Architectural Interior Lighting training video
Training video for MODO 302
In this video tutorial from Yazan Malkosh, we explain detailed techniques for creating compelling day and night shots of a contemporary interior living space using MODO. The goal is for you to gain enhanced understanding and control over how interior surfaces appear, how to light them effectively, and how to create final high-resolution images suitable for presentation to a client.
The interior 3D model used in the exercise was built by Hanin Bashir in MODO and is provided along with the instructional videos.
The design and diverse furnishings of this model allows us to cover a wide variety of rendering topics relevant to architectural design including water features, plants, draperies, and a variety of other surfaces including concrete, wood and leather (see accompanying images).
The interior is uplit and downlit, and also includes a lighted cabinet and a desk lamp. Large windows allow natural light to enter and views to be seen through them. Both natural lighting and photometric lighting are employed along with fill lights that further enhance the mood and clarity of the final rendered images.
This video tutorial was developed for MODO 302. Users of later versions of MODO will find the tutorial useful, but will have to adapt some instructions to new techniques found in more recent versions of MODO.
Learn key rendering skills: Step-by-step
Great computer generated images, especially those designed to convey a design in final detail, are the result of hundreds of individual decisions about surface appearance, lighting and render settings.
Careful organization of the scene is also critical so that, for example, lighting setups for both day and night can be systematically maintained and final results tweaked in Photoshop.
In this video tutorial, Yazan shows his mastery of these subtle details as he methodically builds day and night images with meticulous quest for quality.
Detailed descriptions of video tutorial segments
Video segment 1
Lighting and materials
In the first video, we review the model and adjust MODO’s user interface for fast interaction and invoke appropriate viewing options for architectural visualization. Then we proceed to place lights and materials throughout the scene. Careful attention to Shader Tree organization for complex scenes is given. Lighting schemes for both day and night are implemented. We then adjust the surface materials and lighting for a dozen detailed subsets of the scene.
Video segment 2
Render settings and outputs
In the second video segment, we finish lighting and adjusting the surface properties of some remaining parts of the scene including the drapes, bamboo plants, the water feature, day bed and desk chair. Next, we add photometric (IES) lights to fixtures in the room to provide uplighting and downlighting. Tips are provided for working with IES lights obtained from various lighting manufacturers. Then we go through final daytime and nighttime lighting adjustments. We prepare for the final rendering at HD resolution by adjusting parameters like irradiance cache, adaptive subdivision, anti-aliasing and displacement. We then select those render outputs that will be useful to save separately for later adjustment in Photoshop. The scene is rendered to disk.
Video segment 3
Final presentation
In the third video segment, we make final adjustments to the scene inside of Photoshop CS3 using the render outputs saved in the previous step. The day and night scenes are each enhanced in terms of reflections, lighting, palette, shadowing and depth of field. A starry background image is added to the night shot and the final images are achieved.
See what others have done
MODO user examples
Since this Architectural Interior Lighting and Rendering video has been available, other MODO users have already taken advantage of its comprehensive tutorials to enhance their own work.
MODO user Erfin Infitar is one who has purchased the architectural video tutorials and he has already posted these impressive new interior renderings of a private residence on the MODO user forum.
Meet Yazan Malkosh
Creator of the Architectural Interior Lighting video tutorial
Yazan Malkosh has deep MODO experience, having been a MODO trainer, beta tester, and active forum member. He has over eight years of experience and resides in Amman, Jordan where he runs the production house, 9b studios. He is well known for his expertise in materials and lighting, beginning with his free Preset library for MODO 201 and continuing with his Architectural Interior Lighting video tutorial, SLIK kit (Studio Lighting Illumination), PAD kit (Product Automotive Design), Studio Environment Set 1 kit, and Studio Environment Set 2 kit.
