Want to do Arch. Visualization on the side

[Blake Middleton]

I currently work at an architecture firm and have done a few "freebie" renderings for them, mostly because I love doing it. I would like to do some of this on the side for other clients, but have a few questions. I guess I would be a freelancer, but as such, would I need a business license? I plan on making flyers and/or emailing area firms for business, but does anyone else have any tips on cultivating business? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

[STRAT]

Hi Blake

 

cant comment on the legalities of your idea because i dont know the proceedures out there in america, but the practicalities?

 

all i can say is be prepaired to give up sleeping.... for good!

 

I'm full time employed and wouldn't dream of doing free lance work on the side literally because of time.

 

i work between 9-10 hours averagly per day, so when i come home i'm usually knackered. no way do i want to spend another 4-5 hours a night doing private work.

 

Also, private work usually entails impossible deadlines, ie - must be done by last week. now how will you acheive these dead lines whilst doing your full time job at the same time?

 

I would think about freelancing if you enjoy it, because (and definately where i live) there is the work out there, but imho definately dont juggle the 2 at once, physically impossible.

[Blake Middleton]

Thanks for the reply Strat. I don't really mind the extra time though, and since I wouldn't rely on the money as primary income, I could afford to take time off if I needed to. Also, I did the renderings for my firm on my own time at home with a deadline, and it wasn't too bad. I really enjoy doing it, and would like to try. If I enjoy it, maybe I could do it full time, but for now I'd like to do some freelance stuff. It would help me build my portfolio and hone my skills. Plus, as an architecture student, I got pretty used to getting no sleep. I'm sure I could do it again .

[alexandre]

hi blake,

 

go on with what you want to do: that's the best way to start as a freelance - though you might want to check with your firm if that doesn't bother them: it would be a pity losing your job and starting up the hard way. If they don't mind they could even get you in touch with promoters or interior designers they know - you could even accept to do some free work ( or lower-price work) in exchange for a list of potential clients with an introduction from your firm.

 

don't worry about not sleeping, don't worry about the two jobs, just think that if your work is good enough everything will come around.

 

on the other hand, if you graduated architecture, my advice would be to stick to it, because if you begin doing cg and (hopefully) it works out for you in this field, you'll have the greatest difficulties going back to actual design.

 

the architectural "milieu" being such a conventional one, firms do not accept people who took different ways to get to the same point and cg is definitely one such way - it is regarded as a full-time occupation that has nothing to do with design ( even if your education will allways be an asset);

 

hope this helps,

 

alexandre

[Blake Middleton]

Alexandre, that is part of my delima. I'm not exactly happy doing what I'm doing right now. I love to design, but my current job doesn't involve much creativity. I also love doing cg work, and would like to try it out. I'm not in a position to really change jobs at the moment so doing freelance is a good option for me. I am also not really concerned about going back to the architecture world if I decide to do cg full time. Over here, if you know AutoCAD, its usually not hard to find a job. I'm still trying to figure out what I want to be when I grow up, so I must experiment . There are so many things I enjoy doing, its hard to pick one.

[alexandre]

dear blake,

 

a) i never met an architect who is happy with his/her current position/job

 

b) young architects are never involved in creative projects as long as they don't work for themselves, are relatives of the partners or own real estate in downtown paris; otherwise a young architect does autocad and sends faxes

 

c) architects are considered young until the partners decide they aren't young anymore; in france this happens at around age 45, when the boss is 65 and retires so he doesn't give a damn

 

d) it all depends on what you really want to do:

invest time and, maybe, become a "real" architect in 10-20 years or go for what's at hand now (and may not be 1O tears from now) and have fun/ earn some money/ get some recognition in the meantime - hey, maybe you can do both !

 

best of luck,

 

alexandre

 

[nisus]

hi Blake,

 

I think I know your situation quite well: I've been a freelancer during my architectural trainee ship, doing mainly two jobs at the same time for almost three years. Finally we started our firm, still having a 4/5-day job and a new study during the weekends. It's hard, but fun. If you're prepared to work over 300 hours a month, just go for it. But don't push away your sleep for too long!

 

Be careful with your current job though. If your firm is used that you make long hours and even work at home, they might be very upset losing an inexpensive employee who was there whenever they needed him. It won't speak for itself that you'll still work them after you took the leap. Not even if you work for a lower-price, because that way you'd prefer other (better paid) work.

This doesn't need to be a problem if you talk to your boss especially if they don't find someone to replace you.

 

Anyway you'll have to deceide yourself whether you want to be a cg-artist or an architect. No one can make this decission but you. Make it wise!

 

nisus

[squid]

the architectural "milieu" being such a conventional one, firms do not accept people who took different ways to get to the same point and cg is definitely one such way - it is regarded as a full-time occupation that has nothing to do with design ( even if your education will allways be an asset);B]

 

the architectural "milieu" being such a conventional one, firms do not accept people who took different ways to get to the same point and cg is definitely one such way - it is regarded as a full-time occupation that has nothing to do with design ( even if your education will allways be an asset);

 

Couldn't agree with you more. CG visualization is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it's nice to have the ability to do CG, but just don't get stuck doing it if your desire is to be an architect. Here's the problem, the more time you spend at the office doing CG, the less time you have to learn all the necessary skills to be a better designer, detailer, team player, project manager, etc. etc. Not to mention $$$

 

I had an interesting conversation with my former boss a few years ago to see if I could spend more time doing 'architectural' work (SD, DD, CD, & CA) instead of being stuck in pre-design and being the dedicated office rendering machine.

 

The response was as follows:

 

"Back in the day, people with prisma colors had this problem. I am not sure what to tell you but that we will try to get you more involved."

 

I agree with alexandre, if you enjoy doing 'renderings', freelance is a great way to supplement your salary. When starting out as a young architect, it's too tempting for the principal in charge to pass up on the chance to get cheap renderings at your time.

 

Squid