Is it possible to get into freelancing of Arch Vis without a degree?

[dominikdjamic]

I only have some minor Construction Technician degree, so is that going to make it much harder for me to have any success?

 

Also, how would you go about getting clients in other countries?

[TomasEsperanza]

I've had experience with several companies, but am in the process of setting up a website and portfolio of my own work, so I can take jobs directly from clients.

 

I think you'll find people will tell you, it's your portfolio that counts. Our degrees are academic, they may have helped us develop but don't prove we can produce good images. The general consensus is, the work speaks for itself, that is both paramount, and the bottom line. As such, then usually, by time we can produce quality images, we have had some time to consider self-promotion.

 

Btw, what one means by "Freelancing" is open to interpretation. It was recently pointed out to me that it doesn't sound very professional (if you are selling your services directly to clients). However, taking temporary jobs from a variety of employers, as a "freelancer", before starting your own "business" is different.

 

Being an Architectural Visualiser could be seen as a spectrum of professionalism that you will have work your way through, either quickly or slowly, thus for example, getting experience with arch-viz teams should be very insightful. People who are very good at teaching themselves may be less dependent on learning from others, but even the most talented of artists usually have some experiences working in companies.

 

Hope this helps

Edited March 29, 2016 by TomasEsperanza

[philippelamoureux]

Yes you can do it without a degree. There are no archviz degree afaik (except some ''certificates'')

Does having a degree in architecture, photography or 3d modeling helps? Of course. Usually in the field of the arts the portfolio is muchhhhh more important than a degree.

[TomasEsperanza]

There are no archviz degree afaik (except some ''certificates'')

 

Actually my BSc (Hons) was titled "3D Computer Generated Imagery: Architectural Visualisation" from Bournemouth Uni, UK. They are recognised as one of (if not the) best UK Universities for CG, VFX, Film, TV etc. They have strong industry links, and a lot of students do a year (third year out of four) placement, with companies based in London (such as http://www.hayesdavidson.com/). Many then go on to work in well known companies (http://www.the-neighbourhood.com/work/case-studies/fitzroy-place) and (https://pixelflakes.com/).

 

That said, to be clear, I concur with Philippe, no you don't need one; it may or may not improve your abilities, depending on how good you are at learning on your own esteem; the best students on my course could have produced good images anyway, but benefited from the experience and contacts.

Edited March 31, 2016 by TomasEsperanza

[adanchasse]

I studied accounting and freelance doing arch and product viz full-time now.

 

Never had a client ask me about any qualifications.

[Larissa Holderness]

Your portfolio will be your selling point. Especially in arch viz (or any graphic design type job as well). Degrees are pretty pointless in this field, in my opinion. Just watch tutorials online and practice ....

[Justin Hunt]

It may sound strange but you would be far better off doing courses on how to run a small business, marketing and project management if you really want to be successful in this industry. Far too many studios have gone under because they never took care of the business and focused solely on making pretty pictures.

[heni30]

Plus watching YouTube videos on how to negotiate, public speaking (selling yourself), and something like carpentry or plumbing to get you through the lean times.

[philippelamoureux]

Actually my BSc (Hons) was titled "3D Computer Generated Imagery: Architectural Visualisation" from Bournemouth Uni, UK. They are recognised as one of (if not the) best UK Universities for CG, VFX, Film, TV etc. They have strong industry links, and a lot of students do a year (third year out of four) placement, with companies based in London (such as http://www.hayesdavidson.com/). Many then go on to work in well known companies (http://www.the-neighbourhood.com/work/case-studies/fitzroy-place) and (https://pixelflakes.com/).

 

That said, to be clear, I concur with Philippe, no you don't need one; it may or may not improve your abilities, depending on how good you are at learning on your own esteem; the best students on my course could have produced good images anyway, but benefited from the experience and contacts.

 

Ah that's an interesting degree. Where I live we have degrees in vfx for cinema/tv, 3d animation or 3d modeling. Unfortunately nothing specialized in the architecture viz!

[innerdream]

I think the more you know about Architecture the easier it will be to deal with Architects and speak their language, that doesn't mean a degree just knowledge of the field.

[Jesper Pedersen]

Hi,

 

definitely! Teh letters after your name will not guarantee that you have creative ability, though you will find larger projects will probably have clients who expect a technical background but a very large portion of our clients do not mind what our background is once the work is accurate and done well.

Regards

Jesper Pedersen, B.Eng, M. Eng, PhD, MIEI, RIAI, M.LnkIn, M.CGArch., M.EvrMtn., OC London2014, M.EU.,

http://www.pedersenfocus.ie

[TomasEsperanza]

"M.EvrMtn" !

[Adam Kruvand]

Absolutely. Can you build good 3d models? Studio2a is looking for freelancers.... PM me.