Photo-composition, as one of the best methods of 3D rendering to showcase the veracity of the original site, is widely used by architects and designers who are after the authentic rendering with 100% accuracy of surrounding context. AIMIR have an article about different ways to deal with surrounding context and their pros and cons in May 2021 here.
With its amazing result and easy-to-operate feature, photo-matching is the fastest way of getting the ideal result. In most of the cases, the original photos are provided by architects and designers. However, do you really know what makes a site photo feasible? What attributes a successful site photo should have? What photo will help make the final rendering, or destroy it?
If you get the successful site photo for your project, 3D artists can make out of it to accelerate the production process. We’ve listed a few things you can do to make the whole process far easier, and here is how.
Make the Mood of the Site Photo Aligned with Your Ideal Rendering
First thing in mind, the mood of the 3D rendering will be the same with the site photo. Although minor changes could be adjusted, they will have a very similar result in the end. This is to say:
Please consider what mood you’d like for your rendering, and take photo under that particular mood. The mood cannot be changed dramatically.
If you’re looking for a twilight rendering, a 12 p.m. daytime site photo won’t help a lot. AIMIR’s 3D artists are able to Photoshop the photo’s mood, but only within a small range. The vital part is the light and shadow, which are fairly difficult to deal with. It takes ages to process the incorrect photo to make the lighting relationship aligned with desired one. A 10 a.m. photo can be produced to a 2 p.m. one, but the light and shadow on the subjects will be quite contradictory and not compatible with the atmosphere at all.
In some cases, if the client is not available of providing better site photos, we will process the photo provided to make it look more compatible. Despite this, an original site photo is always the best wanted.
Use Professional Cameras or Hire Professional Photographers to Guarantee the Definition
Rendering is in the details, so as photos. You cannot expect a high-res rendering when you can only provide a 1.3M photo. We have conclude the basic quality a good site photo needs:
Resolution: equal or over 5,000 pixel both width & length. As for the file format, it doesn’t matter. We accept all formats.
Besides, we highly recommend a professional photo. A professional photo refers to a photo taken by a professional photographer with professional devices. This is because a professional knows how to present the scene in the best way. Composition, weather, color, light, and other factors will be considered at the same time.
In case of a non-professional situation, which we’ve confronted a lot, a decent photo is accepted as long as it has the right resolution. This means, not only professional photos, photos taken by your handset are accepted when they meets basic requirements. Please be cautious, the quality of the photo is the key factor of the quality of final rendering.
A high-res photo is definitely needed when expecting ordinary and spectacular rendering result.
A Well-Composed Photo with the Right Camera Angle is a Must
Camera angle is the very first presentation of your design, this is for sure. AIMIR has an article about how to choose the best camera angle for your project here. Both 3D rendering and photographs hope to achieve is that the beauty and aesthetics will resonate with its viewer. Again, this is why a professional site photo is strongly recommended. Everyone can imagine what it looks like if an amazing building got fit into a slanting, blurry photo.
The camera angle cannot be changed. The final rendering will share the same angle with the site photo.
Under certain circumstances, a site photo can be adjusted by our 3D artists. For example, a slightly slanting photo could be straightened. However, it still depends on the photo itself whether can be adjusted.
Avoid Irrelevant Objects, Such As Too Many People, Cars, Poles…
Photoshop is able to cope with most of the cases when irrelevant objects are being removed. However, there is a situation where Photoshop cannot do. When there are too many irrelevant objects in the photo that you hope to get rid of, but some of them have covered the main part of the building. It will result in a dilemma where a “blank area” will be left on the photo when removed irrelevant objects.
If this happens and no more site photos can be provided, AIMIR’s 3D artists will use Google Earth to try to find a screenshot of the missing part. This is not always working well, because we need to take the angle and definition into consideration. If the blank part is fairly small, and also on a proper position, we may use plants or people to cover it.
These are AIMIR’s advice for selecting a good site photo when using photo composition in your 3D rendering. When you’re considering using photo composition for your project, please bear in mind these advice to save plenty of time and money. You’re also welcome to talk with AIMIR for professional advice at info@aimircg.com