Responsive Residential Rendering with IRender nXt for SketchUp

We are pleased to be talking with Kim Carlson, owner of KimCarlsonDesigns based in Greensboro, North Carolina. Kim’s mission statement, “The design is within the mind of the client; my job is to get it out”, is right on point with what we strive to enable all users of our rendering software to achieve.

Talking of design and North Carolina, did you know, North Carolina's Outer Banks was where the Wright brothers successfully piloted the world's first controlled, sustained flight of a powered, heavier-than-air aircraft in December 1903.

The Wright brothers looking very dapper back in the day

Hi Kim, please tell us about your company.
I am the owner of a small, residential design firm. My primary market is custom and semi-custom homes, including interiors. My firm provides conceptual designs services which, in turn, produce construction drawings for the contractor.

What design and rendering software did you start out using when you came into the industry?
When I was in graduate school, 3-D modeling and rendering were just beginning. The software was slow and rendering was cumbersome. However, I became proficient in Architectural AutoCAD, 3-D. At that time, we were rendering with Autodesk VIZ and it took all night to render one image, plus you needed a degree in physics to understand the lighting settings.

What does your workflow look like now?
I am one of the few who stayed with Architectural AutoCAD 3-D and did not switch to Revit. I model all of my projects. After the model is complete, I export it to SketchUp Pro. There, I map materials, import prepacked SketchUp details, and create scenes. For rendering, I added IRender nXt for SketchUp.

How have your clients’ expectations evolved and what influence do they have on your workflow?
My clients expect to see models and renderings. Most clients come with ideas about architectural styles, spacial requirements, and size. With today's technologies, they have access to thousands of ideas via the internet. Due to the custom nature of residential design, I had to find a fast way to model, and produce renderings that could be easily modified. For example, "I want to see my house in brick". With IRender nXt I can quickly add lights, landscaping, and backgrounds, then render the scene. It is an amazingly fast tool that produces great images and I highly recommend it.

Let’s take a look at some of the renderings you’ve done with IRender nXt 
Here are some examples of my renderings.

Thank you, Kim! We appreciate you sharing your workflow with us and how important rendering ends up being to enable you to transform your clients’ ideas into compelling designs.

See more from Kim at her website
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Whether you’re a rendering novice or a master, it’s always interesting to see what you’re rendering with any of our renderers (IRender nXt, IRender SU, ArielVision, nXtRender, AccuRender)! Email Render Plus Support Email and we’ll contact you.