BIM. After Dark.

Jeffrey A. Pinheiro, AIA

DESIGN:BIM

A Guide to Utilizing Design in the BIM Process

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CONTENTS

Contents 03

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01

02

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04

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Introduction 05
Concept 06
Program / Diagram 06
The Arsenal 07
Massing 08
Sculpting the Form 08
Massing Studies 09
Development 10
Skinning the Form 10
Presentation 11
Export / Render 11
Post-Processing 12
Conclusion 13

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Contents

CONTENTS

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00 - INTRODUCTION

I want to personally thank you for

downloading this eBook. If you have taken
the time to sign-up and download this eBook
then you already have the drive it takes
to break the BIM-barriers down. We need
more people like you to think outside of
the box and push our software-of-choice to
its limits.

Design is extremely subjective. Therefore,

you do not have to agree with or like my
design aesthetic to get a feel for my
process. This process will work regardless
of what building type, design aesthetic, or
ism you prefer.

This eBook is not meant to be a technical

manual but more of a mini-guide.
Ive
taken my design process and broke it down
in the simplest, systematic way I could.
When I released BIM After Dark - Volume 1
the feedback was incredible. Customers who
purchased the video series asked if I could
break down my design process in an easy-tofollow guide. Well, here it is!

Enjoy the eBook!

Jeffrey A. Pinheiro,
The Revit Kid

AIA, LEED AP

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00 Introduction

Many people find it very hard to believe

that I, The Revit Kid, still start with
pencil and trace. Well, I do!
Obviously, I embrace technology and believe
in it.
But even a technology geek like
myself cannot deny the free hand sketch on
a nice piece of trace paper or Moleskine
notebook.
When looking back and trying to rationalize
my process for this eBook I always start
with freehand par-ti style diagrams.
Sometimes these diagrams are in a plan
view, other times they are in an elevation
or section view. No matter what the view,
the final version of this diagram becomes
the driver of the entire building. I like

to keep this diagram on my desk throughout

the entire process as a reminder of where I
started. Of course, designs get refined over
time and some stuff will change.
The diagram above is for the example project
I will be using in this eBook. It is a 450
bed hospital. The entrance loops around a
reflection pool while one of the two patient
bed wings reaches out to meet the pool.
The patient wings face each other to shield
the glazing from the sun (it is a very hot
climate).
If you are interested in learning how I
make my hand sketches look like the colored
sketch on the far right, check out
BIM After Dark - Volume 1 (Video 1, 00:00:11).

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01 - CONCEPT
PROGRAM / DIAGRAM

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01 Concept
Program / Diagram

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Pentel Sign Pen

01 - CONCEPT

Pilot Razor Point

Uniball Vision - Fine

Papermate - Clear Point

It might just be me, but I love seeing
what kind of pens/pencils people use to
sketch. I guess it is similar to how I
purchased a Fender Stratocaster when I
was younger because Jimi Hendrix used
it... Maybe not?
Above, you will find my current arsenal.
I typically do all of my sketching on
trace paper and I find the pens listed
above to work great on trace. The Uniball
has a slight bleed to it which can make
for some awesome line extensions to your
sketches. I also enjoy a good mechanical
pencil (remember, this is free hand, not
drafting). Give them all a try! Let me
know what you think!

THE ARSENAL

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The Arsenal

You can see in the images to the right that this model
is very crude. In fact, unless I truly need to, I do
not use Revits conceptual massing. I prefer to use
model-in-place extrusions.
I will then print views
similar to the ones shown here. Once printed, I will
lay a piece of trace over them and sketch continued
detail and development.
I go through this process (sketching, adding a bit to
the model, repeat) a few times refining my design. The
sketch model gets a bit more detail because of this,
refer to the top right image.

Note: BIM After Dark - Volume 3 (Spring 2015) covers how I make
virtual sketch models (similar to the ones on this page).

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02 - MASSING

In my process, I constantly go back and forth between

Revit and hand sketching.
Once I have a diagram I
am happy with I jump into Revit for the first time.
Typically, I will mass out something somewhat to scale
in order to get a sense of the building 3-dimensionally.
Basically, this is the virtual version of a physical
sketch model.

SCULPTING THE FORM

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02 Massing
Sculpting the Form

Option B: Equal Wings

One of the great things about using Revit so early in

the process and creating simple forms is the ability
to study different options. I will use Design Options
within Revit and place each iteration of the form in
the option. Now, each of my set views can flip between
the different options.
For this building, I was trying to decide if I wanted
to place more of the program in one tower element
(Option A) or distribute the program between to two
wings (Option B). Similar to a physical sketch model.

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02 - MASSING

Option A: Large Tower

MASSING STUDIES

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Massing Studies

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02

03

Sketch-Over Technique

As I mentioned in Section 02, I constantly

work between Revit and hand sketching. One
of the techniques I have used during this
process is what I call the sketch-over
technique. For this technique, I simply
print out my sketch model (01 & 02 above)
and lay a piece of trace over it. I then
hand sketch details and further develop the
project (before modelling them in Revit).
Finally, I scan the trace sketch and overlap
the two images in Photoshop.
Now, I can
color the image in photoshop if desired
while utilizing the shading and model from
Revit (similar to image 03 above and the
images on the next page).

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Core Element

If my design and presentation is primarily

being used for exterior images (at this
stage) then the original sketch model
does not have to go to waste.
I continue developing my building by
wrapping the sketch model with real Revit
walls, doors, windows, and curtainwalls
(image 04 above). The sketch model can
then be used as the core element for your
presentations.
For an in-depth video of what the core
element is and how POWERFUL it can be
check out:
BIM After Dark - Volume 1 (Video 3, 00:15:12)

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03 - DEVELOPMENT
SKINNING THE FORM

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03 Development
Skinning the Form

Materials / Lighting / Views / Render

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04 - PRESENTATION
EXPORT / RENDER

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04 Presentation
Export / Render

Now that the design has been developed between Revit

and hand-sketching and the sketch model has been
wrapped with a Revit element skin it is time to start
producing images. After all, what good is a design if
you cannot present your concept and sell it?

Once materials are applied, I will set up my views (if

I have not done so already), add lights (if required),
and render. Choosing materials, tweaking with views,
and getting the lighting correct will usually take a
fair amount of time. Plan accordingly.

The images shown above are my hand notes and drawings

specifying what materials I plan on using for this
project. I plan it out on paper before entering Revit.

For in-depth videos on creating custom materials,

exporting views, and rendering, check out:
BIM After Dark - Volume 1 (Videos 2, 3, & 4)

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Post-Processing

04 - PRESENTATION

After

Finally, my images are rendered. The

final step is to make them sexy.
Post-processing renderings and images
is a must. When used correctly, Revit
can create very nice renderings.
But they must be post-processed to
extract the details, enhance the
lighting, and really impress clients.
The images on your left illustrate
native Revit renderings (before) and
the final images I post-processed in
Photoshop (after). I, perhaps like
you, used to Render an image and
call it finished.
When I learned
the techniques to create the images
shown here it completely changed my
opinion on Revit as a rendering tool.
For
in-depth
videos
on
postprocessing, adding entourage, and
creating renderings similar to the
ones on this page check out:
BIM After Dark - Volume 1 (Video 4)

POST-PROCESSING

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Before

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05 - CONCLUSION

I hope youve enjoyed a sneak peak into my

process. It was an interesting experience
stepping back and analysing my process (a
process I normally dont think about).
This eBook should serve as a guide to get
you using Revit early on in the design
process.
Dont forget to check out BIM After Dark
- Volume 1 to fill in any of the gaps or if
you are interested in creating images that
look similar to the ones in this eBook.
Feel free to share this book with others:
Click here to Tweet about the eBook...
Follow me on Facebook
Check out my Youtube Channel
Check out the Blog

POST-PROCESSING

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05 Conclusion

 Copyright 2014 - studio.bad, llc