Where Do I Start in Digital Architectural Rendering?

[gar-E]

Hello -

 

I've read so much helpful and knowledgeable advice on this site so far that, well, I'm asking for some, too.

 

I'm not new to architectural design and drawing as I'm an interior designer. I know AutoCAD, Illustrator and Photoshop, which I use along with hand sketches and drawings to convey the project to the client. But, these amazing photo-realistic digital renderings just make my mouth water. Not only as a design tool, but as an art.

 

Where do I start? The consensus toolkit seems to be the programs mentioned above plus 3D Studio MAX and FormZ. If I really take to it and, after honing my skills, I wanted to join an architectural office as a renderer, are these the programs they look for?

 

Your advice for this newbie is greatly appreciated. As you can imagine, before I make the substantial time and money investment, I want to be sure I'm on the right page.

 

All the best,

G.

[DennisHolland]

Hi Aloysius,

 

Welcome. The first things you should care about is the choice for software you feel most comfortable working with. Max, Maya and a couple of other welknown packages are the most used worldwide and offer the best internal tools and quality to work in Archviz.

 

The best thing to do right now is to get your hands on a few trial-downloads and give it a spin for a couple of weeks. You'll find out soon enough which software suit you the best. For a lot of artists Max is the best and most pleasant to work with, allthough there are numerous of discussions around here. It all depends on your feel with a tool, very important for the future. If you're planning on 'just' archviz, then Viz 2006 is well worth it's money and costs for a license is half the amount of Max. If you're very sure about your future and like to take advantage of a fully featured package, then I suggest to invest in the complete Max kit (v8 is the latest release).

 

Then go into the reference and helpfiles, completely packed with tuts. Surf this website to get yourself familiar with all archviz related links where you can learn, get inspired and master the fine skills.

 

If you need any deeper info or subject related know-hows, then just post a thread and there are a bunch of cool fellow artists out here willing to help you out. We've all been there...

 

Regards,

Dennis

[lambros]

just to add that Sketchup is an quick and easy to use, interior designer friendly 3d package, that will render a specific "sketchy" style.

[Kanashimi]

it would be best to familiarize yourself with working in a 3d space and with 3d objects. if you've worked with 3d in autocad, it really shouldn't be too big a leap. i certainly feel you can't go wrong with max and maya, and the learning curve is steep, so you should be producing good drawings in no time. the more photorealistic renderings require more time and finances but its more important for now for you to build solid fundamentals.

[leoJones2002]

3D is a great place to be.

 

Learn cad, sketchup, and any 3D program. I've been an alias user since maya was in beta but any of the three big ones will work fine. Max, Soft, or Maya.

 

Each have great renderers and/or 3rd party renderers that will give you the look you want.

 

Welcome aboard and good luck.

[thephalinx]

I suggest starting where you want to end. If you eventually want to make quick easy renders of a descent quality, go with formZ or Sketch-Up. If you want to go with more complex and high quality stuff, go for 3DS. If you want to go for really complex animations and software, go with Maya.

 

Also consider what you will likely be using in the future with your firm, or firms you are interested in. Most firms will use 3DS or FormZ.

 

Playing around with free trials can be helpful in making up your mind, but in the first few days of using a program, without really knowing how to use it, you're really not going to get to much of a feel for it.

 

Also consider other programs you are using, such as AutoCAD which seamlessly intigrates with 3DS, integrates well with FormZ and Sketch-Up, but doesn't really integrate with Maya unless you buy add ons.

 

Last, consider price. There are very big differences.

[rotten42]

Hello -

 

I've read so much helpful and knowledgeable advice on this site so far that, well, I'm asking for some, too.

 

I'm not new to architectural design and drawing as I'm an interior designer. I know AutoCAD, Illustrator and Photoshop, which I use along with hand sketches and drawings to convey the project to the client. But, these amazing photo-realistic digital renderings just make my mouth water. Not only as a design tool, but as an art.

 

Where do I start? The consensus toolkit seems to be the programs mentioned above plus 3D Studio MAX and FormZ. If I really take to it and, after honing my skills, I wanted to join an architectural office as a renderer, are these the programs they look for?

 

Your advice for this newbie is greatly appreciated. As you can imagine, before I make the substantial time and money investment, I want to be sure I'm on the right page.

 

All the best,

G.

 

 

I was in the same boat as you. I am an Interior designer that added rendering to my skill set. I use Lightscape but that was bought out and no longer available. Sketch-up is a great first tool to start using. It's simple to use and has a relative low cost. Going forward, I would go to max for its power and for the the support that is available out on the web.

 

good luck