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Its a wonderful place to comiserate. Not as good as happy hour at the beer garden, but then again, there is simply a vast amount of people and experiences here that the swill-palace cannot match.
 
For an info-junkie like me, the news, techniques, trends, and opinion is great. I thought I was the only one who thought the way I did about certain th…[Read more]

Yes! We love the insight we get from more seasoned professionals…and lets face it…we can all use some encouragement. Graduating during this recession has been very challenging and we greatly appreciate being able to share our experiences and hear others share theirs.

Aaron, Thanks for the kind words. I am an old fart who still does his plan view renderings by hand. In our office, our larger projects our rendered in Photoshop by one of younger guys. I could / should learn to use Photoshop; I just have not had the time to play around with it. Considering I can produce a colored plan is just about the same time…[Read more]

But someone on land8lounge told me landscape architecture is teh ded.
 
Good idea, I’m glad someone took the initiative.

i like that idea

For me it’s a matter of work-flow (and the fact that I was a Max/Viz guy before Sketchup existed). I like the live linking between plan and 3D that CAD + Max can give and I’m fast enough with it that modeling times aren’t that much more than Sketchup. Then again I’ve worked mostly on large sites with complex topography and a lot of sub-contractors…[Read more]

David,
I think we are on the same page.
Except for plan view renderings, we do all our commerical perspectives and animations in SketchUp — you can see a few here  — it works for us.
Here are some SketchUp Animations
Thanks for the kind words.
 
Chuck

I think it mostly depends upon the client’s needs. I mostly deal with residential clients and anything beyond SketchUp is overkill (that’s just my opinion, and I have been known to be wrong before). Larger developments might need a more finished look – but maybe not. We are selling ideas/designs, not pretty pictures (well the drawing has to look…[Read more]

The image I attached earlier took approx 4 hours in skup and 4 hrs in pshop. To each her own, but I think in many cases we’re wasting our time in programs like max..just my two cents.

Under $600 for the software? No I can’t name anything else. But factor in the time (in dollars) it takes in Photoshop (an additional expense) to improve the image to presentation quality, and add in the time spent re-modeling and re-Photoshopping after the client asked for changes and then see how much difference there is between Sketchup and a…[Read more]

I have been contemplating this very question for quite a while.  Every landscape architect should be striving to promote and integrate many of the concepts and methods of permaculture.  I am not sure how we can claim we are creating sustainable landscapes without utilizing or at least considering these concepts. In another forum someone used the p…[Read more]

Permaculture is more a way of an approach to design than a design profession. Of course, there are certified permaculture designers out there who do some work similar to landscape architects, but they are few and far between. They tend to concentrate on overall site design and garden design. Permaculture is all about function, so permaculture…[Read more]

As a recent BLA grad with interests in permaculture, i find myself trying to implement ecological and agrarian research into common design to create more efficiency. Makes sense right??? The impression i have always received is that it’s too idealistic and impractical. Not what the general public (clients that pay your bills) are interested in.
I…[Read more]

Thanks Brett – thats more encouraging.

That’s really great ! I was wondering how much hours did you spend in Photoshop ?

Win.

Hi Tanya,
Bio-swales, rain gardens and water spreading are very low tech and very effective BMPs that can provide all of the required treatment and infiltration if space, slope and soils provide the opportunity. Permeable paving is also a big help to reduce the peak and annual volumes.  If you are able to convey to vegetated basins and infiltrate…[Read more]

We got RenderIn, it is $160 a seat I believe and the results are pretty good.  Plus it has real time preview with materials and lights which is nice.

I love your take on fonts! I too am a firm believer in using the right font type style to accentuate and enhance your brand.  I think your font choice says alot about what your company represents.  Although it is very subtle, and obviously, most people don’t get it, it makes a huge difference in perception and giving you the added wow factor t…[Read more]