How to Achieve Photorealism in Blender

Achieving photorealism in 3D art is incredibly challenging. It requires countless hours of research, practice, and learning from experts who create renders so realistic that they could be mistaken for real-life photographs. After exploring various techniques and gathering insights, I have identified four key methods to help you achieve photorealism in Blender. Not only will I explain these four key methods and techniques, but I will also implement them in a demo scene to make them easier to understand. Plus, you will get some free assets that will definitely improve your workflow—stay tuned for those!

What is Photorealism, and Why Pursue It?

Photorealism is the art of creating 3D renders that mimic real life, and the reason you should learn photorealism in 3d is so that you can create stunning and unique renders that will help you stand out.

1. Understanding Real Life Through References / Real Photos

The first step is understanding how the real world works, especially how light will behave under certain conditions. This is where references come in.

References are not just about copying everything from a real photo in Blender but they are about understanding how different things behave when light interacts with them or how objects are scattered or distributed in certain situations.

For example, in a book render, I categorized reference photos into three groups to analyze how light interacts, how the objects are scattered, etc.

To gather references, you can take your own photos or search online.

The best places to get the best references are:

• Unsplash: https://unsplash.com/photos/
• Pinterset: www.pinterest.com

I recommend using PureRef, a free tool, to organize your reference images.

• PureRef: https://www.pureref.com/

Another important aspect is ensuring that your objects are scaled properly. You can use a human model or even the Rigify human rig in Blender to scale objects according to the real world. Proper scaling is necessary because the size of objects affects how light and depth of field behave, and it breaks the sense of realism.

2. Sourcing and Preparing Assets

Once you’ve collected references, it’s time to hunt for assets. Prioritize models that are scanned from real life. Platforms like Quixel Megascans and Sketchfab are excellent sources. You can also create your own assets by scanning objects with tools like RealityCapture.

You have to make sure to use high-quality PBR textures anyhow, preferably use 4K or 8K PBR textures to capture fine details. Great sources for textures include:

Quixel Megascans 

AmbientCG

Polyhaven

You can boost your textures to the next level with micro details. As you can notice in the demo scene, wood chips and small rocks are scattered. These small elements make a huge difference in the final render. I’ve shared a free micro details pack that will help you add such details, including geometry node setups for scattering hair particles.

3. Camera Setup

Your camera setup is crucial for achieving photorealism. Use your references to determine the ideal camera angle, focal length, and depth of field. This part is important and you have to use your reference.

A high focal length (e.g., 70-80mm), the depth of field gives more blur. You can adjust these settings in the camera properties. For close-up shots, set the blades to 8 and the ratio to 2, then decrease the F-stops until it matches your reference.

For dynamic shots, you can simulate handheld camera motion using a free Blender, Camera Shakify

You can also use Lens Sim Addon, a lens simulation addon that simulates real-life lenses in Blender for more realism.

4. Lighting Techniques

Lighting is one of the most complex aspects of photorealism. Every scene requires a unique approach, so experimenting is necessary and we will go through demos only.

For example, in this book render, the sunlight is coming through a window. I used an area light, aligned it with the subject using the 3D cursor, and decreased the spread value to control the sharpness of the light.

For another scene, I combined low-strength HDRI lighting from Polyhaven with additional lights to achieve realistic lighting.

HDRIs are essential for creating realistic environments. Download them in EXR format and use higher resolutions (like 4K) if the HDRI will appear in your render.

Recap / Summary:

1. First, I will collect references and understand how light behaves in different conditions.
2. Find and collect high-quality assets and 4K or 8K PBR textures, and add as many details as you possibly can according to your references.
3. Set up your camera with a similar depth of field and focal length from your references.
4. Experiment with lighting and use HDRIs for realistic results.
5. Optimize your render settings for high-quality results.

I hope these tips help you create stunning, photo realistic renders, and there may be more things to consider for achieving realistic renders, but the ones mentioned above are the most important and common.

Conclusion

It's not difficult to realize Blender photorealism, right? Try it by yourself following this tutorial. Fox Renderfarm, the leading Blender render farm in the CG market, is here to improve your rendering speed utilizing our cloud rendering solutions. We are also engaging in the building and development of the CG community. There is a free $25 render coupon for those 3D artists who want to experience the super high speed of rendering.

Check out the video tutorial of how to realize photorealism in Blender here: