Rendering Pro - Shahriar Farzanehfar
Shahriar Farzanehfar is an Architect with professional experience in commercial and residential projects. One of his most recent projects was a private villa for a client that consisted of renovating the first floor and adding a second floor.
“The major challenge in this project was lighting it to the impress the client,” he says. Below, Shahriar describes the techniques he used to light the building, resulting in this impressive visualization:
Shahriar’s lighting technique:
Set the camera:
2. Next, I used a source light that I downloaded from revitcity.com called “studio lamp”.
3. I then used a systematic arrangement for the lamps around the scene, especially in the false ceiling.
4. One of the most important parts in this process is to define the material for all objects. For example, to assign a material for the floor in this project, I needed to select a material and consider an appropriate number for its reflectivity. To achieve the right amount of reflectivity, I rendered the image at low quality to test it and see how it looked.
5. I also set up the model and rendered it to check the lighting of the scene.
As shown above, the figure scene lighting is low, so I increased the lamp lighting (in the edit type section), using the settings shown below. With these settings, the intensity of the lighting doubled.
6. Finally, when I achieved the proper lighting and materials, I rendered in the cloud at high quality!
This process taught me just how useful test rendering my scenes is to getting the lighting and materials just right. By rendering frequently at low quality, I was able to resolve the appearance issues step by step. At the end, when the scene is where I want it to be, I render it in high resolution. Seeing the result of that perfected, final image is the best.
Rendering Pro - Alessio Herbert
Alessio Herbert is an Architectural technician at Italian design firm Marano s.a.s. S.t.p, a firm that offers everything from the design and development of architectural and structural systems, to development for reducing energy consumption. As communicating design concepts and presenting multiple design options for clients is very important to their process, Alessio employed a lot of rendering work in the cloud. Hear what he has to say about how he built up his design skills, his favourite techniques, and how he uses cloud rendering for Revit:
I’m a British national currently working in Italy as part of the team at Marano s.a.s. S.t.p, a design practice located in Cinisello Balsamo, province of Milan, Italy. The firm was founded by Surveyor Dante Aurelio Marano, a professional with over 20 years of experience in the sector. We provide a number of services, including design / development and detailed design of architectural and structural systems, both for new construction (industrial, residential and commercial sectors) and for existing building refurbishment and/or restoration. We also do everything from furnishing design to energy consumption reduction projects.
When did you discover and start using the “render to the cloud” feature in Revit?
When the “render to cloud” function became available in Revit, my colleagues and I started using it immediately and were impressed by the speed at which it could render large complex models. At the time, I had built this Revit model that was over 1 GB, and it had become too complicated and time prohibitive to render using Revit’s native renderer on my local computer. With cloud rendering, it came out quickly with better quality results.
Your renderings have received a lot of positive feedback from other users in the gallery. Tell me about your “Apartment Refurbishment” project, and your “Chateau Monfort – Milan” project. What were the project details (where was the site located, what was the purpose, what were the requirements)?
The Chateau Monfort project is a 5-star hotel located in Milan, Italy. The project involved a complete renovation of a disused 1902 historic residential building to transform it into a luxury hotel. The hotel itself consists of 77 individually themed rooms on five floors above ground, and two basement levels, one with a spa, fitness center, and pool, and the other with hotel services. Our firm dealt with design team coordination, programming and cost control for all activities carried out on-site (construction and installation). I created all the construction phase drawings and 3D modelling for the building using Revit, which allowed us to identify and resolve all plant integration, structural, and aesthetic problems prior to the construction phase. This helped us reduce the on-site execution time and costs for our client. The 3D renderings allowed the client to see the designed elements prior to production and allowed quick decisions to be made during the design process. The published renders show the entrance lobby and what used to be its internal courtyard, which is now covered by a glass cupola.
The “Apartment Refurbishment” project is a refurbished residential apartment currently under construction in Sesto San Giovanni, Italy. The brief was to modify the existing layout of the apartment to be better adapted to the young client’s lifestyle and personal tastes. The speed of the cloud rendering feature allowed us to give the client multiple proposals for the space very quickly and on request (some of which I published to the rendering gallery) and to achieve a final design that both appealed to the client and fell within the budget.
Can you tell us a bit about your techniques and the processes you used to create and produce such masterful renderings?
I try to model everything as realistically as possible (bar soft furnishings which, with the five current basic modelling tools in Revit, are virtually impossible to model with any realism, so I import those from 3DsMax. I would challenge anybody to make a realistic looking cushion with these tools and would like to shake their hand if they can).
Rather than using bump maps, I prefer to model the bumps. My tiles, for example (floor and wall) are single family elements with modelled recesses to emulate reality. I use bitmaps provided by suppliers that the client choses for materials, and rarely use the ones provided in Revit’s library.
I usually set up a view with eye height and objective at the same level so as to keep vertical lines vertical, and I use both natural and artificial light to illuminate the scene. I ensure the building is correctly located and orientated (for sun settings) and brighten or dim artificial lighting to taste, then go through a process of ‘render to cloud’ using basic settings to check materials and the position of furnishings and generally the effect of the shot. Once I am relatively happy with the render in draft format, and have also further regulated the exposure in the cloud, I will produce a final image for the client.
What were are the challenges you face in your design process? What were some specific challenges you faced on the Chateau and Apartment projects?
Sometimes when modelling, I find myself hindered by the fact that you cannot draw a line in Revit less than 0.8mm long. I prefer to draw text and logos inside Revit rather than using Decals, so I hope this is something that can be added in the future.
For the Chateau Monfort project, my challenge in the modelling process—due to its complexity—was to keep the file size under 2GB and to give the client and other professionals updated images, 3D’s, and plans as quickly as possible.
For the apartment, the only challenge was to meet all the client’s requirements with the budget available.
What was your favorite part of these projects?
On the Chateau Monfort project, my favorite part was having the opportunity to model a building of this nature and then seeing the drawings become reality on-site.
Anything else you’d like to add?
I would like to thank the users of the A360 rendering community who have taken the time to look at my work, like, and give feedback and comments.
I first saw the new stereoscopic panorama feature at Autodesk University 2014, where I received a pair of the DIY Virtual Reality (VR) cardboard goggles. Shortly thereafter, I was excited to see that Autodesk A360 Cloud Rendering released the stereo panorama feature in 2015 for all customers to use.
In a recent building design project, I used some standard panorama renderings to show off our firm’s designs, which impressed our client immensely. Now, I still often use that panorama as a reference file during training and information sessions to demonstrate what can be done with the cloud renderer.
So naturally, I was keen to try out the new stereo panorama—an even better version of the standard panorama rendering. The rendering results have been impressive, and being able to immerse myself into a 3D version of my own design has really fun—and useful. Now, when I show my previous clients their interior space in a stereo panorama, they are impressed with how real and interactive the experience is. While Revit creates stunning 3D models, the stereo panorama feature seems to communicate the design intent of our projects more effectively to non-CAD users. My clients were very impressed with being able to navigate around the rendering using the 3D viewers, and were eager to start building the project.
I have even used this feature on my home kitchen renovation project, which pleased my significant other to no end!
The only downside to most cardboard viewers is that they don’t work as well for people who wear glasses. Thankfully, I still managed to view my stereo panoramas without my glasses, since the magnification on the lenses assisted greatly.
Looking Ahead at 3D Rendering Features
While controlling the stereo panorama view takes some practice to navigate, overall the feature is very easy to use and the produces very impressive, quality renderings. I believe the possibilities with virtual reality are going to explode in the next few years, and this feature already shows its potential. Being able to render your own design and view it in 3D on your phone with just a few clicks is a game changer. If you have your own pair of cardboard 3D virtual reality viewers, you can view our interior design here.
To be able to immerse yourself into your model is something that all engineers and architects can get excited about. The potential for more features—like virtual walk-throughs and further VR immersion is exciting, and I can’t wait to see what happens next in this VR space.
A still of the interior that Bill later rendered as a stereo panorama.
While studying architectural engineering at the University of Jordan (JU), Karam Baki also works as a freelancer, creating a lot of projects for the university and for various other clients.
This week, Baki will walk us through his process for developing his “Golden Mixed Use” project for the university. The project site is located in Amman, Jordan and uses the golden ratio (1.618) as a main generator of the design.
“Rendering in cloud was very helpful even in the very early phases of the project,” Baki states. “Usually we start a project with a mass, and here, we were able to render each mass transformation in the cloud very quickly and efficiently, within the site’s surrounding area. Without using the speed of the cloud rendering, the progress of the design process would’ve been very slow.”
1. Always choose the correct sun setting. If you want to render a morning shot, make sure your sun is set at morning time. Want to render at sunset—set your sun accordingly. These are the most important settings to use when rendering in the cloud—other option like “light scheme, background…..etc”, don’t have as much impact on cloud renderings.
2. Check your procedure. For a typical cloud rendering, you should check all of the following items:
- Materials
- Sun Settings
- Realistic Visual Style Test
- Raytrace Test
- Cloud Test
- Cloud Final
- Exposure Adjust
Here’s how you ensure each item on the list is completed efficiently.
Materials in Revit are very powerful, though it takes some time to get a full understanding how they work.
Here’s a quick tree I’ve built to explain how materials are made up in Revit:
As the image shows, materials are one of the most important elements in a rendering.
Make sure that each and every material you use in your project has reflectivity. If it does not have reflectivity, you should enable it (in real life everything reflects, even painted walls, so you need this feature to give your materials a realistic look).
Additionally, always try to:
Always try to increase glossiness, bump maps, etc. but don’t overdo it—use a critical eye.
Organized your materials. For example, give each material a suffix , organize each asset you add with the same naming system.
Sun Settings
As mentioned before, sun settings are the most important settings for rendering in cloud.
Take note that sun settings are view-specific. Try to choose a time of day that will case the most attractive shadows on your building.
-Make sure your location is correct
-Try using single day mode to toggle quickly between the shadow casting mode on your Building, and then chose the best still time.
Realistic Visual Style Test
This test is required to make sure that the scale of your material images is correct. Usually 75% of materials in Revit have incorrect scale.
To scale/style test:
Change the visual style to realistic to check the scale of the applied materials after you’ve placed your camera to take a shot and render it.
If you see that something is off, go and fix its assets image scale through the appearance of the material.
Quick Tip:
When positioning the camera, try to make the eye elevation from properties at 1.8 as a human eye view, not a monkey eye view from above.
When it’s done and all the scales of the material in the shot are correct, move on to the next step.
Ray Trace Test
This test is excellent to check whether your sun settings are correct and your materials “colors, properties, scaling, etc” are ok.
To enable ray trace, change the visual style to ray trace.
Wait for it to render the temporary shot.
Now go for graphic display options, and from here you can change the sun settings if you don’t like what you had before, or you can change the photographic exposure as well.
When you are satisfied, change the visual style back to ray trace mode.
Quick Tip: You can change the lighting scheme from the graphic display dialog, and use exterior/interior artificial lights to test the behavior of night shots.
Cloud Test and Final Rendering
Now that you have all your settings in order, it’s time to take the move!
After you’ve rendered, if the exposure is still not to your liking, you can tweak it until you’re satisfied.
Using the “Adjust Exposure” option, play with the sliders until you get the optimal lighting.
Hit ‘done’ and wait while it re-renders with the new exposure settings.
In my experience, cloud rendering has made a big difference for presenting new ideas to the clients that was not in the original offer. It really helps convincing the client when you have a good illustration to show. One good example is a project we were working with in Trondheim. It was a 10.000 square meter shopping mall, and we felt like the space around the escalators needed some decoration. We made a couple of illustrations with cloud rendering and then tweaked it a bit with some post processing in photoshop. The client liked it and ordered it (fig.15-16).
Figure 16 - The site today
Rendering Pro of the Week – Jair Melchor
Currently working as an architect for “RES Arquitectura + Diseño”, an architectural firm based in Ciudad Juárez, México, Jair Melchor develops commercial, administrative and residential projects of various scales. From several refurbishments for downtown Ciudad Juárez to new residential developments, Melchor works on both interior and exterior design using the firm’s principal software, Revit. He had only learned Revit a few months before he started working at the firm, but he know considers it the most valuable tool in his design arsenal.
Back in his university days, Architect Rene Saucedo showed his class the great potential of Revit and how they could get the same amount of work done in hours that had previously taken weeks. “Some of us didn’t feel completely ready to migrate from one software to another in such a short time span, but after I started looking at some online tutorials, I realized that it was pretty easy to use. Now that I’ve learned to use Revit, I’m never going back to anything else,” Melchor insists.
For his featured project, “Residential Home”, he was tasked with creating a small housing complex in an area of ​​great economic growth in Ciudad Juárez.
Due to this context, Melchor and the firm had to give serious thought not only to the outside of the building, but also to the interior. Although the homes are just one level, the main idea was to create a different feeling for each room, while still incorporating an open concept that would make each space seem bigger. “We wanted to provide a greater number of possible ideas when deciding on the final interior design. We wanted to make the most of the space we had using a very contemporary and luxurious interior design that could help future owners see the full potential of each space.” Because cloud rendering allowed Melchor and the firm to render so many scenes efficiently, they were able to produce these multiple, alternative designs for each of the homes.
Melchor used his peer’s renderings in the public A360 Rendering gallery for inspiration, and improved on his visualization skills via online tutorials, learning to modify and control materials and lighting to get the results he wanted.
He began experimenting with textures, uploading images as textures and modifying bump images to give that ‘3D feeling.’
“I could achieve the reflections using glazed materials and editing the two reflection types, direct and oblique, depending on the finish of each planned material. Thanks to cloud rendering, I was able to test renders in just a few minutes, which allowed me to see how my work was progressing and if I was doing it right,” Melchor says. “Then, I could finish it off by launching a final quality rendering.”
“At my company, we can now provide our customers with new and innovative design options for their projects, and our professional portfolio is growing from these excellent cloud rendering results. It’s shown us, as professionals, a whole new way to work,” Melchor states.
This week, we’re changing things up by having our Rendering Pro write a guest post about his cloud rendering workflow. Below, Sam Macalister, a technical specialist for Autodesk, visually walks us through his steps—from modelling to postproduction—for creating this striking Caroma bathroom rendering:
For this bathroom design I wanted there to be natural light, a central focus, and no unnecessary clutter.
All storage is hidden behind mirror faced cupboards (in this case I used Revit divide and parts, as the aim was to create a quick visual)
The families are great – they have excellent detail, as well as material and plumbing parameters
Quick tip – un-tick the finish bump map as you don’t typically see this on Porcelain.
Basic wall broken up using divide and parts with a 5mm gap (more likely 2-3mm in real world)
For the light well I’ve used a plaster material with a small bump map
For the hidden light shelve I have an array of lights downloaded from Zumbotel
Simple sun light settings set to around mid-day
My personal preference is to work with cameras at right angles, with a focus. In this case I’ve chosen the WC.
Here, my graphic display settings for the view.
I typically set up my render settings in Revit prior to rendering on the cloud.
Make sure you have the artificial lights turned on.
Next, I use Autodesk Pixlr Express to do post production 
I typically use auto fix to start with, then look at the colour settings.
Then a quick brightness, contrast adustment
Focal provides a depth of field (DoF) giving focus to the WC and a slight blur to the background
There are some great effects to automatically style the image – my favourite is Ingrid!
I then add a small vignette
And a light blue colour correction
Then download for final tweaks in Microsoft office – quick auto correct
Brightness, contrast, and midtones. Typically I follow the SLR camera settings for this part (ie. Sunny 16 rule).
Finally a colour adjustment
And one last auto fix!
Here (below) you can see the raw render with the post production image.
And...the final.
Rendering Pro Spotlight – Yoan Fourny
This week’s Rendering Pro, Yoan Fourny, not only uses cloud rendering as an architectural designer, but also teaches it as an Autodesk Instructor at Impraria in Montreal. Impraria, a Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) Expert in the AEC Industry, has been a leader in Canada for over 5 years. “We aim to resolve problems encountered when managing the lifecycle of a product, in reengineering processes and in managing systems,” says Fourny.
For this featured rendering, Fourny was actually creating a scene for a rendering test case, to be used on Impraria’s corporate website.
“I needed a fresh, new model for our website, which would be shown our current and prospective students,” says Fourny. He took the measurements of his old apartment in Montreal, and designed the furniture in Revit.
“I wanted to test the speed and effectiveness of the cloud, and now I can confidently say that it is very efficient. My computer is neither the most powerful nor the quickest; but with cloud rendering, I was able to effortlessly render quality drawings!” Fourny states.
“It allowed me to render professional, top quality images without having to purchase high performance and expensive equipment. It also helped Impraria publicize its Revit skills and expertise as a training center,” Fourny adds.
While Fourny faced challenges in the control of the brightness and details, he was determined to fully exploit the rendering system and produce a professional rendering without using any other software.
“With the renderer, I was able to use light, adjust the exposure, and incorporate minute details like adding picture frames and images on the DVD boxes to make it look more realistic,” he says. Curtains (imported from 3DSMAX) and a piano (designed using a family template in Revit) also contributed to the photorealistic effect.
As an instructor, Fourny knows how much cloud rendering helps him communicate important concepts to his students. “Many designers and architects turn to us to receive training on various software programs. Renderings allow professionals to quickly comprehend a software program’s capabilities and evaluate the quality of a professional render,” he states.
Ultimately, whether it’s helping students or professionals, rendering serves as the ultimate tool for communicating and evaluating important design concepts and projects.
Rendering Pro of the Week– Jason Foo
It was the long nights of rendering on two different computers at his university that pushed Jason Foo to look for a better solution. “One particularly long night at the university, while running renderings on two separate computers to capture an interior and exterior view of my project, my friend mentioned that there was a new feature in Revit that allowed users to render in the cloud,” says Foo.
Currently pursuing his Masters of Architecture at Curtin University, Australia, Foo is now a fervent user of cloud rendering in Revit.
In one of his most recent projects, Foo designed a refurbished version of the Scotch College. He approached the project through a lens of experiential architecture, while creating a space where students could study and learn efficiently. “I applied the ‘Spiral of Knowledge’ concept to the design, wrapping the staircase around itself to create a spiral-shaped space that allows the students to find information and easily orient themselves in the building,” Foo states.
Rendering in the cloud helped Foo create impressive images of various areas and rooms of the library in real scale. “Even better, just seeing those rooms and areas visualized on screen gave me inspiration to try a different design approach to further refine it for the next round.”
One of the main challenges for Foo was linking his conceptual designs with the existing structure of the library. However, he found that using the realistic renderings really helped him connect the dots.
The renderings also helped potential library users (Scotch College students) to experience and see what the proposed project would look like in real life.
“I believe cloud rendering is a crucial tool for successful architects and engineers. As a professional, having innovative ideas is important; but being able to represent and justify your designs is critical. Having both of those skills together separates a good architect from a great one.”
Rendering Pro of the Week – Zuzana Majzelova
Zuzana Majzelova was born in Slovakia and now resides in Dublin, Ireland. Studying Interior Design at Coláiste Dhúlaigh College of Further Education, where she learned to use AutoCAD and cloud rendering in A360.
“Before Interior Design, I started out studying Fashion Design in my native country, and then worked in a pottery workshop. Working with pottery gave me good sense of detail, good hand skills, and also improved my 3D thinking and 3D vision. Now, I use these skills in Autocad“, Majzelova says.
Currently, Majzelova is working on a College Renovation project for her school, redesigning her college building in Dublin, Ireland. She rebuilt the old school gym and divided the space into two floors –the ground floor would be a canteen, and the first floor would serve as a relaxing space for students.
“I wanted to create a colorful space full of energy. My inspiration for this project was painter Henri Matisse. I used his color theory to employ black and white to create balance and harmony with other vivid colors,” she says.
Throughout her work, she makes frequent use of A360 rendering. “It helps me to understand my 3d space," she says. "Since I started working with cloud rendering, I look forward to opening my email every morning to see my new renderings!”