Z Channel
 

Does nayone know how to use Maya's Depth Channels? I know I can fake it by writing a depth shader, but I'd prefer not to. According to the docs "If the output format is not IFF nor RLA, Maya writes a separate depth file containing a black RGBA image with depth values. " However, I've tried that multiple times, and if it is saving a separate file, it dores a good job of hiding the location of said image.

Thanks for any help.

-dann

You can turn on the z depth channel in the render global options. If you save out to RLA or even tif it should save the z information in the file. I have not yet got this to work in After effects but it does work well in shake

thanks, but I need it to save as a separate file like it says it should since we work with After Effects.

well i currently don't have an idea about maya channel!but i know that india is the second largest channel in the world after america!

????

LOL :D

Swinging this conversation swiftly back onto topic.

The z-depth channel can be used only in iff files (mayas own format). As a test turn it on in the globals and then render as an iff. Open the resulting file in fcheck and then push z you should see the depth info.

As for using it in aftereffects I can't tell you as I dont use it. However there is an adobe plugin that allows you to view iff's in photoshop and seeing as photoshop is so closely linked to aftereffects it should probably work with that too. You could then pull that channel out and use it as required.

Alan

OK, so we're all agreed that the Maya docs are wrong and it will not write a separate z depth file?

I've never managed to get it to. It's supposed to but you should just render it as an iff and get it that way.
Alan

Hey guys, you can render out seperate depth file. To do this you must render out in a file format other than RLA and IFF which have the Depth in the file. If you use something like a tif it will render out a seperate file.

e.g.
untitled.tif
untitleddepth.iff

It should create a iff file for the depth

After effects does not seem to handle iff and RLA depth files well so you must extract seperate.

see I've never got that to work for me (and believe me I've tried!! ;)) but if you get it going then cool. As for using them in after effects see if you can find the plugin I was talking aboot.

Alan

Yeah Roach, if you see the original post, you'll notice that that is what I wish Maya would do, and what it claims to do, but it never renders out the separate file. If it does, mabe it renders it directly to the Recycle bin, and then empties it before I can notice?

weird, it worked for me.

are you on Maya 5

it always creates a depth for me if it's checked in the render globals...if I save to tiff or targa I also gat an iff that is a depth chanel

i've tried on 4 and 4.5 and had no success. To be honest I'm not fussed I mean I can get away with iffs and it means I only have on efile to worry about losing .... ;)

Alan