don't know what exactly their process is, but it's not hard to figure out.

just play around. draft up a crazy sectional perspective, scan it into photoshop, add stuff, etc.

it looks simpler than it is. a lot of those images have something like sixty layers on them. but yeah you should be able to get the basics from looking at them: hand drawing (trace of 3d model printout, often), then stuff added.

why?

This has been discussed at lenght on this board. Do a search. Basically a combination of Form-Z and hand drawings.

my personal fave is Fluff Bakery

i really liked ini ani, the coffee lids fascinated me - who kept such a collection?!?

but it didn't hold up too well.

make (mostly) white model in form z with shadows. print/export jpg.

trace printout on vellum. scan.

import scanned drawing/model jpeg into photoshop. combine with hand drawing on layer above model image.

add layers with color in photoshop.

viola.

i saw an LTL lecture a few years ago. i believe they called the companies that make the lids and ordered a few boxes.

It doesn't have to be Form Z. You could do it in sketchup, and export pdf's of shetchup views (colored, wire frame, edges, hidden line, etc.) and layer it that way. The hand drawn layer will give it that last bit of sexiness, specially if you show all your "mistakes", and smudges. It's a relatively easy process as long as you know Photoshop, it's just a little time consuming.

right.

i'm glad a few people out there are still using form-z. makes me feel less like a (30 year-old) dinosaur.

I also use formz!
users unite!

jafidler you're 30 years old? dang.

A lot of firms still use form Z. It's on my "software to learn" list. Is the learning curve as bad as I've heard?

you can learn it fast and they have the best customer support.

i was at a lecture a few years ago at u of mich and LTL was there.. im fairly sure all they use is sketchup and photoshop to add people and colours in the walls..

but dont call me on it

LTL no longer uses FormZ - they model nearly everything in Rhino. A lot of the work is done in Photoshop, so much so that the renderings from the computer oftentimes look very little like the final image. The hand drawing is much more than "tracing" - they see it as an opportunity to further progress their designs and add additional information. There is an essay and a more detailed explanation of this process in the back of their new monograph, "Opportunistic Architecture".