26 replies to this topic

[Stacey Gaylord]

I am looking to take my rendering capabilities to the next level, any guidance or suggestions are welcome.  I attached a rendering that i recently finished as a sample of where my skill level currently is.

Attached Files

•  G21020 604404.jpg   186.76KB   23 downloads

[Martin Livingston]

No attachment?

[Martin Livingston]

Hi,

 

I can offer a few suggestions if you like. Roll back the reflectivity on the glazing to something a bit more subtle. Lower the camera to something approximating eye level. Stick to the better quality billboard trees, plants and bushes. I found some free, good quality billboard trees online and downloaded them. A little trick is to flip them left to right as required to have the sunlight direction match the lighting on the image. Set the sun at a height that makes the shadows appear under eaves, trees, etc. Don't rely too much on head lighting. The ambient and headlight values usually work best when the are close to the same unless you are going for a twilight shot. I have attached the settings for the attached rendering. Try to pick a background that is close to the scale of the house so it does not over shadow the house as a focal point. Add some trees in the foreground to frame the shot. I usually have a few branches extending in front of the house to give the illusion of depth. Scatter a few larger billboard trees on the sides and towards the back to break up the transition between the property and the background image.Mix up the planting beds a bit and, again. use the billboard symbols - lots more choice and better results. Get yourself a seamless grass texture that has some "roughness" to it.

 

Hope some of these things help.

 

Cheers!

Attached Files

•  lighting.jpg   78.71KB   18 downloads
•  FRONT FINAL CROPPED.jpg   163.72KB   15 downloads

[Martin Livingston]

Here is the site plan for the rendering

Attached Files

•  site.jpg   72.43KB   8 downloads

[Keith Almond]

The camera angle looks to be a little (wide) distorted - Although it could be just the particular angle it's on ... Try for a 60 degree angle of view for exterior, it looks more natural.

[Keith Almond]

My personal preference for glazing is dark blue rather than clear. Typically, in the daylight, you can't see into windows, they are typically very dark and the slight reflection of sky gives then a slightly blue cast until you actually focus on the reflection. Have a look at photographs of homes taken from the street, Generally the windows don't appear clear.

 

 2018.01.25_17h10m12s_001.png   150.87KB   17 downloads

 

Note: This is a random photograph pulled from the internet, and is included just to show glazing colour.

[Allen McDonnell]

Stacey and Martin....great work.  Im thankful for every drafter that cares about detail and wants to take their drawings to the next level.  Way to go.

[Allen McDonnell]

Keith, I go back and forth all the time on this.  It almost seems that on some color schemes your correct but on other color schemes the dark blue looks funny or almost like you are literally painting the glazing blue.....Here is a very typical house glazing done both ways...Im sure you'll pick the dark blue but i just dont know.  

Attached Files

•  3.jpg   62.92KB   10 downloads

[Keith Almond]

Yes, I'd pick the blue ... the only time I'd use clear is in a night rendering with the interior lights turned on. Again, as a personal preference only, I think the clear just looks wrong. Glass doesn't look clear on a photograph because of the reflections. In daylight it's more like a mirror.

[Allen McDonnell]

Yep i agree....

 

Night renderings are the way to go.  

[Trevor Bauer]

Stacey,

Nice looking home. I do renderings for all of our homes for the brochures we hand out. It's a real learning curve as to what looks good and what looks better. Some of the things I do:

1. I do use the reflectivity on the glazing but I cut it to 70%. It softens the look in the windows.

2. On lighting, I don't do the custom lighting at all. If you just check the lighting in render mode, and check shadows, it will give you some depth to the house for more of a 3D effect.

3. Keith is right amount the angle on the house. We have attached garages on all our homes and the gables on them are always the tallest. i angle the camera so it starts on the other side and puts the garage on the far side. On your house my eye is drawn to the two large gables on the right and the house gets a little lost.

4. You should always make sure your front door is in view in the rendering, even with the angle. This "invites" the person into the home.

5. You did some nice brick detail around the foundation but your landscaping hides most of it. Use more plants and less bushes to showcase the brick.

6. Pull back from the house a bit. Too close.

7. Someone suggested a tree in the front yard so the shadow, but not the tree, falls a bit over the front of the house. I started this a little bit ago and it adds a nice touch.

8. Lastly, when you find a color combination that works, write it down so you can use it again and have less experimentation.

Good luck and your first attempt looks a whole lot better than mine did. I have it on my wall to remind me how far I have come.

[Keith Almond]

... Lastly, when you find a color combination that works, write it down ...

 

You don't need to write it down, you can just save it as a MATERIAL FILE. You can save and load as many different schemes as you want. They definitely save a lot of time changing the look of a project.

[Trevor Bauer]

Thanks, Keith. I did not know that. I'll try it on my next one. And it will save a lot of time.

[Tom Rogers]

Martin-did you find the background trees on any particular site or just searched around until you found something you liked?

[Sam Allen]

Hey Ron...I would love to see some of your brochure renderings!!!

[Michael Roman]

I love all of the advice that is given out on the forums.  It truly is a wonderful thing to have the more experienced users give us the tips to make out projects better.

Thank You!  I have used the suggestions above to tweek a rendering that I am working on for one of my customers.  I don't render in Softplan but the suggestions given by our members can truly be used in any software package.  Keep the tips coming and thanks again.

 

Attached Files

•  Kerry Exterior 01.jpg   113.17KB   12 downloads

[Allen McDonnell]

Michael, good work.  What program(s) do you render in?

[Sam Allen]

Mr. Roman...I'd like to know what grass texture you used.   It's great....

[Michael Roman]

I export my Softplan model to Sketchup and use V-Ray as the renderer.  I think it is a great combination of programs.  They work well together.

As far as the grass texture, believe it or not, it is actually the texture that Softplan uses for the ground.  When I bring it into Sketchup I keep the same texture but add a Vray object to the scene that actually creates the blades of grass.  The grass is 3D grass over the top of the Softplan texture.  It turns out nice.  Very hard to find a good grass texture.

[Tom Rogers]

I agree.  If someone has a folder of good textures and/or symbols I bet there is a market for them (hint hint)