Planning Your Project

1. Plans look straight down from overhead (sometimes called "bird's eye view". Plans are used for understanding the organization of the space, the relative size and orientation of rooms, and how they connect to each other. They contain most of the dimensional information describing the size of each room, hallway, stair, etc.
2. Elevations are views of vertical surfaces like walls. They show how the doors, windows, and moldings will appear, and contain vertical dimensions like how high a window is above the floor.
3. Sections are elevations that slice through the entire structure. They contain vertical dimensions that locate the height of each floor, ceiling, and roof, and illustrate special features like stairs and balconies.

To those trained in reading them, the above three views contain all the information necessary to visualize the building. However, each view shows only a piece of the whole design, and requires the viewer to piece together the other two views in their mind's eye to form the whole image. They are therefore more useful to building professionals, and can be confusing to laypeople.

4. Perspectives are drawn to replicate how a building would appear "in real life". Although the easiest view for the layperson to understand, they are labor intensive to produce and used sparingly. Perspectives cannot be drawn to scale or dimensioned (they distort by foreshortening), so they are of little use to the builder.

Design Process: Design communication: Computer models

A new type of view, the computer model, has become available in the last few years. Although CAD (computer aided design) has been around for a long time, the earlier programs essentially produced the traditional three views. CAD was used as a productivity tool for architects, but it didn't make it any easier for the client to understand the drawings. Computer models, however, utilize today's powerful computers to create complex models that can be viewed from any angle. Unlike traditional physical models made of wood or foam, computer models can be easily modified with a mouse-click, so both the architect and client can visualize many different design iterations.

Further, computer models enable a significant change in the how architects both design and communicate with clients and builders. Blueprints always force a trade-off; too little information on the page leads to confusion, too much information (whether details or notes) can overwhelm the viewer. Computer models can contain an almost infinite amount of information that can be stored in separate, viewable layers. Thus, with the structural layer turned on, the architect can use the model to discuss structural issues with the builder, while the interior surfaces layer could help a client visualize various wallcoverings.

Models can be rendered (lighting and textures added) so that views of the model become photo-realistic. Essentially, the "special effects" and "computer animation" we've become accustomed to in movies and video games have become available to the design world. This affords the client an opportunity to play a more active role in the design process. They are able to visualize and react to the design as it progresses, and have their input shape the final design in a way not previously possible.