My workflow generally works as follows:
-Site research usually client notes, photos, & google earth (rarely visit sites first hand, but google earth's latest 3d mode can be very telling about what i'm dealing with at a site)
-Case by case may model some site context where photos aren't available or usable
-Initial group composition in sketchup often artist directed (I've pre modeled nearly all of the artists sculptures have them ready to import as components)
-Case by case may animate sculptures with keyframe animation plugin (still can't render these out with indigo, keyframe plugin does create scene per frame using layers but skindigo exporter still doesn't seem to care for it...
someday perhaps)-Take plan view dxf export to autocad to verify spacing requirements, refine spacing & prelayout prep
-Take spacing back to sketchup, verify with artist for artist directed compositions
-Setup for render, match photo lighting, match photo camera lens and angle as much as possible, cleanup textures (remove duplicates convert to indigo specific textures)
-Render with indigo, main with alpha, shadows, and separate lighting render if needed
-Prep photo photoshop/perhaps Affinity Photo (often have found it beneficial to blur out photo background/fake bokeh also clean up photos, I've on occasion had to use google street view captures..)
-Composite with Photoshop/perhaps Affinity Photo
-Workup installation layout for client in autocad
-Package up for approval by studio owners & client in acrobat (Renders, layouts, etc.)
Thanks again for input, I'm always looking to improve quality of renders and workflow
