My 1st HDRI exterior rendering attempt!

[prateekvishwa]

Hey all, i was trying to use HDRI instead of vray sky to achieve some sort of photo realism in my renderings.. i tried several combination of hdris with & without LUT& Gamma 2.2, with & without Vray physical cam etc etc.. I am happy with some sort of progress.. though it is far from photorealism but better than my previous exterior renderings i guess.. I am actually after this because one of my client recently said my renderings are good looking but they are more of illustrative than photorealistic.. as an artist it is a real challenge for me to start delivering photorealistic images aswell as all clients doesn't except illustrative images all the time. I would love to get your feedback! Thanks.

[stef.thomas]

I think the lighting is looking nice. To increase the level of photorealism you should focus on the materials next in my opinion. The render/stone material could use a lift, either some subtle reflection or more surface relief perhaps. Also it all looks very clean, if you want it to look real you're going to have to start adding some dirt! Not just an AO pass, but runs/streaks etc in specific areas. This will also help to give a sense of scale. Some variation in the windows would be good too; random curtains, blinds and a hint of an interior.

[prateekvishwa]

I think the lighting is looking nice. To increase the level of photorealism you should focus on the materials next in my opinion. The render/stone material could use a lift, either some subtle reflection or more surface relief perhaps. Also it all looks very clean, if you want it to look real you're going to have to start adding some dirt! Not just an AO pass, but runs/streaks etc in specific areas. This will also help to give a sense of scale. Some variation in the windows would be good too; random curtains, blinds and a hint of an interior.

Hey thanks for your valuable feedback! will upload update image with your tips shortly!