I am a landscape architect in a small firm which specializes in Botanic Garden design. Right now we do all modeling and visualization using AutoCAD landfx, sketchup and Photoshop - resulting in a mostly non- photorealistic end product. Due to more client interest we are looking into stepping up our services to include higher end photorealistic renderings. Mostly we would be focusing on stills but flythrough animations would also be useful.
It seems 3d Max or Viz are the standard applications to use, however I have also been looking into Vue 6 Infinite. I was interested to hear if anyone recommends Vue as a standalone application or is it best used with Max. Any limitations as to how it is integrated with other rendering software, amount of computer power required, etc?
As a said we are a small firm and do not have a full time 3d visualization department so price is definitely a factor as well as production /rendering time and hardware power. Also, unlike most of the work I see posted - Plants and Trees are our main subject - architecture is secondary. We often need to show very specific plants (in and out of bloom, large masses of the same shrubs, etc.) and not just a generic tree for accent.
I think both programs are amazing and enjoy the process so I do not mind so much a high learning curve. I know I have alot to learn about modeling and rendering to be proficient at either program, but any advice to point in a starting position would be appreciated.
Thanks
