Was bored yesterday...

[rowe]

Originally Posted by ThetaDot

The changes in the programs over the years have allowed the gap between truly talented artists and not so talented artists to close.
It might LOOK neat but consideration will still be taken over the piece as if the nice renderer wasn't there.

i would tend to agree with you that the programs are doing more and more of the work. but as this happens you wont be able to see the uniqueness in the artists. for example, today renders take care of most of the lighting, but it all looks the same, the more you see, the more boring it gets. but someone who actually knows how to setup the lighting can still make very interesting lighting that could distingush him from the mass production that were used to seeing. or lets switch to another medium altogether: photography. anyone can go buy a camera an snap a few pictures, not hard to do at all, but to truly excellent, you must know how to make your scene interesting (lighting, placement of objects, etc). the same goes for the us today. in a couple of years, you're probably right, you will be able to make a scene in 10 mins because the program does everything for you, but trust me, there will be a differece between the mass produced and the true art.