We’re taking a look at a few examples from our portfolio.
Everyone understands the marketing value behind a well designed, well composed image of their project. Numerous developers and clients use these images in press releases, company web pages, billboards and more. They lend a realistic quality to a project in order to illustrate a finished product to future tenants, or aid in landing potential investors.
The added benefit these images provide to the design team, however, can be easily overlooked by those not intimately familiar with the design process. 3D modeling and renderings help to address countless conditions encountered as multiple two-dimensional drawings are combined to make a three-dimensional image.
Choosing the location and orientation of the image is the first exercise that will in turn add value to the project. Where is the main entry? Where will the project see the most traffic? It may seem straight forward, but, in reality, we begin to learn lots about the massing and proportion of the building- it’s height in relation to its surroundings- or the relationship of the building height to the width of the street it fronts and so on.This, more often than not, translates to changes to design elements such as tower features, the height of glazing at the main entrance, or how a porte-cochere connects to the building.Choosing materials is the next phase of fine-tuning. How do proposed materials look side-by-side? How do materials transition from one to another? At this stage, small details can be adjusted to affect how the building presents itself. By changing materials, contrasting textures and colors, or by adding an accent color, the final composition begins to develop three-dimensionally.
Elan Oaks – Flower Mound, TX- AL/MC
Finally- shadows, foliage, and pedestrians are incorporated. Shadows are the most important aspect of a rendering. Shadows are how our minds perceive depth. As we design, how the shadows fall on the building can lead to adjustments that allow better layering of the facade. Minor adjustments to overhangs and trellises, the addition of metal screens, awnings and canopies, or the need for additional “push” and “pull” of the building’s elevations further develop the opportunities afforded by two-dimensional plan and elevation drawings.
People and plants are equally important- the users of the building and the exterior spaces a building creates are the sole reason we design buildings at all. By considering where to place landscape features and side walks- we consider how pedestrians will utilize the site. By visualizing these design components in a rendering, we are able to bring to life concepts difficult to perceive on paper.
Palm Bluff Place – Portland, TX
Ultimately, the use of three-dimensional renderings will also aid the constructors in their work. By providing an image of the finished product, those who will be physically building the project are able to lend their expertise early-on to provide suggestions on the means and methods required to achieve a high-quality finished product.
Recent increases in the availability of software packages to aid in three-dimensional modeling and rendering have made these types of images quite common to market a project, “coming soon.” The added value architecturally to the project, however, is often overlooked. Nearly every time, the value added to the building far outweighs the cost of producing the 3D renderings.
Artist’s Renderings – The Edge at Midtown
The Edge at Midtown – Oklahoma City, OK
