Simplified images of a small wood shop in Napa Valley.
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Friday, December 4, 2009
Monday, May 4, 2009
San Francisco AIA show thoughts
On Friday I went to the AIA expo in San Francisco just to check out expo floor and see what’s out there. In general it looked like a successful show, a little slower then I remember past shows, but still good. I spent some time checking out the architectural visualization companies that had booths there. I found 6 or 7. Here are some quick observing that Id like to share:
Observation 1: 5 of the 7 were based in china, had Chinese people in the booth and frankly I did not really understand why they were there. All spoke poor English and on display had mostly Asian/middle eastern projects. I understand that the AIA reaches far, but it looked to me like these companies have not really done any real work on US soil are trying to infiltrate the US market and are just not quite getting it right. The booths were a bit cheap looking and the staff was nervous and I had a hell of a time trying to communicate with them. I was a bit nervous about this invasion into the US market, but after seeing how few people were interested in even looking at them, im a little more at ease now. I met up with a few of my clients there and they told me flat out that they get pummeled by these Chinese and India companies left and right but ignore them because they are well aware of the communication issues. They tell me that having the USA based “go-to-guy” means lots to them.
Observation 2: I saw 2 very large American companies and met the owners. The owners were willing to answer some of the more private questions I asked. I was not aware how large these firms are! With the current economy sucking and they have very little work compared to the insane monthly expenses, I would be surprised if they can stay in business much longer. These people spend more money a month then I make in 4 years! Being a business owner myself, I know that all the profits from years past can be erased in a matter of 6 months for these guys! Very high stakes game they play. When I started 11 years ago doing this, I never thought that such large companies would exist. In comparison, I’m a tiny studio with essentially no expenses. Granted, I don’t do the giant projects, but I do have plenty of small projects that keep my busy. Anyway, I learned that it’s ok to be a small fish in a large pond. I think the next few years might be good for the small time operators.
Observation 3: The show seemed like a complete waste of money for all the 3D companies there. I know all about the trade shows. I did about 10-15 national shows including the AIA while I was an employee of a software company. I also have done 20 or so smaller shows with my own company over the past 10 years. I spend about 10 minutes observing each one of the company’s booths and saw essentially zero traffic in the booths. I know that these shows are expensive, and I also understand that you just need to get 1 or 2 giant projects to roll in and the show will pay for itself no problem, but it just looks like a huge risk with little pay off.
Observation 4: The Autodesk booth and Sketch up booth was overflowing with people. Literally lines of people waiting to get in. The rest of the CAD software companies it was like crickets. I saw one guy giving a demo to a 30 empty seats and honestly, 3 booths over, google sketchup people had 2 independent demos going with probably 60 people watching each, all seats taken back row people standing. This did not slow down at all during the day. Just wild! I wish we had that response when I used to do these demos with our software 10 years ago!
Anyway. These were just my observations. Our industry is defiantly at a cross roads. The 3D company booths were essentially abandoned for the sketchup and autodesk booths. It seems like architects are now going to 100% incorporate this technology into their office and will only go outside of the office for the few project that need that special sparkle. I think with what I saw with the demos of the new software’s, we are just around the corner to the “easy” button were the architect will not really need to know that much about 3D to be able to produce very nice work with very little effort. Perhaps not as good as the stuff I see you guys produce, but hey 90% of the work out there does not need the realistic or breathtaking images. Id like to hear other attendees observations if you are willing to share. All you small timers out there, keep your head high!
Observation 1: 5 of the 7 were based in china, had Chinese people in the booth and frankly I did not really understand why they were there. All spoke poor English and on display had mostly Asian/middle eastern projects. I understand that the AIA reaches far, but it looked to me like these companies have not really done any real work on US soil are trying to infiltrate the US market and are just not quite getting it right. The booths were a bit cheap looking and the staff was nervous and I had a hell of a time trying to communicate with them. I was a bit nervous about this invasion into the US market, but after seeing how few people were interested in even looking at them, im a little more at ease now. I met up with a few of my clients there and they told me flat out that they get pummeled by these Chinese and India companies left and right but ignore them because they are well aware of the communication issues. They tell me that having the USA based “go-to-guy” means lots to them.
Observation 2: I saw 2 very large American companies and met the owners. The owners were willing to answer some of the more private questions I asked. I was not aware how large these firms are! With the current economy sucking and they have very little work compared to the insane monthly expenses, I would be surprised if they can stay in business much longer. These people spend more money a month then I make in 4 years! Being a business owner myself, I know that all the profits from years past can be erased in a matter of 6 months for these guys! Very high stakes game they play. When I started 11 years ago doing this, I never thought that such large companies would exist. In comparison, I’m a tiny studio with essentially no expenses. Granted, I don’t do the giant projects, but I do have plenty of small projects that keep my busy. Anyway, I learned that it’s ok to be a small fish in a large pond. I think the next few years might be good for the small time operators.
Observation 3: The show seemed like a complete waste of money for all the 3D companies there. I know all about the trade shows. I did about 10-15 national shows including the AIA while I was an employee of a software company. I also have done 20 or so smaller shows with my own company over the past 10 years. I spend about 10 minutes observing each one of the company’s booths and saw essentially zero traffic in the booths. I know that these shows are expensive, and I also understand that you just need to get 1 or 2 giant projects to roll in and the show will pay for itself no problem, but it just looks like a huge risk with little pay off.
Observation 4: The Autodesk booth and Sketch up booth was overflowing with people. Literally lines of people waiting to get in. The rest of the CAD software companies it was like crickets. I saw one guy giving a demo to a 30 empty seats and honestly, 3 booths over, google sketchup people had 2 independent demos going with probably 60 people watching each, all seats taken back row people standing. This did not slow down at all during the day. Just wild! I wish we had that response when I used to do these demos with our software 10 years ago!
Anyway. These were just my observations. Our industry is defiantly at a cross roads. The 3D company booths were essentially abandoned for the sketchup and autodesk booths. It seems like architects are now going to 100% incorporate this technology into their office and will only go outside of the office for the few project that need that special sparkle. I think with what I saw with the demos of the new software’s, we are just around the corner to the “easy” button were the architect will not really need to know that much about 3D to be able to produce very nice work with very little effort. Perhaps not as good as the stuff I see you guys produce, but hey 90% of the work out there does not need the realistic or breathtaking images. Id like to hear other attendees observations if you are willing to share. All you small timers out there, keep your head high!
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Eli Poblitz and Bay Area Virtual reality
I recently met and worked with this amazing artist/photographer from Pacifica CA. You can find some of his work on my website at: http://www.pechara.com/work-vr.html
He specializes in creating virtual environments from photographs. We worked out a technique were the same can be done with my interior renderings. On the link above you can see some of his photos + the 3D environments we built. I think this a really nice tool for selling real estate. You can visit his company website here: http://www.bayareavr.com/
So its now possible to do pre-construction marketing with my 3D and post construction marketing with his photography. I love it!
He specializes in creating virtual environments from photographs. We worked out a technique were the same can be done with my interior renderings. On the link above you can see some of his photos + the 3D environments we built. I think this a really nice tool for selling real estate. You can visit his company website here: http://www.bayareavr.com/
So its now possible to do pre-construction marketing with my 3D and post construction marketing with his photography. I love it!
Green Illustrations
In the past few weeks I have been working on some really cool and exciting projects in Los Angeles and Las Vegas. These are new and existing green projects. My job was to create semi 3d green illustrations that show all the LEED highlights of each project. Here are some examples.
Monday, April 20, 2009
Advice to aspiring 3D artist.
Over the years, I have had many young students or aspiring 3D artists ask me for advice. For my first blog post, I have chosen to give some advice all of you. First, some background. Over the past 10 years the architectural 3D business has changed in so many ways. When I started doing this “on the side” in 1997 the internet was just a baby. There were no schools, websites, tutorials, or books that gave a clear approach. In 1999 I quit my full time job to start Pechara Studio. It was the best of times and the worst of times. On one hand, there were very few companies doing this. If I recall, there were only 2 companies in all of California who did 3D visualization. On the other hand we were all in the midst of the tech bubble bursting. Nothing was for sure. At the time, I was working in a small software company and the writing was on the wall. Within 6 months of me leaving, the company folded. At the time, 3D technology was not really being used as a mainstream tool. Many architects preferred (as some still do) to illustrate by hand. Over the 10 years I have seen this change 180 degrees. Most of my current clients use 3D to some capacity in their office. I think about 5 years ago the AEC community fully embraced 3D as a standard for design and presentation. These days I see many different companies offering 3D services to the AEC industry. Many of them are offshore, but that’s a topic for a different blog.
So what does it take to make it in the current 3D market you ask? I feel there are 3 major components that make a person a success.
Develop your own style.
It does not matter what software you use. Software is a tool, it’s a hammer, or a saw. There are more and more options out there. They are not all created equal, but most will work in some combination. Remember that you are the illustrator, the software is a tool that you use to create your vision with. The #1 question people ask me is “what software do you use?” My answer over the years has evolved to another question “Does it matter?” My father, who is a high-end finish carpenter can build things with cheap tools that a beginner could not even dream of building while using high-end tools. More importantly, all the work he produces has a soul to it, a vision, pride. It’s important to focus on the vision of the projects, and use whatever tools are right for you.
You have to know architecture.
Most young people that I have spoken to over the years have made this mistake. They go to an art school were they learn some particular package. Something that is widely accepted as the 3D standard tool. By they know close to nothing about the architecture and the way buildings are built. I have seen some nice renderings that violate code and any engineering standard. That’s how I usually spot fresh out of college students. My advice, forget 3D for now, go work in construction for a while, after that, go work for an architect as a drafter or designer, take architectural design classes that don’t use CAD. Autocad is a great tool. But it will not tech you how to build a building. Learn the inside outs of what you are illustrating. That’s how I got here.
Work Ethic.
While your path will be much different than mine, I feel that there is one thing that ties all successful professionals. Strong, almost compulsive work ethic and the need to please your clients. I found that the reason why my clients work with me over the years is that they can depend on me. They can depend on the fact that I always take a personal interest in their project. That I will give 100% to get it done within the parameters that we all have to live in. If you asked my wife, she would tell you of countless long nights and working weekends. A client who calls you on a Friday with a emergency project that needs to be done by Monday and you in turn accept the work happily and get it done, is a client who will come back and put their trust in you. You must never loose this drive, or become complacent.
There are many different other attributes and techniques that I hope to discuss with you in future posts. Since this is my first blog ever, I thought I keep it short. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions or are looking for advice. I hope to be able to address your questions in future posts.
So what does it take to make it in the current 3D market you ask? I feel there are 3 major components that make a person a success.
Develop your own style.
It does not matter what software you use. Software is a tool, it’s a hammer, or a saw. There are more and more options out there. They are not all created equal, but most will work in some combination. Remember that you are the illustrator, the software is a tool that you use to create your vision with. The #1 question people ask me is “what software do you use?” My answer over the years has evolved to another question “Does it matter?” My father, who is a high-end finish carpenter can build things with cheap tools that a beginner could not even dream of building while using high-end tools. More importantly, all the work he produces has a soul to it, a vision, pride. It’s important to focus on the vision of the projects, and use whatever tools are right for you.
You have to know architecture.
Most young people that I have spoken to over the years have made this mistake. They go to an art school were they learn some particular package. Something that is widely accepted as the 3D standard tool. By they know close to nothing about the architecture and the way buildings are built. I have seen some nice renderings that violate code and any engineering standard. That’s how I usually spot fresh out of college students. My advice, forget 3D for now, go work in construction for a while, after that, go work for an architect as a drafter or designer, take architectural design classes that don’t use CAD. Autocad is a great tool. But it will not tech you how to build a building. Learn the inside outs of what you are illustrating. That’s how I got here.
Work Ethic.
While your path will be much different than mine, I feel that there is one thing that ties all successful professionals. Strong, almost compulsive work ethic and the need to please your clients. I found that the reason why my clients work with me over the years is that they can depend on me. They can depend on the fact that I always take a personal interest in their project. That I will give 100% to get it done within the parameters that we all have to live in. If you asked my wife, she would tell you of countless long nights and working weekends. A client who calls you on a Friday with a emergency project that needs to be done by Monday and you in turn accept the work happily and get it done, is a client who will come back and put their trust in you. You must never loose this drive, or become complacent.
There are many different other attributes and techniques that I hope to discuss with you in future posts. Since this is my first blog ever, I thought I keep it short. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions or are looking for advice. I hope to be able to address your questions in future posts.
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