Rendering to resemble 'built' model

[Neshi]

Hi,
I am very new to VRay and rendering programs in general.
For my job we are trying to create some imagery of new subdivisions. The aim is to make them look (somewhat) like a real built scale-model, but very basic. No or hardly any colour.
The only thing i am using that is life-like are the trees from Laubwerk, because bubble-trees look horrible.

However, I am struggling to get the settings right for this to look nice.
I am using the sun for lighting and the right shadow angle, but I don't it comes out very well. The trees are quite dark, the house models look over-exposed.

Could someone give me some pointers?

[kenancakir]

You should aply a texture on the default white areas.. Laubwerk trees are set for max, and they look dark in sketchup, your camera faces the shadows also.. You can use a hdri image that its sun comes the ıpposite side of the sketchup sun, it will brighten the shadows..

[Neshi]

You can use a hdri image that its sun comes the ıpposite side of the sketchup sun, it will brighten the shadows..

How would I go about doing that? Do I set up a secondary light source opposite the 'real' sun?

[Peter.Chaushev]

As kenancakir already mentioned, avoid using the default SketchUp material. When using white color for Diffuse, make sure the values are lower. Ttry 185-200 RGB (or even lower) instead of the default 255. Optionally, you can create a custom material mimicking a real one or ruse anything you find suitable from the preset library (plastic/wood/cardboard). Keep in mind if you choose a sub-surface scattering (SSS) material it may increase render time.
Depending on your camera angle, using Camera Depth of Field (DoF) could make the scale model feel more believable.

You may also find useful some parts of lesson 5 from the SketchUp Courseware (https://docs.chaosgroup.com/display/...terial+Wrapper). The assets there are available for download.

Kind regards,
Peter