Where is the skill of the creator?

[christosviskadourakis]

Working on a project these days a thought came into my mind. Where is the skill of what I am doing? I have every tool I want in order to create something. If I want randomize trees I use forest pack, if I want good floor parquets I use floor generator and multiple texture, If I want to create roof tiles I use ATiles, etc. Watching on an ArchViz image these days you shouldn't be impressed by all these above I mention. It's too easy to do it. So where is the skill of the creator? What should make me say "wow this is a good work"?

 

More like random thoughts...

 

Christos:confused:

[Chris MacDonald]

Have you stopped to consider the depth and breadth of the knowledge you need to possess even to be average in this field?

 

You need to be able to comprehensively understand architectural drawings,

you need to be able to 3D model to a high degree,

you need to be able to texture, which requires a decent level of photoshop skill,

you often need to be able to do a surprising amount of interior design,

you need to be able to light a scene correctly,

you need to understand the physics of light and then how that is approximated in your rendering software,

you need to understand how to get the best out of your rendering software in any given amount of time,

you need to understand composition,

you need to understand photography & camera settings,

you need to understand animation, physics simulations, keyframing,

you need to know how to deal with architects, clients, expectations, budgets, deadlines,

You need to know how to use compositing software,

You need to know how to use video editing software...

 

Honestly the list of things you need to know is enormous.

 

Even the example you used is testament to how much knowledge is required. You forget to mention that even before you begin to use those scripts/plugins you must first be able to use 3DS max (to a good standard), which is no small feat in itself.

 

The knowledge that you absorb over the years, that over time becomes almost nothing to you is massive. Yes, there are tools that speed up your workflow, but if you don't know how to use them then you're going to churn out rubbish.

 

The skill lies in absorbing and applying this knowledge in the best way possible.

[Scott Schroeder]

Using a script or tool to automate a highly repetitive process like creating roof tiles or scattering landscape = smart.

Doing it by hand just to say you did it by hand and wasting countless hours = dumb.

 

This is the same argument you see over in games that Substance or Quixel is cheating. No, it's not. You can tell the crappy artists' work that they just used all of the defaults in those programs. The great artists, the ones with the real skill, use those tools but it's almost invisible that they used them.

 

I know I openly mock people who use cars to get around. I say, "Look at those fools using their horseless carriages! Real men walk or ride horses!"

[christosviskadourakis]

The knowledge that you absorb over the years, that over time becomes almost nothing to you is massive.

 

I think the whole meaning is in this phrase. I have a heavy architectural background and most of these are taken for granted by me. It is just these damn gaming and movies 3d artists that blow my mind. I see things from people like those and I barely understand approximately how they have done it.

[Francisco Penaloza]

Since I am an old timer in this business I believe that, the problem I see is with today's technology, new artist gets too in to the software part and technology, which is good in part but then is like "the trees don't let them see the Forrest"

 

The first question that they post in this forum, over and over is always, "how can I make this more photo real"

my straight answer always feel like, go out and take a photo and look what you get.

Tools are tool, they are designed to help us to concentrate in what it is the important thing here. Create an image that inspire the designer, or the client, a image that tell the whole story or help you to explain qualities or fault in the design. That's is hard to do, with today's technology you should not suck at setting up GI. Open V-Ray, click render it will look 90% right, technically speaking, open Corona render, voila you just have to click one button, Maxwell, Arion and all of them. If the room looks bad, if because modeling is sloppy or camera position sucks. or you are being lazy setting up materials, and at the end you don't understand composition. even with a empty white room no colors, no textures, if you know how, it will look good.

 

When a great photographer get a nice shoot is not because the camera. it is because he understand light, composition, and is telling you something with his framing, he is showing what he want you to look and not distracting you with anything else but his story.

and that's is what make a great shot.

 

Also to be good at this profession you need to be able to deliver no matter what, and this does not mean work 30 hours a day, but being able to manage your time and client expectation to deliver the best image and good price in decent time frame.

If they ask you for a 10 minutes thru of a convenient store delivered in one week. If you accept that project, there is something really wrong with you, even if you plant to do it with Lumion or Twinmotion.

[Nic H]

arch vis is largely automated these days and more akin to drafting these days.

 

there is no art to it and the sooner people realised that and stopped pretending they were artists and took on the mindset of a technician the better their work would become.

[heni30]

Yeah, pretty much looks like cut and dry technical stuff.

 

[Francisco Penaloza]

Yeah, pretty much looks like cut and dry technical stuff.

 

[ATTACH=CONFIG]54007[/ATTACH]

 

ha ha ha I am pretty sure Ninic was not referring to that type of images.

 

copy and paste looks more like first page of Evermotion gallery

[philippelamoureux]

I think the whole meaning is in this phrase. I have a heavy architectural background and most of these are taken for granted by me. It is just these damn gaming and movies 3d artists that blow my mind. I see things from people like those and I barely understand approximately how they have done it.

 

 

 

It's wizardry to me too what they can do in movies and games but that's notjust because they have skilled artists...They also have access to high end tech and the work is very compartimented while in arch-viz we have to do almost everything. And god knows how some tasks can be time consuming!

 

 

Of course the average rendering can be boring but the true skill is when you can make an image almost a piece of art. Check out guys like MIR, LUXIGON... their renderings are so much more than photoreal drag and drop assets gathered in a scene!

Edited February 11, 2016 by philippelamoureux

[christosviskadourakis]

arch vis is largely automated these days and more akin to drafting these days.

 

there is no art to it and the sooner people realised that and stopped pretending they were artists and took on the mindset of a technician the better their work would become.

 

Yes and no. I agree with you that archviz these days is automated. But skill is not necessarily comes only from artists. You don't have to be (or to concider yourself as) an artist in order to have skills in what you do.

 

The automation you talked about is what harming the field in my opinion. Artists-creators-3d visualizers, or whatever they want to call us, have to always look to innovate somehow.