High-End Visualization in Five Easy Steps Using Autodesk Revit, 3DS Max and Maxwell Render

Overview of Maxwell Render™ the Light Simulator

Maxwell Render™ is a rendering engine based on the mathematical equations governing light transport, meaning that all elements, such as emitters, materials and cameras, are derived from physically accurate models. Maxwell Render™ is Unbiased, which signifies that no tricks or interpolations are used to calculate the lighting solution in every pixel of a scene; the result will always be a correct solution without introducing artifacts.

Maxwell Render™ can fully capture all light interactions between all elements in a scene, and all lighting calculations are performed using spectral information and high dynamic range data.

Due to its very nature, Maxwell Render™ enables users to create accurate and extremely realistic images, producing authentic illumination without resorting to the tricks and approximations used by many current industry standard renderers.

The Maxwell Learning Curve

Maxwell Render™ is based on how light interacts with objects and materials in the real world, so the concepts behind it are easy and intuitive to learn. You don’t have to learn many parameters with strange terminology that have no equivalent in the real world - you work more like a digital photographer.

You set up your lights using real world values, you adjust the camera using real camera parameters and let Maxwell Render™ handle the rest.

This intuitive workflow is also flexible enough to allow for in-depth technical experiments, reviews or renders, if that is what you’re looking for.

Introduction - What makes a good rendering?

I often hear that architectural visualization is “too expensive”, “too difficult” or “too specialized” for it to be done ‘in-house’ in a design studio, with the tight budgets and timeframes. I tend to think otherwise…

The world of architectural visualization is changing, the tools we are using today are more sophisticated and easier to use and some have even begun to mimic the world of digital photography.

In this session I will unlock some of the secrets to architectural visualization and rendering using Autodesk Revit, Autodesk 3DS Max using the Maxwell Rendering engine.

Once you understand the basics of creating an architectural visualization you will be able to build on your skill set by studying the work of other professionals in the industry like Smoothe,Uniform and Neoscape.

Digital Photography Techniques

With modern rendering engines becoming more like digital cameras I feel it’s important to touch on some of the basics that go into making a good photograph as, these techniques can be applied directly to architectural visualization. This is especially important when using the Maxwell rendering engine as, it’s based upon the real world simulation of light and photography and understanding the basics behind photography can help unlock a difficult and complex scene.

• Rule of Thirds: Imagine your scene is divided into thirds both horizontally and vertically.
  
  
  
  
• Lines and Shapes: Look for simple shapes in your subject matter these can help to simplify complex scenes and add visual interest.
  
  
  
  Images courtesy of Uniform, Liverpool, UK
  
  
• Balance: Try to pick out the dominant subjects, like people, buildings, trees and arrange them so that they compliment each other. This can mean either symmetrical balancing, where objects of equal size are positioned on either side of the picture's center, or asymmetrical balancing, where objects of different sizes are used on either side of the picture's centre.

Exposure: The amount of light collected by the sensor in your camera during a single picture. If the shot is exposed too long the photograph will be washed out. If the shot is exposed too short the photograph will appear too dark. If you know how to control your exposure settings you can get creative results, refer to the resources section at the end of this document for an online tool for calculating the correct exposure settings.

Depth of Field (DOF): This term refers to the areas of the photograph both in front and behind the main focus point that remain "sharp" (in focus). DOF is affected by the Aperture, subject distance, Focal length, and film or sensor format. A larger Aperture (smaller f-number, e.g. f/2) has a shallow Depth of Field. Anything behind or in front of the main focus point will appear blurred. A smaller Aperture (larger f-number, e.g. f/11) has a greater Depth of Field. Objects within a certain range behind or in front of the main focus point will also appear sharp.

Bringing it all together: Below are some inspirational images from Smoothe combining the above mentioned photography techniques of composition, scene lighting, exposure, Depth of Field and colour balance.