Introduction
It is a common belief that architectural designs should show an abundance of technical details and leave nothing to the imagination. However, certain aspects will, inevitably, require others to reach conclusions for themselves. And with the right tools, designers can give the audience everything they need to get as close as possible to imagining the finished product.
It all comes down to refining architectural designs and discovering realistic interpretations. Some are simple adjustments, while others require a little more in-depth knowledge.
Harnessing colour
The world is full of vivid colours with every single object presenting its own angles, shades and tones. And this palette of colours presents an endless opportunity for architecture software to truly capture a realistic vision. Using a high level of rendering tools and techniques, designers can show every slight change in colour between various objects and the setting in which they are located.
But this may not always be necessary—especially during the early stages of a project. It might be acceptable to offer a selection of coloured details to give a more general impression. At the other end of the spectrum, it’s sometimes advisable to make use of grayscale presentations as well. Using this technique, the focus is given to lines and individual elements rather than the overall feel.
Focus on the details
On the whole, designs must contain as much detail as possible. This is not only to show a true understanding of the project and present it on various scales but also to assist those viewing 3D models. As we said, the mind needs to interpret certain areas due to the lack of physical objects that we can reach out and grasp. A high level of detailing will make this process far more achievable.
Perspectives
Drawings that offer perspective show exactly how humans perceive the depth and scale of the proposed project. They offer a fixed viewpoint where the edges of an object are represented by simple horizontal and vertical lines.
Perspective in a design helps the eye to sense the scale of a building by using comparison to other objects. Taking the edges of a building to a point on the horizon creates an impression of diminishing scale as it moves backwards. This effective style helps us to make fast calculations and interpretations of the scene as we view an image.
Technology and software to enhance your designs
The use of architectural software has changed the way we think about design. Using algorithms and coding to interpret our vision, shows us what is and isn’t possible in a given space rather than letting our emotions override practicalities.
Alongside increasing accuracy of scale and various other details, design technology has opened up a world of possibilities in terms of creating photorealistic images. Applying textures, colours, shading, light and even animations allows designers to move to the next level.
And one of the most significant aspects of design software that we embrace in today’s architectural industry is the ability to adopt these programs through the use of plugins and add-ons. As technology moves forwards, a suite of tools will develop in tandem and can simply be tacked on as and when we need them.
Utilising lighting
Never shy away from adding light to your designs. Every object in the real world captures light from various angles that changes minute by minute throughout the day. Drastic differences can be seen depending on the type of light as well. And being able to capture these changes throughout a project helps to represent the final product in the most realistic way.
Also, remember to pay close attention to shadows within a design. We are surrounded by them in everyday life and it is a near-impossible task to clearly interpret a drawing without them. They should always show a direct response to the way that the light hits a surface, so attention to angles is key in this scenario.
Adding texture
No surface is ever completely flat. And even when attempting to physically create the perfect plain, there will be imperfections. Spending time on design details like this will truly set an image apart. If a photorealistic rendering looks too good to be true, then the human eye will quickly work out that it probably is. Naturally, some objects will have very obvious textures and these are simpler to achieve through basic rendering methods.
Summary
Refined architectural designs are achieved in many ways. And as we have seen, attention to these small details can make a huge difference to the overall appearance. Allowing time to perfect things such as lighting, perspectives, textures and more will make it possible to achieve your goals. And don’t forget to embrace the technology that is available and keep abreast of all the latest techniques that help gain the very best results from architectural design software.
