Informing our 3D visuals - Theory & Research
Article written by Lucy MarshWithin our 3D visuals, we are frequently challenged with creating new materials and products, many of which we will never see in person. When joining this industry it didn’t cross my mind that this could be the case. An artist today usually captures things they can view so they have a direct reference to inform their art.Upon a trip to Japan, I learnt about ‘16th century borrowed ideas’. Japanese artists got many of their ideas from Zen monks travelling over from China. The tigers they painted are a good example of this, they would often paint tigers and other animals in murals. These particular animals did not live in Japan therefore the main source of information they had was from Chinese artwork or word of mouth.
We can see that Chinese artists haven’t always depicted their tigers in an entirely accurate manner and it’s therefore understanding that Japanese artists weren’t accurate with their early artwork either. These artworks are part of a cultural integration process but they also today represent how the depiction of an animal or item can differ from its true source if not viewed first-hand by the artist.
I was asked in my second 3D project with Rigby & Rigby to integrate air vents in the top of the walls. I was told they were to appear as large black empty voids, as shown here in the 3D render below. I thought, this surely can’t be accurate to what you see on site, I had never seen vents like this!It was explained to me how they worked and what benefit they had to the room in this form. Later that year I went to visit one of our projects, in the rooms they had put these same integrated vents and it all started to make sense. In certain lights, you can see the grill within and the depth of these which has since informed our visuals and allowed us to create more accurate results alongside what we find online.
Creating new materials can be really tricky. in particular marble, which tends to have a lot of veining. The images and samples we get are usually small snippets of the bigger picture. We often don’t see entirely what the end results are. Up until recently we were always manually creating new stones.
Now, although we sometimes still need to manually create stones for accuracy, a new feature in Photoshop helps us generate larger-scale images using the original image as a reference. The new AI feature within the software is a valuable tool to help us overcome the risk of a repeat pattern, and in turn, makes our visuals much more realistic. For example, the image above on the right was generated with AI using the reference image on the left. When applied to our visual below you can see there is no tiling effect and the scale suits the intended purpose, looking realistic as a result. Another example below was generated from a small sample indicated in red.
In many ways, we use methods similar to the 16th-century Japanese artists. We think back to things we have seen before, refer to samples, use intel from designers, and, refer to other work. When modelling new furniture, we can’t always get hold of technical drawings or dimensions when we need them. We just have a few reference images or sometimes concept sketches from designers. This bespoke desk below was designed by George Wolstenholme (Creative Lead at Lawson Robb) and we developed it over time in 3D to get to the final design for one of our projects, Mount Street. There was a combination of sketches, verbal communication and some elements drawn in CAD to work with.
We know the average height of desks, seats, door handles etc. from experience, or a quick look in a metric handbook, but when it comes to bespoke or unusual items that don’t follow those ‘rules’, we rely on vision and strong design communication. It’s enjoyable to visualise unique products, especially when you see them built. It’s really rewarding being able to see something we have visualised in person after all the experimentation and adjustments, especially when we see we got it right! Our aim is always to create realistic and informational renders for our clients. The journey to these can be challenging but always worth the effort.
