We’ve all heard the saying that a picture is worth a thousand words. It was true when medieval artisans created stained glass windows for cathedrals to bring Bible stories to life, and it’s true now when you’re trying to communicate the vision of your new or renovated church building to your congregation.
Fortunately for your church building and funding process, you don’t have to create something as expensive and time-consuming as stained glass windows in order to get your message across. Instead, a church architect can easily create computer-generated 3-D renderings of your proposed building plans. These images will make it much easier to communicate—and “sell”—your vision of the project to your congregation, and to those you’re asking to help fund the project.
The Importance of 3-D
Computer-generated 3-D images are everywhere today, being used to sell everything from hairbrushes to homes. The ubiquitous nature of digital advertising makes it easy to engage people with a well-designed set of 3-D renderings that bring the new church design to life.
For example, it’s easy to render in 3-D the main gathering space set up for worship, filled with comfortable seats, and with theatrical lighting focused on the stage. As we share in one of our free i3 webinars, with 3-D video, we can open the doors from the lobby and “walk them around” virtually, to get a feel for how it will be to enter the worship space and find a seat. Then we can fill the same rendered area with banquet tables, and people can imagine sharing a meal there together. To finish, we can whisk away the banquet tables and set up the room for a seminar or other vision-specific type of event.
The Importance of Engaging the Imagination
3-D renderings get people engaged in your building vision because they also add color and excitement to the presentation. Instead of just looking at traditional black-and-white 2-D architect’s drawings, your church members will view the vibrant wall colors, watch the basketball backstop move down from the ceiling, and see a barista making cappuccino in the café. These images make it easy for everyone to imagine hanging out in the lobby before worship or shooting hoops with the youth. Even parents will see how the new church will be exciting and engaging for their children because they can see the way youth spaces are designed and decorated.
The Importance of Photographs
Another way to help church members catch the vision is by sharing photos of similar, completed projects. The McKnight Group has been creating exciting and engaging church buildings for more than 40 years, so we have many photos of projects that are likely similar in size, scope, and sometimes even color scheme to your project. These pictures will reinforce your vision for church members by giving them more insight into what the spaces will look like.
The Importance of Experience
As our Project Manager, Allen Toombs, says, “Most people cannot visualize the way in which a space will look and feel based on an architectural plan drawing. That’s why 3-D renderings and videos are so effective, and so important in conveying the vision.” Sign up for one of our free i3 webinars today and learn effective ways to share your church vision with your congregation.