SketchUp 2014 for Architectural Visualization

Create stunning photorealistic and artistic visuals of your SketchUp models with this book and eBook

Overview

• Take advantage of the new features of SketchUp 2014
• Create picture-perfect photo-realistic 3D architectural renders for your SketchUp models
• Post-process SketchUp output to create digital watercolor and pencil art
• Make the most of SketchUp with the best plugins and add-on software to enhance your models

In Detail

SketchUp is an amazing and remarkably powerful 3D modeling software used by millions of architects, visualizers, and drafters across the globe. It allows you to create animated 3D drawings and photorealistic renderings that approximate real-life objects easily.

This book is the perfect introduction to SketchUp 2014. It will help you to get started quickly and efficiently to produce and present commercial quality photorealistic or artistic outputs of your designs. It will teach you how to plan and set up the content of your scenes, use SketchUp and professional rendering software to produce stunning visuals and animations, and how to add an artistic touch to your images.

What you will learn from this book

• Produce a photorealistic rendering of a scene modeled in SketchUp
• Render ultra-realistic soft shadows from multiple light sources
• Master the low polygon modeling techniques that you need to adopt for visualizations
• Work with texturing techniques utilizing PhotoMatch and your own digital photos
• Enhance your models by adding depth of field and other postprocessing tricks in GIMP
• Devise movie-set scenes to digitally photograph your projects
• Enhance your SketchUp scenes by adding lamps, sun, and sky lighting
• Add smooth camera paths for airborne and walk-through animations
• Learn all of the simple tricks to ensure you get great-looking models when rendered

Approach

Beginning with a quick start tutorial which will get you up and running with SketchUp 2014 quickly, you will move on to learning the key skills you will need to wow your clients with stunning visualizations through a series practical steps, tips and tricks.

Who this book is written for

If you are a SketchUp user, from an amateur right through to an architectural technician, professional architect, or designer, this is the book for you. This book is also suitable as a companion to any architectural design or multimedia course, and is accessible to anyone who has learned the basics of SketchUp.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Quick Start Tutorial
Chapter 2: Collecting a Toolset
Chapter 3: Composing the Scene
Chapter 4: Modeling for Visualization
Chapter 5: Applying Textures and Materials for Photorealistic Rendering
Chapter 6: Entourage the SketchUp Way
Chapter 7: Non-photoreal Visuals with SketchUp
Chapter 8: Photorealistic Rendering
Chapter 9: Postproduction in GIMP
Chapter 10: Animations
Chapter 11: Presenting Visuals in LayOut
Chapter 12: Interactive Visualization
Appendix: Choosing a Rendering Software