Name: Pedro Torgal
Age:31
Job: Freelance 3D Artist
Country: Portugal
Website:
http://pedro-torgal.wix.com/pt3d
Facebook  Behance  Demo Reel

3DA: Why have you decided to work in 3d-field and when have you started?
PT: The reason for deciding to work in this area was basically because I love how a project comes to life in 3D. I like all 3D areas, from games to Arch-Viz to VFX but am specializing in Arch-Viz. I have academic training as a designer and it was during college that I first came into contact with 3D software. I used solidworks and 3ds max for product rendering and I knew then that if I could I wanted to work in some field of the 3D industry. I made my first architectural visualizations in 2008 but back then I was finishing my academic training among other things so I only started focusing seriously on 3D in 2010.

Pedro Torgal interviewed for www.3darchitettura.com

3DA: Describe to our readers your usual workflow
PT: My basic workflow is pretty standard I think. I get the project drawings and clean them up in Autocad, then I go into 3ds Max and do the modeling, lighting, texturing, rendering and finally post production in Photoshop or Nuke. Having said this I´ve been learning a bit of different 3D tools and software and I also use different render engines depending on the job, so my workflow isn´t very regular. I might use 3ds max with mental ray, Vue Xstream and Photoshop for one job and 3ds max, Vray and Nuke for another so somethings the workflow differs. For instance if I use Vue I usually do the environment and lighting before the modeling whereas if I´m not using Vue the modeling is always first.

Pedro Torgal interviewed for www.3darchitettura.com

3DA: What was most difficult for you when you just started working in 3D? And what is now?
PT: I guess the most difficult and frustrating thing for me when I started was not being able to get the results I wanted, mostly because of technical limitations on my part but also partly because of hardware limitations. Right now I would say the difficulty is the same as before but just on another level, the problem isn´t as much technical as it is artistic. Finding that extra spark that just “lights up” an image while keeping in mind that time is of the essence.

Pedro Torgal interviewed for www.3darchitettura.com

3DA: Looking back on your education process what you would have changed now? And what you consider right and would do exactly the same?
PT: I would like to have studied more about architecture and photography, I think having a good background knowledge in those two areas is very important for someone working in 3D Architectural Visualization. On the technical side its not very important but it gives you a good base on which to grow artistically. Apart from that I don´t think I would change much. I´m mostly self-taught when it comes to 3D and I think it’s a great, if not the best, way to learn because you make a lot of mistakes and end up learning a lot from them.

Pedro Torgal interviewed for www.3darchitettura.com

3DA: Which was the biggest problem that you faced working on a project and how have you solved it?
PT: The biggest problem I faced in a specific project was a hardware limitation, it was one of my first projects and I still didn´t have a solid grasp on how much “horse power” I needed for certain things. The solution? Get more RAM, or whatever is needed. In a more general way I think the toughest thing for a freelancer is the relationship with the client. Some clients are great to work with but others don´t have a very good notion of the 3D process and sometimes dealing with that can be hard.

Pedro Torgal interviewed for www.3darchitettura.com

3DA: What forecast you can make about the future of 3d-world in general?
PT: As a general forecast I would say that 3D will become more and more a necessity, in even more fields than it is today, so I think the future will be good for 3D artists. Some areas have suffered in recent times, Arch-Viz prices have dropped since the real estate crisis and the VFX industry is in a bit of trouble right now but I think things will improve a lot in the near future.

Pedro Torgal interviewed for www.3darchitettura.com

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