I'll definitely check that shift lens method out, not entirely sure what u mean atm so will test it out, fingers crossed!
I assume you're already using a bumpmap, but generally if you have mainly soft light sources (or light coming from directly above), you won't really notice bumpmaps. A spotlight or sunlight coming in at an angle will help with that.
I find carpet quite old fashioned anyway and usually go with either a cast floor or polished concrete.. something that can give you nice blurry reflections.
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Yeah I'm using both, I'll try concrete actually, I just did carpet as this was going into a uni so I assumed it'd be carpet, but for pure looks concrete is definitely a better choice