3. Podium Browser Paid Category: Light Fixtures - hundreds of new ones

Click on the above image to view 1280 x 675 resolution.

Podium Browser now has an amazing collection of 3D Light Fixtures with the addition of over three hundred interior and exterior lights such as Lousen Poulsen, Santa Cole and Targetti. If you already own a Paid category license, go to the Paid Light Fixture category and see the additions. Free Podium Browser users - You can see the new Light Fixture thumbnails in the Paid category as well.

Podium Browser is installed with SU Podium V2. The $49 (USD) Paid permanent content category now has over 4,000 render ready components and materials including the new light fixtures and dozens of new backgrounds.

Purchase a permanent license now! We plan to raise the price before the end of the year.

4. Podium Walker - release candidate Windows/ Mac

Podium Walker Release candidate for both Mac and Windows was released today. This is now in 30 day evaluation mode. Sales will begin in early December 2012.

This video by Nicolas Harvery, combines Podium Walker animations with SU Podium created images. There's a lot of Browser components in this model as well. Click on the image to launch a You Tube video and make sure you watch it in HD.

What is Podium Walker?

• It is a photo-realistic, real-time, animations plug-in for SketchUp that allows for quick photo-real visualization and video animations.
• It works directly with SU Podium V2 and/or Podium Browser. It reads Podium's reflections, blurred reflections, refractions, bump maps, omni lights, LEM lights and translates SketchUp sun position to create it's own sun and sky light.
• It is CPU based, not GPU based so no extra graphic requirements.
• It renders in real-time and renders all of Podium's material properties and artificial lights.
• It creates keyframe animations and also can record your camera navigation.
• It will import SketchUp scenes to create keyframe animations automatically.
• It will export to video formats such as .mp4, .m2t and .avi.
• Supports SketchUp 8 as well as 7.
• Supports Windows and Mac (Lion and Mountain Lion).
• Look at some Podium Walker created videos here.

Read about in Podium Walker here.

5. SU Podium V2 - Photo-realistic rendering series Part 5: Night Rendering

Jim Allen has produced an insightful series of articles which explore how to produce realistic render images from SketchUp with Podium V2. The series looks at one particular model and explorers different ways to produce high quality renderings from this model. Part 5 is the last of the series and looks at night rendering.