Jim Leggitt / Drawing Shortcuts

Creating Water Reflections in SketchUp Models

 

If you are familiar with using Google SketchUp as a design concept modeling tool, you will have at one time or another been challenged to create a reflection in water. My friends who have developed the SketchUp software have deferred the task of modeling reflections to other software developers. If you do not have rendering software, you can create water reflections within SketchUp by “faking” the reflections through duplicate modeling. The steps shown below are from a small model I created to demonstrate both the simple SketchUp reflection option and a second, more effective option using SU Podium, a photo realistic rendering plugin.

 

Basic SketchUp Model. For the purpose of this demonstration, I built a "stage set" SketchUp model showing a small swimming pool and building located on the edge of a lake. Simple shapes without much detail.

 

Added Model Entourage. Trees and people were 2D and the furniture was copied from a previous SketchUp model. I added a blue color to the water and adjusted the sun angle and shadow settings (Light 80 and Dark 60). The scene was saved with a normal 55mm focal length.

 

Flipped Component. I selected the entire scene minus the base and created a component. Using the scale tool, I then dragged the blue scale about the opposite point - basically creating a 3D mirror image of the component!

Reposition Component. I moved the mirrored component beneath the original model to establish the 3D model reflection. Always create your models using components and layers to keep your projects organized. Save often.

 

Adjusted Shadow Setting. I unchecked the “Display: On Ground” in my model's Shadow Settings dialog box. This prevented the lower mirrored component from being shadowed by the terrace and ground.

 

Adjusted Water Transparency. This reflection was very muted due to the transparency of the blue material I used for the water. I edited the color and made it more transparent to achieve the optimum effect of a reflection. Always look for methods in which you can improve your model by adjusting view angles, materials, sun and shading, and overall composition.

Improved SketchUp Water Reflection. Without spending a lot of time with this demonstration model, I was able to create the illusion of a water reflection using a duplicate model positioned beneath the original. This reflection effect can also be accomplished using Photoshop using multiple images spliced together.

SU Podium Rendering Without Water. Using the photo realistic SketchUp plugin SU Podium, rendered the scene without setting any reflective characteristics for the water material. The resulting image was a nicely rendered building and glass, but no reflection in the water. It is important to keep adjusting and readjusting your reflection settings in SU Podium to achieve the best results. Be patient!

Completed Water Reflection. I adjusted the reflectivity of the material that I used for water and rendered the scene using the SketchUp plugin SU Podium. Compare this photo realistic rendering with the image made strictly with SketchUp and compare the differences in shadow variations, water reflection, glass transparency and overall color. If you have future SketchUp modeling projects, become familiar with the many different software programs that will enable you to improve your modeling!

  

Look for other interesting articles on my blog, visit my website www.drawingshortcuts.com and read my new book Drawing Shortcuts Second Edition. NEW! - The 2010 Blog Collection , a 116-page catalog of my best blog posts from 2010 is now available on Blurb!  http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/1963744

 

Coloring Options for Drawings - Traditional to Digital

 

There are many variations for coloring a drawing and each has its unique characteristic and appearance. This drawing exercise shows four different coloring options generated from an original pen and ink drawing. Whether you are using traditional colored pencils and color markers or digital painting methods, the results are equally exciting if you take the time to add color variety, hatching and shadows. Here are the different coloring options from a small retail terrace and storefront concept design project.

 

Original Drawing. I created a symmetrical two-point perspective of a small terrace. The hand drawing was "eye-balled" from imagination (no photograph or 3D model was used to establish the perspective) and drawn on 11x17” matte finish Mylar with a Staedtler Lumocolor pen. I scanned the original artwork in color at 300 dpi.

 

Printing Options. If you are unable to scan and print the original artwork, make a standard photo copy on 11x17” bond paper and color that print. Some copiers use powdered toner instead of ink and you must be careful when using markers on those copies as the marker will tend to melt the toner and smear the linework. The coloring options below are made from both copies and inkjet prints.

 

Option 1 - Color Pencil on Standard Copy. The original artwork was copied onto bond paper using a standard office toner based copier. I colored the print entirely with Prismacolor pencils, building up the tones with different shades of color. Coloring a large drawing solely with colored pencils can take quite a while.

 

Option 2 - Colored Marker on Ink Jet Print. I scanned the original artwork at 300dpi and printed it onto 11x17” bond paper using my Epson Workforce 1100 wide format ink jet printer. I then colored the image with Chartpak AD markers, building up the colors from the lightest to the darkest. Notice how the sky color is uneven due to the marker soaking into the paper. This option is very quick and effective for color studies.

 

Option 3 - Combined Color Pencil and Marker. Taking the print that was colored with markers one step further, I added some Prismacolor pencil highlights and hatching to the sky and ground surfaces. The colored pencil created  variations in the sky and texture to the ground surfaces. Applying colored pencils over marker base colors is an effective combination of color and character.

 

Option 4 - Digital Coloring. Using a Wacom Cintiq 15sx that I’ve owned since 2002, I added color directly over the base drawing using a pressure sensitive stylus pen. The Cintiq is a touch screen monitor that allows you to draw and color directly on screen using Photoshop software.

 

Basic Digital Coloring. Many visualists call this process “digital painting” which involves adding color on different layers in Photoshop. This basic coloring style involved some solid coloring of objects and gradient coloring of the sky and grass. Digital coloring can be as quick as traditional coloring provided you have either a standard Wacom tablet or Wacom Cintiq monitor. All coloring was done on the11x17” size image at 300dpi.

 

Enhanced Digital Coloring. Using several brush types, I added more drawing hatching to the ground surfaces and class. Compare the two digital drawings and see how the brush strokes and hatching added more character to the lower image.

  

Look for other interesting articles on my blog, visit my website www.drawingshortcuts.com and read my new book Drawing Shortcuts Second Edition. NEW! - The 2010 Blog Collection , a 116-page catalog of my best blog posts from 2010 is now available on Blurb!  http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/1963744

 

Design Process Modeling with SketchUp

The images in this article are from a design visualization process that took only 5 weeks from first site diagrams to the final photo realistic renderings, presentation model and animation! I wrote a blog post about this China competition on my February 15, 2011 blog “Design Concept Visualization with SketchUp” and wanted to explain in more detail about my modeling process - specifically how Google SketchUp integrated into the design process and final presentation graphics.

Due to a condensed timeline: 3 weeks for concept development and 2 weeks for production of presentation material, our team had to move quickly from initial plan diagrams on paper to 3D SketchUp models in order to visualize the horizontal site relationships and vertical massing. Several generations of computer models helped us visualize the design and communicate progress to our partner firm in China. 

 

Project Team. Our competition team LLG International included (l to r) West Li, Bo Zhang, Hill Guan, myself and Jeff Lakey (not in the photo). We teamed with Shenzhen Architectural Design Institute (SADI), one of the largest firms in China. 

 

Early Concept Model. Our first explorations into visualizing the program elements involved quick SketchUp models. We developed many of these block models to study massing and distribution of the residential, office, retail and conference center uses. Model Size: 1335 edges, 575 faces.

Model Refinements. Once the team selected the preferred design concept based on dance and movement, we built several SketchUp models, each with more detail than the previous version. The models were constructed over hand drawn site plans and eventually over more detailed AutoCAD plans that were developed concurrently with the 3D models. Model Size: 19,600 edges, 4,995 faces.

Final Detailed Model. Our 3-week design process produced a full set of AutoCAD plans and elevations, along with a detailed SketchUp model. The AutoCAD site plan was inserted into the model and several of the team members constructed individual building components that were constantly being updated into the master model. The SketchUp model was sent to SADI and used as the basis for producing all of the presentation material. Model Size: 442,360 edges, 173,632 faces.

Presentation Physical Model. This highly detailed physical model based on our 3D computer model was constructed in China by the SADI team in less than two weeks!

  

SketchUp Model as Base for Presentation.  Using our SketchUp model, the SADI team developed more than a dozen photorealistic renderings and the illuminated physical presentation model. AutoCAD plans and sections, SketchUp models and text descriptions were all needed to maintain successful project coordination with SADI in such a short amount of time.

Office Tower Model. Information generated in our detailed SketchUp model was translated directly into the photo realistic presentation rendering.

Selected Model Views. The final presentation graphics included multiple SketchUp model views of the project. Each scene was numbered and identified in the key plan.

 

  

Added Detail with Renderings. The SketchUp model represented window mullions as single lines and included tower elements that were eventually modified or eliminated in the final renderings. Using a SketchUp model as the primary design tool in quick turnaround competitions is very effective for making rapid design decisions and communicating ideas with other competition partners.

  

Look for other interesting articles on my blog, visit my website www.drawingshortcuts.com and read my new book Drawing Shortcuts Second Edition. NEW! - The 2010 Blog Collection , a 116-page catalog of my best blog posts from 2010 is now available on Blurb!  http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/1963744

 

Design Concept Visualization with SketchUp

 

I recently participated in a design competition for a mixed use development in Kunming, China that included corporate offices, high-rise residential, conference center and a commercial mall within a compact site. My team was pleased to learn that Kunming, a sister city with Denver, Colorado, was known for a popular Chinese cultural dance named the peacock dance.

Inspired by the beautiful solo Peacock Dance by Yang LiPing, we developed our design concept around her movement. I developed a series of Google SketchUp models for the competition and hand drawn perspectives that eventually were turned into photo realistic renderings. Some of the process images are as follows:

 

 

Plan Evolution. The primary design concept for the development was derived from our analysis of Yang LiPing’s performance: frame, space and movement. The curvilinear linework reflected the dancer’s body frame and various arm and leg poses. The space created between the dancer’s overlapping arms and legs generated locations for program areas. Dance is an ever changing series of actions, motions and views. Movement was translated into the urban plan by the introduction of linear elements in the landscape, paving patterns and water.

 

First SketchUp Concept Model. As we refined the plan diagram during the first days of the competition, I quickly built a SketchUp massing model to investigate the building forms, heights and to test the concept of dance (frame, space and movement).

SketchUp Study Model. As the design concept progressed, I built another more detailed SketchUp model of the buildings to further understand the architectural massing and facades.

 

Final Competition Model. This SketchUp model was a third generation model of the design. Placed on an AutoCAD base, the buildings were developed with enough detail to inform the consultants who eventually produced a physical model and numerous photo realistic renderings. Our team identified several interior perspectives and I added detail to specific areas inside of the model to visualize the mall's interior.

View Studies. Prior to starting the photo realistic competition renderings, I studied numerous SketchUp model scenes. Adjustments in the model lighting helped establish sun angles and shading, and dramatic night views of the towers.

Hand Drawing of Retail Courtyard.  Sketched over a wide angle model view, I created an overlay and trace drawing showing restaurant spaces, health club, water feature and signage. The 11x17" perspective was drawn on trace and colored with Chartpak AD markers.

Night View Composite Scan. I exported a SketchUp model scene with evening lighting, then combined the image with my hand drawing and modified it in Photoshop to simulate an evening scene at the retail courtyard. I could have introduced digital painting effects to the image but chose not to use this night view in the final presentation.

Day Time Composite Scan. This double exposure combined the original daytime SketchUp model scene with my hand drawing. The drawing detail highlighted landscaping, people, graphics and other entourage elements while the SketchUp model view captured the architectural massing and building detail.

Interior Mall Rendering. I developed the SketchUp model interior with enough detail to understand the mall structure, paving patterns, escalators and storefronts. Tracing over a printed view from SketchUp, I created a pen and ink drawing colored with Chartpak AD markers. The images above show my drawing with and without the SketchUp scene. Notice how the sky and distant building are visible in the composite scan. My hand drawing served as the basis and art direction for a formal photo realistic rendering that was created by consultants for the competition. 

  

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

NEW! - The 2010 Blog Collection , a 116-page catalog of my best blog posts from 2010 is now available on Blurb!  http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/1963744

 

 

Oversized Drawings From SketchUp Models

Large planning projects often demand oversized plan graphics and renderings to visualize the detail of multiple structures, roadways, pedestrian paths, landscape concepts and entourage. When working on early concept designs for big site areas, a design team might generate several hand drawn plan alternatives, eventually refining the layout and proceeding with 3D models and perspectives. Unlike small design projects, visualizing large master plans must be drawn at a large format.

The planning project shown below is an example of just how large these graphics can become. The project was a proposed mixed use development including a sports complex, resort hotel and residential. The client visualized the entire development with an Italian hill town character. My 3D/2D visualization process is as follows:

 

Step One - Hand Drawn Plans. The planning team developed several generations of hand drawn site plans for the project, first using a very rough sketchy style with side notes, then with a more refined illustrative style that was more carefully detailed.

 

Step Two - Google SketchUp Model. I scanned the preferred site plan and imported the jpeg into SketchUp as an image and resized the model base to the correct scale. Tracing over each building footprint, I constructed a massing model that had mostly white 3D building shapes and light brown roof forms. The detail was minimal, but enough to understand complex shapes, roof forms and special features such as tower elements. I built four different villa prototypes and copied them throughout the plan in different combinations. I then exported the model as a high resolution jpeg, lightened the image in Photoshop and then plotted it at 30”x44” on heavy weight presentation coated bond paper.

 

Step Three - Final Delineation and Color. Working on a flat table surface for most of the drawing process, I illustrated the buildings, landscaping and entourage with a Pilot Fineliner pen. I enhanced the color with Chartpak AD markers and added highlights with a white Prismacolor pencil. I taped the aerial perspective to a wall shortly before a client presentation and added final detail to the large drawing once I could stand back and view it from a distance. I call this process of illustrating over a SketchUp model view “Composite Drawing” which is an effective method of creating hybrid drawings that merge SketchUp modeling with hand drawing!

Final Oversized Drawing. The final perspective included enough detail to understand the basic architectural concept, tiled roofs, window patterns, tree patterns, open spaces and general integrated theme of the development. If you have a similar large planning project, try this approach of merging a 3D model view with hand drawing. The results are quick to produce and very effective for early concept visualization.

 

 

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

NEW! - The 2010 Blog Collection , a 116-page catalog of my best blog posts from 2010 is now available on Blurb!  http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/1963744