Realistic Renderings in AutoCAD without Add-ons…

This was actually supposed to be posted on the Autodesk Community Board / Forum:

Realistic Renderings in AutoCAD without Add-ons…

To All Members,

Just wondering if there was an easy way to get “Realistic Renderings in AutoCAD without Add-ons?

Specifically I’m looking for an option that works similar to Revit for those of you that have use both programs and really know what I’m talking about. For those that do not have Revit, or that do not understand what I mean by realistic renderings, all you really need to do is look at some of the latest Autodesk advertizing or check out my attachments.

What I did was “redraw, or re-cad” another drawing to make it 3D (converting flat 2D elevations to 3D) This was sort of a “No Brainer”, and should be for your intermediate to advance CAD personnel except… the newly created 3D file “Still” has a “Cartoony Look” (again refer to my attachments).

Up until recently, I have had no real complaints doing this type of work, meaning converting files over to 3D especially since most of the “BIM” work has been just to check for collisions. In fact, most of the other trades prefer to use the “Cartoony Look” because things will stick out if something looks out of place. This also has been the case for my 3D printed files meaning the customers don’t really care about the look, the just want to see that the file is workable, or “printable”.

The reason I’m asking about “Realistic Renderings” is that this now seems to be the norm for people using Revit. Lately I’ve been hit with questions such as “Why don’t your files look Realistic”? or “How do I know if that file is in 3D”, or the usual “How do I know if that’s to Scale”?

So, without using an “Add-on” is there a way to easily create a realistic rendering in AutoCAD? My guess is “No” which is no problem for me because I am using other CAD software, “BUT WOULD PREFER” to just stick with Autodesk.

As usual, any information or help is appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Regards,

Milt

My original "Converted" 2D drawing to a 3D model:

Alternate view of the "Converted" 2D drawing to a 3D model:

Rendering that is close to what my customer was looking to get:

(Note this is not my drawing & I believe it was done in Revit)

Using another program, these are the files I created:

Again, I was looking to do this type of work with AutoCAD but wound up with the "Cartoon Look" in the 1st two renderings.

Again, using another program, these are the files I created:

Additional Updates to Follow….

O.K...For the readers of this blog, or forum, I’m going to start posting informational updates primarily to educate an intern group in regards to what my consulting business is about. I’ve also been posting, or showing more “Informational Videos” so please, feel free to comment whether you are a part of the group or not.  So, that being said, my main web site is “Fitz’ Digital Cad Service L.L.C.” and if you are not familiar with a CAD service I will explain.

CAD, in regards to engineering terms, means “Computer Aided Drafting, or Design”. The old term “Draftsman or Draftsperson” has simply been replaced by the “CAD drafter”. Drafting and design work is what Architects, Engineers and Inventors use to express their ideas. If you haven’t noticed, most drawings are now in some type of electronic format, and still sort of the backbone of engineering.  Lately “Facility Managers” have also needed a use for CAD in order to keep up with changes to the buildings or facility information.

What “Fitz’ Digital Cad Service L.L.C.” will do is simply the same thing as a “CAD drafter”.  We can help any Architectural, Engineering firm with their short term projects. In Addition we can also help out Inventors, and Facility Managers their short term projects.