Creating render maps in one go

quite honestly, i dont know if FF already renders those at the same time as the regular output, but if it doesnt, then i dont want the extra render time each time i render an image. i rarely use any of the other maps. so, i get where that would be a boon for some; just make it an option that i can turn off.

Well, when rendering a surface filter, I'm pretty sure FF renders the basic diffuse map, the bump map, and the various reflection maps, then uses those to generate the lighting and calculate the occlusion map, which are then applied to the diffuse. All of those maps are used to render the final picture, so I honestly can't see why FF should have to re-render them if you ask for a specific map.
So yeah, maybe asking for a render map shouldn't make FF render it all again if the finished picture has already been rendered ?

You know what would be useful, relatedly ? If you could make changes to the diffuse map after all the shading has been applied. It could be a "post-processing" map or something... It'd let you blend the various render maps to your taste ! (like apply the lighting layer in overlay mode, etc...)

you ever wondered i get always blank alpha map for texture filters with transparent backgrounds

OpenEXR supports multiple channels and layer grouping. A simple option would be to add Save As.. Multimap EXR.

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Sphinx. wrote: A simple option would be to add Save As.. Multimap EXR.

Why would that be a "simple" option? That is a very complicated option. I only need the normal map. Or the bump. Or the alpha. Or just the normal and the alpha (etc). A 3d program's normal channel expects a normal map and not an exr with multiple channels and layers. If the 3d program's normal channel can automatically pull out the normal channel/layer from the exr file, then I guess it's ok. However, I still have not seen people distributing their maps grouped in layers in an exr file. They distribute it separately. So no, I don't think that's a "simple" option. Furthermore, if I had an exr file, I have no way of telling what maps are embedded in it. In Windows 7 I can just use the big thumbnail view and get a comfortable view of all my png's or jpg's or what have you. But an exr will not show me what's inside unless I use photoshop or something else. Why would I need that? See how complicated it is!

The wheel needs not to be reinvented. But that's just my 2 cents.

Being able to render out separate maps automatically seems such a useful feature that I'm amazed it's 5 years since this thread started and that there appears to have been no progress whatsoever.

I love Filter Forge but I hate having to individually render out Diffuse, Specular, Bump, Normal etc.

It looks like it would be a trivial programming task to create something like raabix suggests.