Re: My photos on the wall..
Blender does have a very steep learning curve. I'm waiting for the final version of 3.5 (3.6, or whatever version the final is) before I really start spending time with it.I've tried to render the scenes in Blender for better light results, but I'm still not a friend with the program (it means I still don't know how to do it.. [O:)] ) so I had to add some light effects with Ps.
If it is helpful, you don't need to spend time trying all those different plug-ins. [:)] The uber and phong plug-ins you mention were just a test versions. We now have a final release version AdvancedRendering-1.6.sh3p or for users with lower resolution displays, there is AdvancedRenderingMini-1.6.sh3p (A smaller interface version of the first plugin)Now I'm experimenting with some render plugins (Advanced, Uber, Phong) and with extra lights, but my computer don't like it.. [:))]
I used to have AMD, and yes they do get quite warm! [:(] If you are able to and are still using the stock cooler, you really should consider a 3rd party cooler, they make a big difference to temps. Even so it shouldn't be overheating and shutting down?? The computer should throttle the CPU to reduce temps, overheating and shutting down is usually only a last resort.I have 4 cores in my AMD phenom, but (as everybody knows) AMD fries a lot and so my PC shuts down often within rendering because the temperature on cores is too hight. [:((]
Sounds great! [:)]I sell my photos for the prints. And a few months ago, someone bought a really big framed print of my "greek photo" (the orange waterscape on the first picture) so I was really curious how my photo may looks on someones wall. [:D]