In architectural visualizations, non-photoreal images are images that maintain the characteristics of the processes that created them. A simple form is a 2D or 3D line drawn straight out of a CAD application. More advanced images use 2D graphic techniques to increase the realism of the scene, just like architects used to do in the past with their hand-drawn perspectives.
As the name suggests, SketchUp does sketchy styles extremely well. You can get pleasing visuals straight out of the box by hitting a few buttons, and you can take things further by exporting an image to an image processor such as GIMP. In this chapter, you will learn how to do both of these. In particular, you will learn:
How to produce images in SketchUp's own sketchy styles
How to create a watercolor style output (the Dennis Technique)
How to simulate the effect of black-and-white pencil drawings
In the process, you will also learn about the tools that will help you experiment...