3D Modeling and Rendering for Hillcrest Surfside in Florida, USA: Case Study
Chloe Leong
Senior Project Manager at AIMIR CG Professional in 3D Rendering | Animation | VR
Nikola from?ODP Architects?brought us a new project in May 2021. It was a residential project in Florida. She would needed the?3D renderings?to get the project approved and show the owner the vision was worthy investing in. This project had been through back-and-forth and design changes. Two images are finalized until January 2022, and we are working on more images now.
Hillcrest Surfside and Surfside Seaway are two residential buildings which share the same owner. Surfside Seaway was approved and under construction while the project Hillcrest Surfside started. This time, AIMIR was going to create 3D works for this stunning residential structure from the very beginning. At the same time, the images needed to share the same materiality of the images of Surfside Seaway. This way, both projects could show to the world with consistency.
Hillcrest Surfside
?Facing the Surfside Beach, Hillcrest Surfside is a 10-story residential structure with a basement for parking and a rooftop. The project size is 58,980 square feet. There is an infinity edge swimming pool on ground floor, along with some stairs that go down to the rear yard. For the fa?ade, Hillcrest mainly uses glass walls with vertical louvers. These Carlisle windows with bronze non-reflective texture add a shimmering skin under the sun.
As the structure shares the same owner with Surfside Seaway, which is another residential building next to it, we’ve studies the 3D rendering previously done for it.
Our aim was to create 3D renderings which went along with the lighting, materials, and mood with those of Surfside Seaway.
The Model
?We’ve received a Revit model including the project and the structure next to it. Because Nikola hoped to have both buildings in the images.
However, Nikola expressed their concern about the design, and said the model might need to change. As a result, we had to suspend this project.
In December, Nikola brought us the updated model. The rooftop was redesigned with a more welcoming space, the ground floor has a ramp for entry, and other nice features.
Surrounding Context
?For the surrounding context, we decided to build the models of ambient structures.
Compared with other methods, modeling is the most complicated way of dealing with surroundings. This is because it costs obviously more time than other methods, and incurs modeling fees at the same time. However, modeling gives nearly 100% accuracy of the original site. Moreover, the tone and mood of the image is easier to be aligned.
For more information about how to choose the suitable method handling surrounding context, please refer to this blog:?4 Typical Methods of Dealing with Surrounding Context in Architectural Visualization.
?Material, Texture, Lighting & Postproduction
?For this special project, we didn’t have much room to create. To follow the previously-done 3D images, we studies these images and decided to come to the result straightforward.
Before that, we had went through other supporting information, for example the landscape plan. Nikola addressed the significant role of the landscaping. In order to keep consistency, the two projects should share the same landscaping.
After studying the provided images, our 3D artists learnt the way to follow the mood of the landscaping, which included:
Above is the rendering of Surfside Seaway, and below is a corner of our final rendering of Hillcrest Surfside. We strictly followed the rules and created a world in Surfside with consistency.
Ongoing Story
?This is not the end of story. In January 2022, ODP Architects would like to have a few more 3D renders to demonstrate various sides of the structure. Therefore, we started working on other camera angles immediately.
This time, we needed to keep the same mood while showcase the building in various perspectives. The 3D images were finished in March, and we will share them as soon as they are ready to see the world.
?What do you think about this residential project in the U.S.? Should you have any concerns regarding to this project, or any question about?3D architectural visualization, or anything about your project, please feel free to talk to us at?[email protected]. AIMIR has been specializing in 3D Architectural Visualization from 2006. Contact us now and get your idea fly high!