How do I ensure my image can be denoised without rendering in future? Can saving as EXR fix it?
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_**Agent (model default, mode Agent)**_
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Checking how denoising and output formats are configured. Reviewing the render script for format/pass options and searching the codebase for denoising-related settings.
<summary>Tool use: **codebase_search** • Searched codebase "How are denoising passes or denoising data configured for rendering?" • **7** results</summary>
- Denoiser: OpenImageDenoise (or OptiX if on NVIDIA)
- Enable Denoising
- If using Passes → Data:
- Enable Normal
- Enable Albedo (optional if not using denoising passes)
### 4. Render passes to save
- View Layer Properties → Passes → Data:
- Enable Normal
- Enable Albedo (if you want them as separate passes)
- With OpenEXR Multilayer, passes are stored as layers in the file
## Why this works
- EXR stores all passes in one file
- 32-bit float preserves detail
- Denoising Normal/Albedo passes let you re-denoise later
- You can denoise post-render in Compositor or with external tools
## After rendering
You can re-denoise later:
- In Blender Compositor: load the EXR, use Denoise node with the passes
- Or keep render denoising off during render and denoise entirely in post
Note: PNG cannot store denoising passes, so you can’t re-denoise PNG renders later. EXR is required for this workflow.
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_**User (2025-11-02 23:49Z)**_
So, when I send to sheepit, denoising will be disabled if I use the tiling option (which splits the frame into 2x2, 3x3, 4x4, or 6x6 so multiple workers can render one frame simultaneously, then they are combined) but I need to denoise it because the results are so noisy.
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_**Agent (model default, mode Agent)**_
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For SheepIt with tiling, you can't denoise during rendering (denoising needs the full frame), but you can denoise the combined EXR frames afterward if you save the required passes.
## Render settings for SheepIt + tiling
### 1. Output format
- File Format: OpenEXR Multilayer (or OpenEXR)
- Required so denoising passes are saved per tile and combined
### 2. View Layer passes (critical)
- View Layer Properties → Passes → Data:
- Enable Denoising Normal
- Enable Denoising Albedo
- Enable Denoising Shadow (recommended)
- View Layer Properties → Passes → Combined:
- Enable Denoising Data (if available; some versions)
### 3. Cycles render settings
- Render Properties → Denoising:
- Denoiser: OpenImageDenoise (or OptiX if available)
- Keep Denoising enabled in settings
- Note: With tiling, denoising won't run during render, but passes will still be saved.
### 4. After SheepIt combines tiles
You'll have EXR files with:
- Combined beauty pass (noisy)
- Denoising Normal pass
- Denoising Albedo pass
- Denoising Shadow pass (if enabled)
## Denoise the combined frames
### Option A: Blender Compositor
1. Open a combined EXR in Image Editor or Compositor
2. Use Denoise node:
- Connect Combined (beauty)
- Connect Denoising Normal
- Connect Denoising Albedo
- Optionally connect Denoising Shadow
3. Export the denoised result
### Option B: External tools
- OIDN (OpenImageDenoise CLI)
- GIMP (with EXR support)
- Natron or other compositing software
## Summary
- Render EXR with Denoising Normal, Denoising Albedo (and Shadow if available)
- Tiles will combine these passes into full-frame EXRs
- Denoise the combined EXRs in post using those passes
This way you get fast tiled rendering on SheepIt and clean denoised results afterward.
Ach, looks like I can't render splits. this makes splits kind of useless for me... so I can't send this blend with such high samples because it's so long that each machine doesn't get it, but if I split it, I'll just have to denoise it after anyway... is there a better solution for denoising than the compositing solution I devised?
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_**Agent (model default, mode Agent)**_
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Given SheepIt’s EXR restriction (no splits), here are practical alternatives:
## Option 1: Render with splits in PNG + enable render-time denoising
- Render to PNG (splits allowed)
- In Cycles: enable Denoising (OpenImageDenoise or OptiX)
- Denoising should run per tile during render
- Result: already denoised when tiles combine
Note: Verify that SheepIt/Blender doesn’t disable denoising with splits. Test a single split frame first.
3. Composite: Combine passes in Blender Compositor and denoise
Downside: Two renders, more work.
## Recommendation
Try Option 1 first: PNG + splits + render-time denoising enabled. If that doesn’t work or quality isn’t enough, use Option 2 (lower samples + denoising). The quality difference with modern denoisers is often minimal, and render time drops significantly.
If you can share sample count and resolution, I can suggest specific settings.
