Have you ever spent several weeks on a project, created renderings and your images turned out terrible when used in a presentation?  Every image looks pixellated, blurry, fuzzy or worse. Perhaps you used Photoshop and increased the resolution thinking that somehow this would make the renderings better (NEWSFLASH, it actually makes renderings WORSE).  It all boils down to PPI, DPI, Resolution, Rendering Quality, etc.  They all mean the same thing.  These terms determine the overall quality of the images you generated in your rendering software. 

So everyone wonders, 'How do I get the best quality renderings in Revit'? 

I'll share some best practices for renderings in Revit.  in order to create 3D renders of your Revit designs, it is important to determine what quality you are after. 

First, let's break down some rendering terminology :

Rendering - is a computer-generated image of a 2D or 3D model using computer software
Pixels - open an image in Photoshop and zoom in closely.  Those tiny dots are called Pixels.  The more, the merrier.
Resolution - how much detail (measured in pixels using DPI or PPI) an image contains.  
DPI - dots per inch (old-school way of describing resolution).  How many pixels appear in every INCH of your image.
PPI - pixels per inch (new-school way of describing resolution)  Same as DPI.
Rendering Quality is measured in DPI or PPI and is calculated by the size of the image X the resolution required.

​So, what is an acceptable quality resolution or DPI for a rendering?  Well, that all depends on the purpose of your image.  If an image is intended to be shared on the internet, then 72 DPI would be acceptable.  However, if you intend to create a higher quality image for a presentation (either printed or PDF), then 200 DPI would be the lower limit while 300 DPI would give you the best results.  

​The steps are as follows:  

1. What is your desired Width and Height in inches?
2. What is the quality required? Consider 72 DPI (low quality, small file size, quick renderings) and 300 DPI (higher quality, larger file size and best quality)
3. Multiply the size of the final rendering (INCHES) by the quality you desire (DPI). 
   1. For example, an 8 in. x 11 in. drawing = 8 in. x (300 DPI) and 11 in. x (300 DPI), therefore Width=2400 px and Height=2200 px for best quality

This is the size, in pixels, that you should enter into your rendering software.  Follow these steps and you will get the best quality renderings in Revit.  When ready, you can either create a rendered image in Revit or create a rendering on the cloud using Autodesk A360 Rendering.  Check out the video for more information!

The following is a demonstration of how Enscape can be used with Revit to create an animation of your projects.  Enscape is a Revit plug-in that creates real-time rendering and 3D visualizations.  It is one of the easiest and least expensive tools available to bring your Revit projects to life.  The Enscape website provides plenty video tutorials on how to use the software, create quick animations using Enscape and Revit and generate virtual tours.  They even provide a guide to video creation in Enscape.  The talented fokds at Enscape are constantly updating their software and is truly a company that listens to its customers and produces the best real-time visualization tools for Revit on the market today.  Take a look at the animation below if you are not convinced:

Every wonder how to add rugs, wall art, images on TV screens, etc. to your Revit projects?  Does Crate&Barrel, Room&Board or Pottery Barn have the rugs you want to add to your Revit presentation?  Would you like to add your favorite TV show to your Revit renderings?  Well, look no further.  The following tutorial makes quick work of adding accessories to Revit.  The key to adding these objects to Revit is to use the Decals tool.  Learn how to apply images to your Revit elements and place a Decal in a View using Revit.  An additional suggestion would be to create custom families for your Revit project.  For example, a custom carpet family in Revit.  This way, you can use this asset in several projects without have to repeat the steps outlined in this tutorial.

Are you trying to create VR tours in Revit (virtual reality)?  Having trouble understanding the differences between Stereo and Mono panoramas?  Want to take advantage of cloud rendering for Revit?  Well, you have come to the right place.  There are several software companies providing tools to generate virtual reality tours in Revit.  Currently, Enscape, Lumion and  V-Ray come to mind, but believe me there are a ton of options out there and the list keeps growing every day.  Luckily, you do not need any of these applications to create panoramas.  You can actually create 3D panoramas directly in Revit (see below).  You can create Revit 3D panoramas using the Autodesk A360 cloud rendering service and make these without any third-party plug-ins.  Only after you have mastered this workflow should you consider additional software vendors to further push the boundaries of what is possible with virtual reality and Revit.

So, everyone is wondering what we will be creating in this year's 'Revit for Interior Designers' class.  Well, look no further as I have created the following virtual tour and posted it in my YouTube channel for everyone to enjoy.  Arizona, here we come (virtually)!  We will include how to create 360 panorams in Revit during our online training.  Just CLICK&DRAG on the image below and take a look at the interior design.