Is It Just Me, or Does This 3D Stuff Just Take A Long Time?

[Declan Flynn]

My first introduction to 3D occurred back in the mid-nineties with a program that some of you reading this might remember, depending on your age, Bryce 3D by MetaTools. Then, I studied fine arts at The Atlanta College of Art (ACA), a one-time prestigious, private art school located in midtown Atlanta, Georgia. Technically enrolled in their burgeoning 3D Modeling and Animation program, the school's prerequisite included a comprehensive fine arts program, learning the fundamentals and principles of design before gaining access to their 3D program. Although Bryce 3D did not actually teach me anything but patience waiting hours for photo-realistic fog to render, what the 3D program did is that it made me want to learn more!

Later, I assisted with the creation of Kennesaw State University's 3D program as part of a testing student body headed by Dr. Brenda Faison, Dean of the University's Art and Design program. The exceptionally talented 3D artist, Chris Cooke taught us Newtek's Lightwave 3D, which concluded with my first animated short-film, "Top-Toy" in 1999.

Unfortunately, after leaving ACA and KSU, I did not pick up 3D again until years later when a colleague agreed to teach me Alias Wavefront's Maya way back before Autodesk acquired it.

Studying Maya is where I learned the fundamentals of 3D modeling, UV unwrapping, texturing and materials, lighting and rendering, and the basics of animation. I used Maya during my first professional job as an in-house Art Director, modeling the manufacturing company's product line for marketing and advertising.

However, even after all of these decades of experience, I am still amazed at how long it takes me to concept, model, UV unwrap, texture, light, and render a single project. It is just me, or does this 3D stuff just take a long time? Am I doing something wrong?

This article (i.e., post) is an attempt to gain an understanding of other 3D artists' processes, so that I can adjust the methods I use in my work and improve! Being primarily a self-taught 3D artist, learning from others' experiences and methods vs. a textbook or a paid instructor is how I got here.

It is understood, as my old architectural instructor, Rick Hudson used to say, "Perfect practice makes perfect," and so, I realize most of you may say that it takes a lot of practice to decrease the amount of time that it takes from concept to final presentation. Additionally, you might suggest that it depends on the kind of project and the intended use, which can be the difference between weeks or months of work.

Lastly, others reading this might imply that depending on one's workstation specs, a slow CPU/GPU can severely decrease one's ability to make numerous creative decisions per work session. I can personally tell you that my AMD Threadripper 3960 24-core 48-thread processor and Nvidia 3090 Ti edition GPU barely makes a dent in my time progress.

Here's a question; do you unwrap your UVs after you model each 3D object, or do you wait until you have reached the texturing and material creation process? And what's the difference? Are you a fan of kit bashing, or do you download free or purchase models from the marketplace to speed up your process?

Some 3D artists have reported that it's the detailing and texturing that takes the longest time, adding intricate details and applying textures to a model that is particularly labor-intensive. I agree! Others say that, again depending on the model's intended use, e.g., animation or real-time applications, clean topology or retopology is what takes the greatest amount of time. Finally, lighting and rendering to achieve a desired visual effect can be - sometimes - the thing that slows everything down.

So, what can one do to speed up the process?

According to reasearch on the subject, planning your work before diving into a project, outlining the project's requirements and planning the workflow is one good method, i.e., organization. Reference images, some suggest, can make all the difference, ensuring accuracy and consistency. Another tip says mastering software shortcuts is key to significantly reducing the time spent navigating through menus. YouTube is filled with tutorials, claiming practicing basic shapes will improve one's understanding of form and topology, which can lead to increased speed and proficiency. Lastly, have you ever considered procedural modeling? I haven't, but maybe it could help(?).

Now, all of the above sounds fine for producing game assets or models for print or for manufacturing, one might say, but is the same advice transfereable to ArchViz? I wouldn't know. I am new to ArchViz, but it makes sense that organization and pre-planning certainly would speed up one's time spent producing a project, knowing a program's shortcut keys, and using references. Also, investing into a darn good computer, too could help.

What do you say?

Edited February 10 by Declan Flynn
Typos

[Ricardo Eloy]

Ok, this one took me a while to read... lol...

In my opinion, architectural visualization (ArchViz) presents a unique set of challenges. We often receive detailed project briefs, specifying all elements for each image. Sometimes even the camera angles are pre-defined by the client, and most projects require a dozen or more images. This necessitates prioritizing speed over artistic expression, as deadlines are typically very tight. Consequently, we rely heavily on pre-made and custom asset libraries, such as Chaos Cosmos, for both models and materials. Unwrapping is infrequent, as it's usually reserved for complex and unique models. What I'm trying to say is that ArchViz is more focused on production efficiency these days, and the focus is less on artistic innovation than on meeting practical needs. Of course, I'm completely generalizing, as there are so many types of clients and demands. While we share similarities with other industries, such as game development, ArchViz also has unique characteristics, particularly concerning client expectations and production pressures.

[Declan Flynn]

I know, I know!! Sorry for the very long post. I am going to curb my long-windedness, I promise. I just discovered one can write articles on this site, so maybe I will do that, if allowed to. Nevertheless, thank you for enduring my long post and posting a reply. 

"This necessitates prioritizing speed over artisitic expression, as deadlines are typically very tight." Boy, I heard that! It can be a tough tightrope to walk. 

"Unwrapping is infrequent, as it's usually reserved for complex and unique models." This is very good to read! I just learned something today, so thanks for that. Frankly, I assumed one would unwrap and prep for materials just about all objects within a scene. And as for using premade assets, why not? It can be a huge timesaver, but perhaps costly, too. I guess it depends.

"ArchViz is more focused on production efficiency these days," I'm not surprised to read this. 

As usual, Ricardo, your replies are very educational for me, so I truly appreciate them. Again, I will try hard to keep my posts light in word count. I'm terrible with being concise.

Thanks again!

[Ricardo Eloy]

Glad to help!