 12 for 3ds Max and Cinema 4D
Chaos has released Corona 12, the latest version of its 3ds Max and Cinema 4D renderer.
The update makes it possible to export scenes from Corona to Vantage, Chaos’s real-time ray tracing renderer, and introduces VFB 2.0, the revamped virtual frame buffer.
Other changes include support for curved decals, updates to Corona Pattern and, in the 3ds Max edition, the option to paint instances directly when using Chaos Scatter.
The price of subscriptions has risen since the release of Corona 11.
Initial integration between Corona and Chaos Vantage
New features in Corona 12 include initial integration with Vantage, Chaos’s GPU-based real-time ray tracing renderer for exploring large production scenes.
The update makes it possible to export scenes to Vantage for rendering, although unlike with V-Ray, Chaos’s other main production renderer, there’s no live link.
As a result, the workflow is primarily intended for scouting scenes and rendering stills, although it is possible to create “short animations” directly in Vantage.
Live link functionality is due in Corona 13, later this year, and will make it possible to create animations in Corona and render them in Vantage.
Updates to existing features include revamped Virtual Frame Buffer VFB 2.0
Other changes include suppport for curved decals, making it possible to use decal images on curved surfaces: for example, to texture the label on a bottle.
The Corona Pattern modifier, Corona’s surface geometry replication system, can now use geometric objects to define the shape of the crop box.
The Virtual Frame Buffer has been revamped, with VFB 2.0 introducing the option to save multiple LightMix set-ups within a single render, to compare images with different resolutions and aspect ratios, and to load Corona EXR (.cxr) files and edit them directly.
The Corona Sky system gets a Density parameter to control the density of clouds.
In addtion, the Cryptomatte render element now works with distributed rendering, including Cinema 4D’s Team Render, and when using Resume Render.
Changes specific to 3ds Max or Cinema 4D
Corona 12 for 3ds Max also updates object scattering system Chaos Scatter.
The new Scatter Instance Brush makes it possible to paint instances into the scene manually, or to paint them out, rather than controlling scattering procedurally.
In Corona 12 for Cinema 4D, the Scene Converter can now convert between Corona and Cinema 4D bitmaps, and supports the conversion of V-Ray lights.
Price and system requirements
Corona 12 is compatible with 3ds Max 2016+ and Cinema 4D R17+.
The software is available subscription-only. Chaos Solo subscriptions are node-locked, and include access to the Chaos Cosmos online asset library; Chaos Premium subscriptions are floating, and also include Phoenix, Chaos Player and Chaos Scans.
Node-locked Corona Solo subscriptions cost $59.90/month or $394.80/year, up $6/month or $36/year since the release of Corona 11.
Floating Corona Premium subscriptions cost $72.90/month or $514.80/year, up $5/month or $36/year since the release of Corona 11.
Additional Corona Render nodes cost $172.
Read an overview of the new features in Corona on Chaos’s website
Find more details of the new features in Corona 12 in the online documentation
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