Jim Leggitt / Drawing Shortcuts

Building A SketchUp Model for Multiple Drawings

 

The project illustrated below is one that involved the construction of a large and detailed “stage set” SketchUp model and development of a series of Tradigital (hybrid) renderings depicting a waterfront pedestrian promenade. The process involved a number of steps in which I refined views, added detail to the model, reviewed progress images with my client and eventually produced the final hand drawn perspectives. Here are the multiple steps in which I created two images that visualized the pedestrian walkway overlooking a marina.

 

Step One - Site Context Model. I established the project massing and plan based on a site aerial photograph from Google Earth.

Step Two - Basic SketchUp Model Detail. The overall model consisted of a uniform level of architectural detail in the building massing and introduction of numerous boat components found on 3D Warehouse. Directly behind the waterfront model is an earlier “massing model” version of the buildings.

Step Three - Refined Model Detail. As I began to determine specific scenes such as this corner cafe, I added very detailed model elements to commercial storefronts and open spaces. The highly developed model pieces only existed in areas visible in each scene.

 

Step Four - Fine Tuning the Scene. Working closely with my client, we adjusted this pedestrian promenade view. The upper image emphasized the walkway while the lower image balanced the walkway with the marina and sea wall. We eventually agreed to proceed with the upper view. 

Step Five - Custom SketchUp Components. Being a Middle Eastern development, I needed to make sure that local people and fashions were represented in the renderings. I found appropriate photographs, imported the images into SketchUp and created my own custom people components to insert into the model.

Step Six - Completed SketchUp Model. I populated the final scene with plants, shade structure, furniture, and a mix of people in both western and Middle Eastern clothing. I then exported a high resolution jpeg that would be the basis for my final hand drawing.

Step Seven - Final Hand Drawing and Color. The exported SketchUp view was lightened in Photoshop and plotted in color 13”x24” onto heavy weight matte finish coated paper. I first added very light colored Chartpak AD markers to various elements and then retraced many of the edges and outlines with a black Prismacolor pencil. I built up the final color and texture with colored pencils and completed what I call a “composite drawing” with white colored pencil highlights. A scanned 300dpi TIFF image was used in the final client presentation.

 

Waterfront Cafe Perspective. This additional scene was constructed with an identical process as the first example. The model detail was developed in several stages, each phase being approved by the client. I used an identical drawing proportion to add consistency to this and the other four images created for the project. 

Look for other interesting articles on my blog, visit my website www.drawingshortcuts.com and read my new book Drawing Shortcuts Second Edition.

Drawings Can Fade. Watch Out!

I have recently observed a dramatic shift in the green colors with three of my recent tradigital drawings. In all cases, the color has faded to a pale yellow green from the original deep green. I am trying to determine the cause and have three possible reasons: 1) bad green marker with an unstable ink, 2) chemical reaction of the green marker to the coating on the paper, or 3) chemical reaction of the green marker to the ink printed on the paper.

All three images were based on SketchUp model views, printed onto Epson Presentation Paper using the Epson Workforce 1100 printer, and colored with the same Chartpak AD set of markers. All of the drawings faded within 5-7 months and none were exposed to any amount of direct sunlight or intense lighting. My immediate guess is that the marker ink is not the issue but the paper. I have since stopped using the paper and selected a higher quality product. 

Faded Aerial Perspective. The grass and tree colors from the original drawing made on June 19, 2010 has dramatically faded in 7 months. All other colors appear unchanged. I used two different green markers of which both faded.

Faded Pocket Park. The colors of trees and grass from the original August 15, 2010 drawing have clearly faded to yellow green in just 5 months! Three different green markers were used in the image.

 

Faded Background Tree. The basic coloring of the house facade appears similar in these two images but the background tree has faded in 7 months since the drawing was created on June 23, 2010

Lesson Learned. Every original drawing you create should be scanned in color at no less than 300dpi at the time you create the artwork. Originals can be damaged or destroyed by direct sunlight, improper storage, folding, coffee spills or for unknown reasons as with these drawings.

Look for other interesting articles on my blog, visit my website www.drawingshortcuts.com and read my new book Drawing Shortcuts Second Edition.

 

Three Hybrid Drawings from a SketchUp Model

 

My challenge was to create three renderings in four days starting with only building floor plans and elevations. Fortunately, the information given to me was in such good graphic form that I elected to construct a SketchUp model and generate the two interior and one exterior renderings straight from the 3D computer views using my hybrid technique of visualization called “Simple Composite Method”. The process involved building a SketchUp model, exporting scenes, printing the 3D views on bond paper and drawing directly onto the print using pen and ink, markers and colored pencils. I can think of no faster and effective way to create so many detailed renderings in four days!  Here is my step-by-step process:

SketchUp Model. This overhead view shows the model, built from imported plans and elevations mapped directly onto the wall surfaces. Notice the detailed inside spaces with plants, people and furniture. The two interior renderings were developed specifically from careful placement of those components. The SketchUp model took a day and a half to construct.

 

 

Step One. Import Plans and Elevations. I create the SketchUp model from accurate data given to me by my client. The model was built as a simple “stage set” model relying entirely on the imported elevations with added columns and minor facade articulation (recessing the windows). 

 

Step Two - Export Faces Only View. This image has no edges! All of the detail you see in the model is from the imported building elevation. The missing linework is in the detailed pattern of the auto drive. I determined that I would add the linework into the image with an extra step in Photoshop. I chose SketchUp's default 57mm focal length for the view.

 

Step Three - Export Lines Only View. This very blank image reveals only the SketchUp lines of the entry drive. Wanting only the ground detail, I erased the building linework and all other portions of the view in Photoshop.

Step Four - Combined Views. I merged the first two images together in Photoshop and then printed the scene onto matte finish coated bond paper at 11”x17”. The size was as large as I wanted to draw and be able to scan the final artwork in a single piece on my 11”x17” flat bed scanner.

Step Five - Hand Drawn Linework. Drawing directly onto the print with a Pilot Rolling Ball pen, I illustrated additional landscaping, traced over the primary building edges and window mullions with loosely drawn linework. This hand drawn step took only about an hour to accomplish.

 

Step Six - Final Color. I added Chartpak AD markers and Prismacolor pencils in about another hour. The coloring process focused on the windows, ground plane and shadows. Colored pencils added a loose texture to the landscaping and dome. I scanned the final rendering as a TIFF image at 300dpi.

 

 

 

Interior Pool Level View. This view of the lower level was developed using the basic step-by-step process as the exterior rendering. I composed the SketchUp scene using a 35mm wide angle focal length with the two-point perspective camera setting. Due to the enormous scale of the space, I increased the size of the people by 25% and enlarged the interior plants to fill up the scene. 

 

Interior Upper Level View with Mirrors. This scene was developed in a similar process as the other renderings with one exception. Large mirrors surrounding the space required accurate reflections and the SketchUp model alone could not generate the mirror effect. I rendered the SketchUp model using the plugin SU Podium and spliced the actual mirror reflections into the exported model view using Photoshop.

Final Linework and Color. I printed the image onto coated bond paper, completed the linework with a Pilot Rolling Ball pen and colored the rendering with Chartpak AD markers and Prismacolor pencils. I added a slight yellow hatching to emphasize the overhead lighting. Notice how the exterior wall mirrors turned out using that extra step of photorealistic rendering of the SketchUp model.

Look for other interesting articles on my blog, visit my website www.drawingshortcuts.com and read my new book Drawing Shortcuts Second Edition.

 

Visualizing a Church Design with SketchUp

Combining plan graphics, hand drawing and 3D SketchUp modeling must be carefully thought through before beginning any project. The process I developed for the concept design of a church began as a charrette in which our team generated quick site plan alternatives and hand drawn floor plans of the first phase construction.

As the project continued into further concept design, we generated hand drawn perspectives used for public presentations and eventually built more refined Google SketchUp study models showing the first phase and future expansion of the church. Many of our process visualization is as follows:

 

Concept Design Charrette. This site aerial view is a SketchUp massing model built on a hand drawn site plan scanned and imported into the model. Study models like this gave the church team a clear understanding of massing, phasing and overall site circulation.

 

Hand Drawn Floor Plan. The first phase of the church program was developed during the charrette, colored and used in design presentations. I scanned the line drawing and imported it into SketchUp to build our first 3D study models showing the dramatic lobby space and roof design.

SketchUp Model with Minimal Detail. The first 3D study model was intentionally developed with a minimal amount of building detail. Notice how the walls have no thickness and the window mullions are single lines. When creating early concept design SketchUp models, put just enough information into the model in order to communicate your design intent and avoid time consuming "over detailing" of your model!

 

Presentation Drawings. The two perspectives above were developed from SketchUp model views but for entirely different presentations. The (upper) close up view of the church was quickly drawn with a Pentel Sign pen on trace and colored with Chartpak AD markers. It has minimal detail as an “in-progress” concept sketch.  The (lower) overall church view was a more detailed drawing used in a formal presentation. It was drawn with a fine point pen on vellum, copied onto bond paper and colored with markers and Prismacolor pencils. 

 

 

Concept Development Models. As the church design progressed, I built several different study models to help visualize design refinements of the building exterior and interior spaces. The two SketchUp model views above show different approaches to exporting model views. The upper view is a perspective that reveals more of the massing and facade design. It should have been exported at a higher resolution to sharpen the line detail of the model. The lower view is a straight forward elevation of the building that emphasizes the overall graphic pattern of the facade and roof heights. 

  

Interior Study Models and Sketch. Two of the main circulation spaces were studied in SketchUp model form with very limited detail. I sketched over one of the model views to visualize a lobby complete with furniture, plants, banners and activity. The colorful model view was built to illustrate a large multi-purpose space for a future addition to the church.

Look for other interesting articles on my blog, visit my website www.drawingshortcuts.com and read my new book Drawing Shortcuts Second Edition.

 

Drawing Process: Photography or SketchUp Model?

I’m constantly evaluating different design visualization options and have had great success drawing from digital photographs. My typical process is to print the photo on 8.5x11” paper and do an overlay and trace sketch. The resulting drawing is quick to generate, has a believable perspective and is an effective presentation when both the photo and drawing are shown together to communicate a “before and after” story. 

An alternative to tracing directly from a digital photograph is to build a simple Google SketchUp model using the Photo Match tool and then generate a drawing from it. This alternative method of creating a 3D model is more time consuming, but it has certain advantages over the photo-tracing method. By creating a SketchUp model from your photograph, you can accurately insert landscaping, people, furniture, graphics and other elements that help visualize your design concept. In the example below, I’ve shown both alternatives; tracing directly from a photograph and drawing from a SketchUp Photo Match model.

 

Original Photograph. This digital photo was taken of a waterfront warehouse in northern California. I composed the photo with the intent to create a drawing that might represent how the building could be converted to a new use.

 

Quick Drawing from the Photo. This is the drawing I created by printing the digital photo on 8.5x11” paper and sketching over the image on trace with a Pentel Sign pen and Chartpak AD markers. The drawing took about one hour to create.

 

 

SketchUp Photo Match Model. I built this SketchUp model using the Photo Match tool in about one hour. After adjusting the scale of the model, I placed people into the scene and built an accurate plaza with bollards in between the three buildings. This method is very effective if you are needing to include detailed objects into your scene with precision and scale.

Class Drawing Exercise. I gave an assignment to my University of Colorado graduate students asking them to explore different rendering options using the SketchUp Photo Match image as a base. They first created an overlay hand drawing of the scene, scanned the black and white line drawing, and then digitally colored the image  in Photoshop.  Four of the student drawings are shown below.

Look for other interesting articles on my blog, visit my website www.drawingshortcuts.com and read my new book Drawing Shortcuts Second Edition.