As well as the standard includes, shapes_lo.inc was used for the generation of the hexagon shapes . MegaPOV was used for generating depth of field maps for post-processing. 

The textures are very simple in this image.  Simple white, gray70 and black pigments were used, each with a small amount of reflection.  Obviously, a polished chrome texture was used for the four spheres.

The objects in the scene are quite straightforward. Hexagons with rounded corners were used for the hexagon 'chairs' and flat hexagons used for the floor.  A macro was written to ease the pain of positioning them all.  The floor hexagons are offset by 90 degrees to make the image a little more interesting.  A ground plane was also used to ultimately give the horizon and fog effect. 

For the lighting, a sky sphere was used.  This really gives some depth to the spheres and add a certain color shade to the overall image - especially using slightly reflective textures.  The camera position is key in this image.  At the wrong angle the image looks really flat and very dull - that's how it started.  At the end, I think I found some really nice camera locations and angle.

Depth maps were generated in MegaPOV for each of the images.  Depth of field was added in photoshop using Depth of Field Generator Pro.