by Alex Hogrefe | Apr 10, 2011 | Portfolio Vol. 2 |
I take text pretty seriously. I think of it as an opportunity to enhance a portfolio page. The odd thing is that I really only use a few different fonts with arial being used about 75% of the time. However with that one font, it seems that text can be...
by Alex Hogrefe | Apr 10, 2011 | Portfolio Vol. 2 |
After preparing the study model for the portfolio page, this next video discusses the initial setup of the Photoshop document, as well as some basic techniques used to add illustrations. It is important to note that the image size and dpi used for this...
by Alex Hogrefe | Mar 27, 2011 | Uncategorized |
If you have not seen this video by Alex Roman and you’re a student of architecture, watch it now. A buddy of mine in grad school showed me this video in the thick of thesis. The video has become a huge source of inspiration and has influenced most, if not...
by Alex Hogrefe | Mar 13, 2011 | Portfolio Vol. 2 |
There is nothing better than a nice model pic. However, I didn’t always use proper lighting or a good camera when I first started to document my stuff. This study model is a good example of something that I was never expecting to use in my portfolio. The model...
by Alex Hogrefe | Mar 7, 2011 | Portfolio Vol. 2 |
Below is a quick overview of my thoughts and opinions on Architectural portfolio development. I won’t go into the more tactile possibilities of origami portfolios, lasercut plexiglass covers, etc. These are sure-fire ways to make your work stand out. However, I...
by Alex Hogrefe | Feb 27, 2011 | Uncategorized |
I’ve been getting a lot of comments to start a Facebook page, so I thought why not. I like this idea because it creates an opportunity to get a community-like atmosphere going. The website currently feels very one-sided, and I’m looking for ways to...
by Alex Hogrefe | Feb 21, 2011 | Uncategorized |
I thought I would post some pics of my trip to NYC this weekend. I didn’t get off as many shots as I would have liked, but I was able to find time to experiment with HDR and some other post processing techniques. While HDR can bring some life to a dull...
by Alex Hogrefe | Feb 13, 2011 | Over Time |
This is the last of the Kerkythea tutorials and thinking back on it, the video doesn’t really have anything to do with Kerkythea. The video explains some basic steps I use to bring life to different areas of the base rendering in Photoshop. The burn and...
by Alex Hogrefe | Feb 6, 2011 | Over Time |
In Part 3 of the Kerkythea tutorials, I explain the process of creating night renderings. Instead of using Kerkythea lights, I go a different route and paint surfaces in Sketchup, then tell that material to emit light in Kerkythea. This method allows you create...
by Alex Hogrefe | Feb 1, 2011 | Over Time |
Just a quick tutorial looking at the shadow settings of Kerkythea. While adding soft shadows really increases the rendering time, the extra realism that is achieved seems worth it. The video also describes a quick way to change the lighting to an overcast day....
by Alex Hogrefe | Jan 27, 2011 | Uncategorized |
I have not had much free time over here, but jet-lag has has kept me up so I thought I would post some HDR (high dynamic range) photos that I have been playing around with. What is interesting about these particular photos is that I did not use the DSLR camera,...
by Alex Hogrefe | Jan 17, 2011 | Over Time |
The video describes the steps I use when creating a base image for architectural illustrations. Kerkythea is simple to get started with, but has sophisticated settings to produce very professional final outcomes. Kerkythea and the Sketchup Plugin can be...
by Alex Hogrefe | Jan 17, 2011 | Uncategorized |
Check out this website for a huge archive of Photoshop brushes. Ive used this place for years and it has really changed the look of my work. I tend to focus in on the grunge brushes and the dry paint brushes. The effects can be see in the night Jindu rendering...
by Alex Hogrefe | Jan 1, 2011 | Fundamentals |
I’m pretty excited about this video. It explores the idea of Ambient Occlusion shading to easily and quickly add realism to Sketchup images via Photoshop. This is done without ever using a rendering engine such as MAX or VRAY. The idea behind Ambient...
by Alex Hogrefe | Dec 13, 2010 | Fundamentals |
When I don’t have time to fully render sections in Kerkythea due to time constraints, I fall back on this method to get me out of jams. In fact, I used this method to create sections for my final thesis project and finished all three of them in an afternoon....
by Alex Hogrefe | Dec 6, 2010 | Fundamentals |
The illustration in this tutorial was used for a competition that another student, Jeff Kruth, and I worked on a few years ago in grad School. The video explains the work flow used to add tall grass to an otherwise dull Kerkythea rendering. Some important...
by Alex Hogrefe | Nov 22, 2010 | Final Moves |
Adjusting the depth of field is an easy way to punch up many types of architectural renderings. I have been using this technique for a while now and have applied this concept to final presentation illustrations, model pics, and my graduate portfolio. There are...
by Alex Hogrefe | Nov 10, 2010 | Fundamentals |
I wanted to get in video form, some of the techniques I use to add people into my illustrations. This video outlines 3 situations I run into often including reflective surfaces, typical shadows, and people in motion. The libraries of people don’t always...
by Alex Hogrefe | Nov 8, 2010 | Uncategorized |
The Honduras Project was recently published in Design New England. I was pretty excited to see the renderings make it in as well as the nice write up on the project. The office is hoping to raise money to build the church at no cost to the Guaimaca Mission....
by Alex Hogrefe | Nov 8, 2010 | Uncategorized |
The Krob Competition just posted the winners for its 2010 competition. If you are looking to find some inspiration for final project rendering styles, This is a good place to start. The competition emphasizes more traditional, hand rendered styles, although it...
