Best architectural rendering software and CAD software

[mBox]

Im old school with formZ.
Not sure but is there even a package deal for Max and ACAD?
ACAD would be legal as far as Archi work goes but would not say Max is.
Ive had to bring in dxf to dwg into Max years ago and found units and odd situations with the Poly.
Now at 2011 not sure how these all work.
Last time I used Max and ACAD together was 2003.
Btw RENDERMAN would be tricky for Archi work.
I use it with Maya and it runs great but getting it together with other Archi apps could be a chore.

 

[jrichie]

max and acad are the perfect combo in terms of interoperability.

Revit and Max is great too.

Funnily enough they are all Autodesk products.......................

However, Revit is now pretty good on its own for renders, and is normally enough for a client. Only would need to go to Max if really good quality renders are required.

 

[Mac Kiwi]

The thing about creating a really nice render { architectural or otherwise } is knowledge of your software, or knowing how to light your scene and adjust the materials from that point on. I guess the most important thing is though, how much time do you have at your disposal? because a nice render takes a lot of tweaking and re tweaking settings and even then take quite a few days rendering depending how long it is.


I guess the easier route would be get Max etc { something which plays nice with CAD } and buy your models { can be re used } learn some about the renderer for your software, render then colour grade in After effects etc, which can make an average render look a great deal better.


This is whats possible if you have the time and talent and a great deal of experience....he takes it to a whole new level...jmo

http://www.thirdseventh.com/

 

[glidagida]

Interior renders

Very useful thread!

What would you guys recommend for rendering of interiors?

I have a construction business, and getting render done outside is expensive. I'm a civil engineer and know how to use AutoCAD pretty well, but have never made a render myself, but I would like to start learning.

Hi HP
As a manager in your business, don’t be tempted to get a complicated high end renderer with a steep learning curve. You will not be able to dedicate the time needed to master it and when your attention is taken away putting out spot fires you lose the continuity needed to be productive. Been there, done that.

What you need is a simple to learn combo that you can put down for a month and then pick up again and get reasonable results. My suggestion is to concentrate on ease of use first. I have suggested 3 easy to learn combos but the results you can get with Bonsai 3D+ Maxwell Render with minimum learning is amazing. See the series at:

http://www.getmethod.com/blog/2011/...onzai3d-general-overview-and-getting-sta.html

Demo of Bonsai 3D + Maxwell Render Plugin
Demo of Live Interior 3D Pro + export to [Google Sketchup + Maxwell Plugin]
Free Google Sketchup + free Maxwell render plugin

All three you can try for free and see if any do it for you.

Cheers
GG

 

[HarryPot]

Hi HP
As a manager in your business, don’t be tempted to get a complicated high end renderer with a steep learning curve. You will not be able to dedicate the time needed to master it and when your attention is taken away putting out spot fires you lose the continuity needed to be productive. Been there, done that.

What you need is a simple to learn combo that you can put down for a month and then pick up again and get reasonable results. My suggestion is to concentrate on ease of use first. I have suggested 3 easy to learn combos but the results you can get with Bonsai 3D+ Maxwell Render with minimum learning is amazing. See the series at:

http://www.getmethod.com/blog/2011/...onzai3d-general-overview-and-getting-sta.html

Demo of Bonsai 3D + Maxwell Render Plugin
Demo of Live Interior 3D Pro + export to [Google Sketchup + Maxwell Plugin]
Free Google Sketchup + free Maxwell render plugin

All three you can try for free and see if any do it for you.

Cheers
GG

Thanks!

Some of the renders of Maxwell Render look very promising.

And I agree I don't want to loose much time learning. My goal is to eventually make the renders in-house, but the idea is to hire someone to do it. But I really want to learn to do renders that doesn't look like cartoons, it's maybe more of a personal goal than a business goal.

Anyways, I'm downloading Maxwell Render.

 

[harryhood]

Any reccomendations on the best CAD software for beginners? I was gonna use Google Sketchup. It will be used for prototyping plastic items and printed with a 3D printer (RepRap printers).

Thanks!

 

[JOxenfe]

Any reccomendations on the best CAD software for beginners? I was gonna use Google Sketchup. It will be used for prototyping plastic items and printed with a 3D printer (RepRap printers).

Thanks!

SketchUp is a pretty basic 3D modeling that is good for planar modeling. The learning curve is really short. (Group and make components!... it will save head aches later on)

If you're going to be modeling curved surfaces, sketchUp is not your best option. Also, the export options for the free version are somewhat limited and you may need to pay the $99 for the pro version.

Best of luck!

 

[chotao]

best software packages for macbook pro for interior design

Hi guys,

New to this forum and need help! Been working as an interior design for a italian furniture company for a while and now Im finally pushing myself to becoming a freelance designer. Does anybody know what software is best for a macbook pro to design with??? AutoCad? vectorworks? etc...

 

[Shahidkapoor]

Hi guys,

New to this forum and need help! Been working as an interior design for a italian furniture company for a while and now Im finally pushing myself to becoming a freelance designer. Does anybody know what software is best for a macbook pro to design with??? AutoCad? vectorworks? etc...

Did you check live interior 3D pro?

 

[chotao]

Did you check live interior 3D pro?

Yeah that was one I thought would be the most useful.

so many places are still wanting vectorworks.

 

[Shahidkapoor]

Yeah that was one I thought would be the most useful.

so many places are still wanting vectorworks.

by the way do you know any good rendering softwares? if you come across any, please let me know. Thanks.

 

[glidagida]

Try Domus.CAD Pro

Hi guys,

New to this forum and need help! Been working as an interior design for a italian furniture company for a while and now Im finally pushing myself to becoming a freelance designer. Does anybody know what software is best for a macbook pro to design with??? AutoCad? vectorworks? etc...

The suggestion for live interior pro is a good one.

Vectorworks is also good but possibly the screen on the MBPro will be too small?

As you are in Italy try Domus.Cad Pro for Euro 799 [US$999]. It is very fast and pretty close to ArchiCad as they both had the same root programme but is waaay easier to use and learn. The other thing for Italy is automatic lodgement of DOCFA [Building Regulation] documentation which might be a great thing for you. The English version is out soon, I hope.

http://www.interstudio.net/DomusCad.html

For Italian site and if you want English just press the Union Jack at the bottom of the menu.

Cheers
Glidagida

----------

by the way do you know any good rendering softwares? if you come across any, please let me know. Thanks.

Hi Shahidkapoor

Check my post #31

"Renderer
Here most PC guys say that 3DS Max is the best and it is relatively easy to learn at a basic level [again I used to teach it to architects] but there are much better programmes on the Mac like Cinema 4D [C4D] which has a sweet interface, is much easier to learn and the results are stunning. Another excellent rendering programme is Cheetah 3D for around $149US. It has forum only documentation so the learning curve can be tough, but the results are excellent, refer to Tim Danaher's earlier post in this topic. Other programmes to consider: Vue 9? - promising. Modo? - promising, but 'stingy' manufacturer slugs $25 for a trial demo. Maxwell Render? One of the top programmes with C4D. Artlantis? - OK, but a workhorse. Piranesi? - most programmes have caught up and have 'sketch' render modes, but still worth it if you want that 'artistic' presentation. Form Z? - From same manufacturer as b3d, its b3d on steroids with 2D drafting thrown in."

My suggestion would be start with Maxwell Render and Cheetah 3D and go from there, both great programmes and very 'Mac' not ported PC.

Cheers
Glidagida

 

[twietee]

As you are in Italy try Domus.Cad Pro for Euro 799 [US$999]. It is very fast and pretty close to ArchiCad as they both had the same root programme but is waaay easier to use and learn. The other thing for Italy is automatic lodgement of DOCFA [Building Regulation] documentation which might be a great thing for you. The English version is out soon, I hope.

Cheers
Glidagida

Hi Glidagida

you're from italy I assume. Can you give some info about Domus in comparison to ArchiCAD please? I drew for about 8-9 years ArchiCAD only and have to use now VektorWorks at work, well for 2 years now. I love ArchiCAD, but it's too expensive to buy it and use it only at home for 2d purposes (hobby, small projects, etc.) VektorWorks has some advantages, being much cheaper is one of them, but it lacks te elegance of ArchiCAD imho. Is the 2d workflow in Domus almost the same as in ArchiCAD?

Thank's!

[/QUOTE]

 

[pturbo]

Archicad

Hi there all,

I am a licensed Architect in the great State of California and I have been using
Archicad for over 10 years now. It is by far much better than AutoCad which i did learn first.

Maxwell Render is a fine compliment as well to that. Just my opinion. They work very well with the Mac. No Question.

pturbo

 

[twietee]

I agree completely.

Did ArchiCad vastly improve upon 3d-modelling? That was very schematic last time I used it (years ago)..my workflow: ArchiCAD 2d - export Rhino 3d - render Maxwell- finish Photoshop

Love it that way. But may have to explore more free-stuff like Bender and so..think I could save a lot of money over the years this way - but I usually hate learning new UI.

 

[twietee]

Besides, anyone out there using CAD software on the rMBP? Wonder if it is an absolute no-go right now..or a must have. I assume it's the first?

 

[atieborges]

render from autocad

HI!
I'm using auto cad for mac, and doing my 3d models with it. it goes very well!
but now i don't know which render program use...do you have any suggestions?(I use only mac, i deleted windows from my mac)
Because doing the renders in autocad seems impossible, they come always grey and very dark...
Thanks!

 

[chrono1081]

Modo? - promising, but 'stingy' manufacturer slugs $25 for a trial demo.

They have a free trial now. It's only 15 days vs 30days (The 30 day one is still $25). 15 days isn't quite enough time in my opinion and I almost didn't like Modo until I discovered two things (by nabbing a second 15 day trial on another machine):

1. Changing the viewport navigation to match Maya's (this made Modo usable for me).

2. Learning to use the workplane properly.

Once I did those two things I LOVED Modo and went and bought a license a few days later (on Tuesday actually).

I'm learning more about it every day and I absolutely love it. I'm using Modo + ZBrush vs Maya + ZBrush and I have to say Modo's modeling tools are far superior to Maya's.

And to think, without that free trial Luxology would have never gained me as a customer!

 

[dmax35]

Arris Cad.

 

[Space Penguin]

hi everyone!

I use Microspot Interiors Pro, really easy to use with great results

http://www.microspot.com/products/interiorsPro/index.htm

Space Penguin

 

[auhlixer]

What about heat?

Im in architecture school and we were required to buy autoCAD 2009 and I used bootcamp through Windows XP and it works wonderful. I havent found anything wrong after constant use of it for a month.

The mbp is notorious for getting really hot using bootcamp

 

[blanka]

For Architecture, I just recommend Sketchup with a good render plugin. The way you apply textures in Sketchup is so easy.