TIPS TO BE EFFICIENT: FOR ARCHITECTURE PRESENTATIONS

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You may be at that point in studio when your projects are solely focused on computer graphics used for presentations. You will be doing a hybrid of producing work on the computer and transitioning to hand modelling. It’s no doubt that both will take up a lot of your time, especially when you want to make it presentable. Listed are some tips to prepare you to be more efficient on your Architecture graphics. 

1. GET ORGANIZED & STORYBOARD: LIST THE ITEMS NEEDED FOR YOUR GRAPHIC PRESENTATION

A good habit for you to prepare for your presentations – is to set a list of graphic work you need to do.
Aka Storyboard your presentation! This is a great time saving way to prepare for your presentations. This also allows you to easily keep track of what graphics you should produce for your presentation.
Remember quality is greater over quantity of work. For instance, you can do a variety of sun studies at different times of the days and seasons of the year. Though is that necessary to show? It could be necessary if it really pertains to the project, and you are proving a point by introducing a new shading system. Architecture graphic requirements may differ from what you are assigned from your professor. Below is a typical list of graphics done in architecture. Though, when you present really think to yourself – What is the best way to show the important aspects of my project? 

ARCHITECTURE GRAPHIC LIST
–  Site Plan – Priority
– Floor Plan (s) – Priority
– Elevation (s) 
– Section Cut (s)
– Section Perspective 
– Axonometric/ Exploding Axonometric
– Renderings
– Details (Optional: In more advanced studios) 

TIP: Have your sketchbook ready and storyboard your presentation. 

2. GET INSPIRED BY GRAPHIC TECHNIQUES

It can be difficult at first to get to your own groove on what you want your graphics to look as a whole. Everyone goes on google, pinterest, instagram, blogs, or architecture magazines to look at graphics. Do not feel bad. Find a style you really like, and find the technique you are most favorable of. Also, do not stick to just one style, experiment and you may find more enjoyment doing a graphic style more than the other. 

TIP: 
Do not be those people who copy the exact graphics of a creator. A friend of mine was a victim of another student copying her portfolio and graphics very similarly. Nobody will like you if you do this. Please.

 

 

3. COLLECT DIGITAL ENTOURAGE

What is entourage? For those who are unfamiliar – they are graphic representations in an architectural rendering or diagram. An entourage consist of people, animals, food, environmental factors, etc. To be used to visual set the cultural aspect and sense of place of an architecture graphic. 

TYPICAL ARCHITECTURE ENTOURAGE LIST:
– People (Realistic and 2D Silhouettes) 
– Animals (Birds are a really nice touch if you have a lot sky in your renderings)
– Environment (Trees, sky, clouds, bushes, flowers, etc.)
– Texture (Metal, Wood, Fabric, Etc). 

TIP: 
Collect graphic entourage, make a library – so that you can easily have it in hand. There could be different websites or programs to have an inventory. For example Adobe Stock has a large amount of 2D graphic characters – it does have a price but do it at your own expense and if you have the need to. 

4. KNOW THE PURPOSE OF YOU GRAPHICS PRIOR

SITE PLAN:
Purpose: To show direction, to help you and the juror understand the true orientation of your building and if you considered the environmental conditions (sun and wind). 

FLOOR PLAN:
Purpose: To show the thought process of the buildings circulation. What have you considered to benefit the user occupying the space? Did you consider the environmental conditions? Moments for natural ventilation? There is so much to think of in a floor plan, but remember to brainstorm by drafting your process in a sketch book or overlay the site plan with trace. Process – will definitely help, other than sticking to one floor plan. 

SECTION CUTS:
Purpose: To show a visual ”slice” of the buildings interior. Typically section cuts are a good way to get a sense of the heights from floor to ceiling, and if there are moments in your project that stand out. For example, maybe you do not want to show a building that is a large mass of concrete. So instead you break it up into these ”moments”, when people have a courtyard space – a touch of nature. Remember to think of the inside guts of the building, not just the pretty exterior!

RENDERINGS:
Purpose: Visualization- this helps designers, jurors, future consultants, and future clients to visualize the project. Renderings can be represented realistically, though some may take a creative approach such as a 2D or montage visual – this really depends on the designer. 

AXONOMETRICS:
Purpose: To show a 3D representation of the building or component. 
A good way to diagrammatically show the layers of the project is doing an exploded axonometric. 

TIP: 
You do not have to put all your process work in there – Be selective. Your portfolio should not be treated as a collage of photos. A portfolio should be well organized and easy to read through. Keep in mind the direction that the viewer is reading this – Left to Right ( unless it’s a country like Japan that reads the opposite direction). Naturally people would navigate through your portfolio left to right. 

5. GET THE HABIT OF SAVING YOUR WORK IN INCREMENTS & INVEST IN AN EXTERNAL HARD DRIVE

Nuff said. You will thank me later – Save your time and stress, and make it a habit to save your work often. There will be many encounters when you a studio mate that freaks out because their computer crashed – Or even worse when it happens to you, yourself. If you are still stuck with a mediocre laptop/computer, is saving some space to an external hard drive. This can range up to $70-200 (hard drive with terabytes (TB)). I highly recommend you invest in one of these! Make sure to save your work for each school year. 

CONCLUDING TIP: EDIT & UPDATE

Save.your.work! As a starting student you might not have the best computer at the start, especially when you’re handling heavy graphics. This should really set a goal for you to save money, so that one day you can earn a great desktop or laptop with a strong graphics card. Good Luck! Save your money, save your stress!
                                                                                                                                     With Care,
                                                                                                                                      Vheonix – Introvert Designer

Hi! I'm Vheonix

The intent for this blog is to guide, inspire, & achieve as aspiring designers. I am an introverted individual in a field that involves social & interpersonal skills. Though, I want you to gain the confidence you need to succeed as a designer. 

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