The Complete Guide Finding Visualisation Arist For Your Project

What should you look for while looking for a 3D studio?

Thousands of studios have sprouted in practically every corner of the world in the last decade, even though 3D visualisation remains a specialised field. So, how do you track down the right person?

When looking for a 3D visualisation studio, keep the following factors in mind:

1.      Take a broad view.

Don’t limit yourself to discovering and hiring solely local artists; doing so will severely limit your pool of prospects and the quality and designs you can expect. Be willing to talk to overseas studios. You can communicate with overseas 3D studios if you speak acceptable English, and they may be able to give you not just the precise 3D designs you require but also at a price you can afford.

2.       Portfolios and references are essential.

The value of having a portfolio and testimonials for every studio cannot be overstated. Ideally, an online portfolio should be hosted on a separate domain rather than on a free website.

Client reviews are also critical because high-quality work does not always imply that a studio is easy to work with. A few of their delighted clients’ testimonials can give you an idea of the team’s work ethic, which can considerably lessen or eliminate your troubles down the line.

However, portfolios and reviews come with a warning: THEY CAN BE FAKED. Shady organisations have been accused of passing off some products as their own and fabricating phoney clientele evaluations to entice future customers.

Select a few of the studio’s renders and check Google for them to see if the work is theirs. Meanwhile, to prevent being duped by bogus reviews, obtain the contact information for a studio’s prior clients and speak with them directly. You can then ask them specific questions to help you decide on which studio to work with and prove that they are delighted clients.

Finally, a word about portfolios: Several professional studios do not have huge portfolios publically available, but they state this on their website and offer to give one to you upon request.

3.      Teams outperform freelancers.

Numerous freelance 3D artists work with small-to-medium-sized enterprises nowadays. Working with freelancers comes with its hazards, even though they are sometimes less expensive. Some of them seem to vanish in the middle of a project (costing you money and time), leaving you with an unfinished job and a mess on your hands. The majority of freelancers are newcomers who are more interested in gaining experience and expanding their portfolios than furthering their careers. On the other hand, teams are in it for the long haul.

While several freelancers are self-motivated and may work without supervision, studios generally employ account/project managers whose primary responsibility is to monitor the progress of the artists’ work. This configuration frees up artists’ time and energy to focus on what they do best: 3D visualisation.

Last but not least, teams have significantly increased rendering capability, allowing them to re-render a massive image in just a few hours. A render farm is an expensive investment usually only available to established 3D studios. 3D companies with more resources have a more comprehensive selection of software licences and a more specialised staff of artists, giving your company more options.

4.      With a smaller group, go big.

Even when working with a 3D studio, size counts. Other individuals believe that the bigger, the better (as with most things). On the other hand, Smaller businesses work faster and frequently better than larger businesses with hundreds of employees. Larger teams squander time on superfluous bureaucracies, but smaller ones do not. As they only serve just a few clients at a time, they can give more attention to your needs. You may have also seen from personal experience that small companies provide superior customer service and support to large corporations.

Understand the three primary types of studios.

In general, the studios you’ll come across can be divided into three categories:

• Studios that are simply interested in making money: These studios (more akin to con artists) encourage you to sign a contract or even pay upfront when they have no clue about your company or what you require. At all costs, stay away from them!
• Reputable studios to collaborate with: These are the ones that demand additional information and discuss specific deliverables. They talk about what you’d like to see in 3D representations. You can count on them to deliver high-quality results.
• The finest studios to collaborate with include: These studios bring a wealth of knowledge to the table and a genuine desire to see your company flourish. Giving “beautiful photos” is not the goal for them. Instead, their ultimate goal is to provide their clients with a positive return on investment. How do you spot these studios? They discuss your company’s objectives and how to attain them. In most circumstances, they will advise you to attend a Roadmapping Session beforehand (at a fraction of the actual project cost).

Establish a defined communication schedule right away.

Your contract should specify how often and by which means you intend the studio to contact you. For example, you can stipulate that the studio should provide you with updates twice a week by e-mail and once a week via video chat for work with a two-month expected completion time.

It would also be beneficial to get an understanding of the following points:

• The duration of any calls (if any).
• You should also agree on the best days and times to perform the expected content updates (if any).
• Finally, inform each party at least 24 hours ahead of time to ensure that both of your schedules are free.

Assign communication to certain people.

Too many cooks spoil the broth. At least two people from each party should be able to speak on behalf of their respective sides (even though only a single assigned person is enough to better communicate with the other involved party, you can add more who will serve as the backups in case your first choice executive is out of reach on some days).

Studio representatives should be kept up to date on the artists’ development. In contrast, business representatives must be aware of the company’s budget, objectives, and procedures that may impact the project.

Set clear, attainable, and flexible timelines.

This is significant for both parties. Both parties should agree on a defined timeframe and acceptable, specified deadlines at the start of each project (by including the tentative time and date along with the required time zone to be followed)

Take into account national holidays, personnel vacations, and other important dates. However, the timeframes should still allow for unanticipated events that could cause the project to be delayed. Never assume that the project will run according to plan – a variety of events might alter the timing, so be prepared to adjust if necessary.

Please let the studio know-how promptly you can provide feedback.

This is a crucial step that is frequently overlooked. Clients usually expect studios to deliver on their promised turnaround time, but they don’t tell studios about their own feedback turnaround time. If you know your company is bustling and will require several days to provide feedback on the submitted work, let the studio know as soon as possible and agree on a timeframe that takes your feedback turnaround time into account.

Keep in mind that you are not the studio’s sole customer. If the studio misses a schedule due to the late feedback, they can halt the project and resume it only after completing other clients’ projects. This is understandable. If you’re unsure why, consider this: if you missed a deadline, the studio might not have ceased working on your project, but it would have started working on another customer instead.

As a result, every subsequent modification you request will take twice as long to complete. When artists are overworked at the exact moment, the quality of their work suffers. This isn’t something you want, and it’s not something any good studio will wish to either. In such instances, it’s better to create a fresh project start date.