Case Study: A beautiful 3d visualization of an ecological oasis (USA)
Stas Krupetsky
Blogger, Photographer,
Founder of
Point Of View 360
Table of Contents
Details
Client’s name : Architect Yehonatan Bar
Number of edits : 2
First results delivery: in 11 business days after the brief
Number of views: 10 views
Intro
Imagine a client who approached your architectural firm with a dream to put down roots in the desert. Yes, the desert, with its beauty and power and ancient landscape. Here you need to live in comfort, but at the same time this house should be part of the desert ecosystem. It should not disturb the process of unity with nature even in this hash environment.
Today we want to show you this amazing project – the dream of any visualization studio we are lucky enough to work for. This amazing architectural project was designed by Israeli architect Yehonatan Bar.
We have done a lot of work and here is the result of our joint project.
Concept
As conceived by Yehonatan, the house was to become part of the concept of the ecological state – the Mojave Desert in North America. It should be a pleasant and comfortable living environment, but all this in an area primarily characterized by difficult climatic conditions.
For the effective implementation of such a project, Jonathan developed many architectural, design, and engineering solutions. He used the principles of passive solar design, which means that optimal shading and natural ventilation were designed depending on the location of the house and the change of seasons.
The sparse supply of water in this area is drawn from the rooftops and from there into a large pool in the courtyard. The cold air above the water cools the rest of the house.
He also used design principles and building materials that aimed at creating significant thermal mass – they are designed to balance the temperature in the building. It is especially effective at significant temperature differences between day and night and is therefore ideal for building in desert areas.
The purpose of the visualization
Yehonatan needed beautiful architectural renderings for several purposes:
- Using photorealistic computer graphics, the designer wanted to immerse the client in the atmosphere of the project and show what his dream home would look like in reality.
- Demonstration of Jonathan’s capabilities as an architect and designer
- Marketing materials for Jonathan’s website and social networks
References and links
The brief is an important part of any 3D architectural visualization project. The better the task is done, the easier it is to ensure fast work and timely results. The brief that Yehonatan sent us was top-notch. It included all the information that helped us imagine the exterior and interior design, environment, and atmosphere that needed to be recreated in 3D architectural renderings. We received a Sketchup model, references from the Internet for similar projects, and links to furniture sets and decorative items. Let’s look at some of these materials.
Atmosphere References
These are wonderful references that perfectly convey the atmosphere of the place, from which it became clear that it would not just be a desert atmosphere, but filled with the spirit of calmness, relaxation, a lot of characteristic greenery, and large stones, rocks, and soil.
To explain the aesthetics of the residence, the designer sent us some photos of the buildings that inspired him. As you can see, they all have laconic shapes, clean lines, and a modern minimalist design.
Sketchup model
Sketch drawings depicting the entire complex and its interiors were the main reference points in the brief. These sketches helped us understand the geometry, proportions, and placement of objects in the scenes. In addition, the model made in Sketchup already contained a set of projections personally selected by Jonathan.
Here are the projections that Jonathan chose:
However, not all were used in the project. In the first stage, together with Jonathon, we chose projections that represent design the best in terms of composition. During the process, we moved the camera online until we found the optimal angle of view of the residence.
Links to construction materials
As a main material for the walls construction Yehonatan chose a special material – Rammed Earth Walls. It is a traditional technique of building walls from natural raw materials like earth, chalk, lime and gravel which will be in harmony with the environment. Yehonatan also noted that concrete and metal like Corten steel will be used in the construction.
Modeling
After our CG artist reviewed the brief, he began to create preliminary sketches. First of all, he rebuilt the entire model of the future building based on the model that we received. Sketchup models are poorly adapted for importing into professional programs such as 3d max and does not allow applying high-quality textures to them. We also faced another problem, because the planes intersected with each other.
As a result, a new model and a landscape were created, for further use.
Test light and ambient light
At this stage, we presented Yehonatan with sketches of lighting for all scenes based on the references we received at an early stage. Yehonatan liked the evening soft light, but later, in the project timeline, he changed the settings a little for a better perception. Here are some comments that Yehonatan wrote in the comments to the sketch and sent references to the surrounding landscape and backgrounds surrounding the residence.
Our specialist corrected the scene according to the comments. He presented an updated sketch including a landscape solution and a background.
Yehonatan liked the material in general, here are some of his comments:
- Correct the shape of the rocks to improve the composition, balance and emphasise the shape of the house, since the rocks cover part of the house.
- Change the light to a more “warm honey orange”.
- Change plants in some places to make it more diverse.
- Change some exterior and interior details of the house.
- Change the pathway of the house to a more natural form.
- Change the shape of the pool in the part where the water flowed over the edge to the pool.
It was decided to make an evening view as well to show the lighting of the house from the inside. This decision was taken to emphasise the exterior lights of the outdoor fireplaces and make the picture more romantic.
The artist made the edits, Yehonatan approved the result and here is the result of our joint efforts
Final Renders
Interiors
After finishing the visualization of the exterior of the house, on which the main materials and objects were approved, our 3D artist added furniture and decor to the interior of the house.
The client liked the camera angles and the overall composition, but asked for some corrections. Exactly this:
- Place a small desert-style tree in the patio
- Fix the bronze material on the lamp to make it look more realistic
- Change the location of objects and remove some of them
- Make colors less saturated overall
Our CG specialist made all the adjustments and then we rendered the images at the final 3.5k resolution. Here are the results of the interior 3D rendering.
Summing up
Don’t you think that the residence will become an ideal place for living, working and relaxing for the customer’s family? Can you feel the warmth and roughness of large stones just by looking at these images? And hear the soothing desert night.
If so, then we did a good job. After all, showing the soul of a design is just as important as its technical details, and just as difficult. We have sincerely put our heart and soul into each of these beautiful architectural renderings. And we can’t wait to see this fantastic residence when it’s built!
It has been a great pleasure to work with Yehonatan for our team. We liked his professional approach to work, crazy creativity, attention to detail, organization in work and sense of humor. We are very proud to be a part of this grandiose and absolutely amazing project. And we can’t wait to see pictures of the residence when it’s built.
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