Thanks for the feedback!
“I think I would suggest reducing the roughness of the glass and maybe adding a more interesting texture to the table top (maybe marble?).”
Marble is definitively a good choice, I will try that. As for the roughness of the glass, it’s already at 0. I don’t know why it comes off as hazy. I will experiment a bit. As for composition I have a lot to work on, and that will get better for the next render
“absolutely everything will need to be textured to the best of your ability for photorealism. at least in my experience. The window needs work. Texture on counter. And the glass is not transparent enough. Also more work on the cupboards. but it is a decent start.”
Textures are very important, yes. I have a long way to go when it comes to getting things textured realistically, but I’m getting there. The window is actually from Archimesh, so I probably won’t do much about that. But I’m going to frame the shot differently as to not drive any focus towards it.
When it comes to the other things, do you have any specifics you think seem off that I could work on with the cupboards for example?
“Interesting you said you rendered glass on its own layer, that’s a pretty good more advanced step that I barely use but I think renderlayers is a good step to understanding more advanced things in blender. Keep up the good work.”
Thanks! I just thought that there has to be a way to not render the entire scene when the only thing that need 6000 samples here is the glass. So I Googled and tried and failed a bit before I got it
"The lighting color looks pretty good to me and realistic. You could also work on adding more to the scene to make a more interesting render. A bottle of wine for instance. or something on that other counter, it looks like it is a little too empty. "
Yes, I definitively have to add more objects and structure to the scene. Thanks for input on the lighting. It’s HDR-lit through the windows in the room with light portals to avoid too much noise.
I’ll keep working on this and come back with an updated render!