ARCHVIZDAILY
an architectural visualization journal

Tutorials · Breakdowns · Software guides

Architectural visualization, taken apart.

ArchVizDaily teaches arch viz the way studios actually work: real project files, full render settings, and honest breakdowns from clay to final frame.

Read the latest issueOpen a breakdown
Cantilevered hillside villa at dusk with warm interior light and infinity pool below, featured render breakdown in Corona 12
[ VIEWPORT: CAM_04 ]
RES 4096 × 2160 · f/8 · 21mm
WIRECLAYBEAUTY
BREAKDOWN Nº 41 / Hillside villa, dusk in Corona 12+0.42 EV · ISO 100
Studio: Anonymous · 3ds Max + Corona + PhotoshopOpen the full breakdown →
[ Index 01 – 04 ]

Journal pillars

All guides →
01.

Foundations

120 articles

Definitions, workflows, career paths and the software landscape, the hub everything links back to.

02.

Exteriors

30 articles

Site context, vegetation, HDRI lighting and post-production for exterior shots that sell.

03.

Interiors

24 articles

Daylight studies, fabric and wood shaders, camera composition and the art of believable clutter.

04.

Real-time

7 articles

Lumen, Nanite, datasmith pipelines and building interactive walkthroughs clients can explore.

[ The journal ]

Latest from the journal

View archive →
Twilight clay render of a contemporary gallery building with an overhanging roof and a colonnade, every solid surface in matte unpainted plaster, warm 3599K interior light glowing through the glazing onto a paved plazaWORKFLOW
V-RAY11 MIN READ

Clay renders and white models: how to make an unpainted image look deliberate

A clay render is an argument about form, light and proportion, not a finish pass that failed. How to pick the clay material, light the scene so shape reads, and present the image so a client trusts it.

Axonometric cutaway render of a mixed-use city block with floor plates lifted apart, showing retail at street level, offices in the middle and apartments on top, arranged around a courtyard with trees and a reflecting poolTUTORIAL
RHINO12 MIN READ

Isometric and axonometric renders: when a flat view beats a perspective

Orthographic views keep parallel lines parallel, which is why they explain stacking, plan and assembly better than any photoreal perspective. How to set one up, light it, and keep it from looking like a spreadsheet.

Dark studio desk with a monitor showing a dusk living room interior render lit by warm 3599K lamps, and five floating panels showing the same room as separate passes: a matte grey clay image, a black to white depth gradient, a lavender and mint normal map, a white silhouette mask, and a coloured material ID mapWORKFLOW
V-RAY13 MIN READ

Render elements and passes: what to export and what to do with them

Depth, normals, material IDs, light mix and ambient occlusion turn a ten minute fix into something other than an overnight re-render. The pass set worth exporting from V-Ray, Corona and Blender, and the ones to skip.

Triptych illustration of the same contemporary living room at three times of day: cool morning daylight through sheer curtains, warm midday sun with crisp window shadows on the floor, and dusk with warm 3599K lamps glowing against deep blue windowsWORKFLOW
CORONA11 MIN READ

Time-of-day studies: presenting one scene at morning, noon and dusk

Clients rarely ask for one lighting mood; they ask to see the options. How to build a single scene that renders cleanly at three or five hours, keep the camera and grade consistent, and present the grid so the decision lands in one meeting.

Dark studio wall displaying the same dusk render of a modern timber and glass house in multiple frame shapes: a wide panoramic frame, a tall portrait frame, a square frame and a landscape frame, each showing a different crop of the identical 3599K-lit sceneWORKFLOW
GENERAL10 MIN READ

Aspect ratios and crops: one render, every destination

A hero render now lives on a website, two social platforms, a listing portal and occasionally a printed panel, each with a different frame. How to design the master shot for cropping, recompose rather than squash, and deliver every ratio without re-rendering.

Dollhouse cutaway illustration of a contemporary two-storey house with the roof and front wall removed, showing a warm 3599K-lit living room, kitchen island, floating staircase and furnished bedroom above from a gentle elevated angleTUTORIAL
BLENDER11 MIN READ

Dollhouse and cutaway renders: showing the whole plan in one frame

The dollhouse view sells a floor plan the way no camera tour can: every room, both floors, one image. How to model for the cut, choose the tilt, light rooms that have lost their ceilings, and keep the result elegant rather than toy-like.

The Weekly Crit

Submit your render →

Renders judged the way a studio judges: light, materials, composition. Score each from 1 to 5 and the board re-ranks live. Top render earns a full pass-by-pass breakdown next issue.

#1 THIS WEEK
Brick warehouse converted to offices with a steel entry canopy, shown at golden hour from street level
Cycles X, sun at 12 degrees altitude, 50mm with a 2mm shift.

Warehouse reuse, golden hour street

P. Novak · Blender + Cycles

Light5.0
Materials4.8
Composition5.0
Board score
73 votes4.91 / 5

0/280
#2
Rammed earth desert courtyard house with an olive tree and weathered steel pergola under low golden hour sun, rendered in V-Ray 7
V-Ray 7, sun at 4 degrees, earth albedo pushed warm.

Desert courtyard, last light

R. Haddad · V-Ray 7

Light5.0
Materials4.6
Composition4.5
Board score
87 votes4.70 / 5

0/280
#3
Dark oak and marble loft kitchen lit warmly at dusk with a city skyline visible through full height glazing
V-Ray 7, interior practicals at 3599K, exterior dome at 8000K.

Loft kitchen at blue hour

D. Ferreira · V-Ray 7

Light4.9
Materials4.8
Composition4.4
Board score
79 votes4.69 / 5

0/280
#4
Walnut library reading room at night lit by warm 3599K table lamps with a rain streaked window showing blue city light, rendered in Corona 12
Corona 12, practicals only at 3599K, exterior at 9000K.

Reading room, rain outside

E. Marchand · Corona 12

Light4.8
Materials4.3
Composition4.3
Board score
95 votes4.47 / 5

0/280
#5
Minimalist white museum atrium with a helical concrete staircase lit by soft north facing skylight, rendered in Corona 12
Corona 12, portal-lit skylight, plaster bump at 0.15.

Museum atrium, north skylight

L. Weiss · Corona 12

Light4.7
Materials4.0
Composition4.5
Board score
92 votes4.41 / 5

0/280
#6
Concrete and glass gallery pavilion in a birch grove under overcast rain, wet paving reflecting warm interior light
Corona 12, overcast HDRI at 0.8 multiplier, wet paving IOR 1.4.

Gallery pavilion in rain, birch grove

K. Tanaka · Corona 12

Light4.4
Materials4.3
Composition4.4
Board score
84 votes4.35 / 5

0/280
#7
Sun bleached limestone courtyard at midday with hard raking shadows across a stone bench, rendered in V-Ray 7
V-Ray 7 Hosek sky, turbidity 2.2, ground albedo 0.4.

Limestone courtyard, midday

A. Ruiz · V-Ray 7

Light4.0
Materials4.5
Composition4.0
Board score
88 votes4.18 / 5

0/280
#8
Slender high rise residential tower in warm dusk light beside a reflective river, rendered in Corona 12
Corona 12, PRG Clear sky, 35mm lens across the water.

Dusk study, Riverside Tower

M. Okafor · Corona 12

Light4.3
Materials4.1
Composition4.2
Board score
96 votes4.17 / 5

0/280
#9
Small dark timber cabin isolated on a rocky coast wrapped in dense sea fog, rendered in Blender with Cycles X
Cycles X, volumetric density 0.0012, AgX view transform.

Cabin in coastal fog

S. Lindqvist · Blender + Cycles

Light4.4
Materials3.7
Composition4.3
Board score
91 votes4.15 / 5

0/280

Scores reset every Monday · See past winners · Voting is anonymous, one ballot per criterion.

Guides by software

01 3ds Max02 Corona Renderer03 V-Ray04 Unreal Engine 505 Blender06 Twinmotion07 D5 Render08 Photoshop post

Arch viz, asked and answered

What is architectural visualization?+

Architectural visualization (arch viz) is the craft of turning unbuilt architecture into images, animations and interactive experiences, using 3D software to communicate a design before it exists.

What software is best for architectural rendering?+

Most studios pair a modeling package (3ds Max, Blender, SketchUp) with a renderer (Corona, V-Ray) or a real-time engine (Unreal Engine 5, Twinmotion, D5).

How much does a 3D architectural rendering cost?+

Freelance exterior stills typically range from $300 to $1,500+ per image depending on complexity, revisions and market; studio work and animation run higher.

How long does it take to learn arch viz?+

With focused practice, expect 6–12 months to portfolio-ready exteriors and interiors.

One breakdown, every other Tuesday.

Scene files, render settings and post-production recipes from working arch viz artists. No render-farm spam.

Free weekly notes. Unsubscribe anytime.