Last Updated on October 5, 2022 by Markeyus Franks
Is Being an Architect a Good Career?
We are frequently asked if we believe that architecture or choosing an architectural career is “worth it” or ”not”. Architecture can be your thing if you enjoy crafting beautiful and practical solutions to various creative problems.
Becoming an architect is a challenging and time taking educational venture. But while acquiring the degree, it is natural to question whether or not all your hard work will pay off in the end. So, is it worth it in the future? The answer is Yes; it is a creative, diversified, and constantly evolving field and profession that offers many options and areas to pursue.
What to Expect When Pursuing Architecture?
It might be a difficult job, but architecture can also be incredibly motivating. With more experience, you will spend more time on design work and less on construction documentation and technical problems. While you may not know of the restrictions during studies, it can be incredibly frustrating when your creative freedom faces legal hurdles. When working on your projects, you must consider zoning laws, neighborhood opposition, client requests, budgetary restrictions, and schedule restraints.
- You will learn about the design of many types of structures while studying architecture in college and have complete creative freedom over your designs.
- Once you’re working, you can spend a lot of time just carrying out other people’s ideas, which is not what you may expect from your career.
- It takes 7-8 years to become a licensed architect, and it can take many more to make a name for yourself.
- You won’t be paid much during your studies because there is a lot of studying and there are few opportunities to work as a partially trained architect. Watching your peers get degrees and begin to make a respectable living while you are still putting in long hours might be demoralizing.
How Much Do Architects Make?
Prices of architects vary from state to state. Even though architects make significant annual salaries, their actual salary is based on their educational background, license, work history, position, employer, industry, and place of employment. In the United States, architects typically make $107,945 a year. However, some American architects’ salaries range from $130,826 to $151,388 annually.
Top 7 Design Software for Architects
With the help of tools, users may design organic shapes that are highly accurate and editable. Needless to say, as architects deal with high-end graphical designs, a robust PC is a necessity. Below is a list of effective architectural software that are renowned for their features;
1. Rhino 7
This unique 3D modeling software enables flexible design while keeping all components and measurements precise. Architectural institutes, online students, professional and amateur designers, engineers, and animators use Rhino 7. Inventors, consulting firms, and artists can all use this design software.
It can be used as a supplementary drawing tool in conjunction with other design, CAM, drafting, rendering, illustration, and animation tools. Rhino 7 can be used for thorough and precise analysis because it keeps the precision and complexity of engineering software plans.
With the help of Rhino 7’s SubD geometry types, users can precisely move many planes, edges, lines, and vectors simultaneously, then snap them back into place as necessary. Meshes, curves, BlendEdge, and boolean operations can all be used to transform designs.
Unlike built-in compatibility, plans from other programs can be imported into this one without losing the intended form or scale integrity.
2. Sketch up
A 3D modeling computer tool for various drawing and design applications, such as architectural, interior design, industrial and product design, and landscape architecture, is part of the SketchUp suite of subscription products.
You may have found SketchUp Free when looking for 3D modeling software. But there is a Pro option if the free features are insufficient for you. And although the price increase from free to $300/year is significant, it may be justified compared to similar 3D architecture modeling tools.
SketchUp is simple to use, simple to understand, and most importantly, fun! To ensure a fun, educational, and interactive learning experience, this interactive eBook includes full-color images, tutorial videos, and sample SketchUp files.
3. Revit
AEC (architecture, engineering, and construction) teams may produce high-quality infrastructure and structures with the Revit software. Employ Revit to:
- Ensure parametric accuracy, precision, and simplicity, model shapes, structures, and systems in three dimensions.
- Plan, elevation, schedule, and section updates can instantly be made as projects change, streamlining documentation labor.
- Provide specialized toolkits and a unified project environment to multidisciplinary teams.
- Revit has capabilities designed specifically for the construction, engineering, and architectural fields. See how you may collaborate in a single modeling environment while using the appropriate tool for your specialty.
4. Vray
Whether a house renovation or a brand-new structure, architects and designers may utilize V-Ray to render any 3D exterior and surrounding surroundings as they appear when finished. Designers rely on award-winning Vray’s 3D rendering software to visualize the best photoreal-quality interiors, from homes to offices.
With V-Ray, designers and artists can use real-time ray tracing to explore and share their projects and produce stunning 3D representations. Advertising, visual effects for cinema and television, and architectural visualization make extensive use of it. V-Ray is well known for its remarkable adaptability and sizable user base. It is 3D rendering software that leads the industry.
V-Ray is designed to handle the most challenging situations and challenging tasks. It is trusted by 92 of the top 100 architectural firms and integrated into the pipelines of the most significant film and visual effects businesses.
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5. Photoshop
With the help of Photoshop for Architects, anyone can create stunning architectural projects out of even the most ordinary photos or illustrations. To increase your productivity, you must become familiar with the program’s most helpful sketching and photo-editing tools and set up a productive work schedule.
Photoshop has ingratiated itself into an architect’s daily life, whether for the essential purpose of adding color to a sketch plan or post-processing on a full render.
6. ArchiCAD
Briefly stated, ArchiCAD is an authoring design program used mainly by architects and BIM managers. It is known for being user-friendly, allowing architects to concentrate on their final aim. The anecdotes that follow indicate that ArchiCAD is simple for individuals to learn.
Although it is not the most straightforward program, ArchiCAD is significantly more intuitive and user-friendly than AutoCAD. A 3D model of a building is something you try to accomplish rather sophisticatedly in ArchiCAD from the very beginning. Although in an initial AutoCAD lesson, you often only draw a few 2D lines, which is simpler.
Many people have produced high-quality elevations, sections, and 3D views using ArchiCAD as an architect, as well as conceptual designs, detailed drafting, and interior layouts.
7. Catia
Design in the age of experience is made possible by CATIA’s unique ability to represent any product in the context of its actual behavior. The connected environment can be defined, imagined, and shaped by systems architects, engineers, designers, construction specialists, and all other stakeholders.
By providing a variety of 3D models, CATIA enables architects, engineers, owners, and governments to construct and interact outside the bounds of conventional project delivery methods.
FAQ:
Why Do Architects Use Butter Paper?
Even in the era of computer-aided design software, tracing paper has a place in an architect’s toolbox. It helps with design creation and exploration during the creative process. It enables architects to give life to their ideas—a natural, physical extension of their mental process. Butter Paper is a well-liked, reasonably priced option for scribbling and rough sketches. Both pencils and markers work great on Butter Paper.
What Pencils Do Architects Use?
Staedtler Mars 780 Technical Mechanical Pencil, 2mm, is one of the widely used pencils in the architectural field.
Most architects and designers are accustomed to using this technical drawing pencil. This pencil works well for drafting, technical drawings, and sketching and can even be used for shading. It comes with a Mars Rotary Action Lead Pointer and Tub for sharpening the lead. Naturally, the lead can be changed, making them reusable and retractable. This makes it an easy instrument to carry without worrying about tip breaking.
Some Noteworthy Mentions
- Prismacolor Premier Graphite Drawing Pencils with Erasers & Sharpeners.
- Palomino Blackwing Pencils.
- Faber-Castell Castell 9000 Pencil.
- Caran D’ache Graphite Line, assort.
- LYRA Rembrandt Art Specials Pencils.
- Derwent Graphic Medium Graphite Pencils.
- Staedtler Mars Lumograph Drawing Pencil.
- Mono Professional Drawing Pencil.
- Cretacolor Monolith Woodless Graphite Pencils.
- General Pencil Semi-Hex Graphite Drawing Pencils.f
Conclusion
Architecture is not one of those fields that you choose for quick money. It is a profession you choose when you have a knack for creativity and want to see it in action. It can be immensely satisfying for architects to watch their imagination and vision come to life in a physical structure.
This is greatly aided by the subject’s versatility, which provides many opportunities and enables the development of various talents.
Whether you pursue or continue your profession in architecture is ultimately up to you. Being able to call yourself an architect requires hard work and commitment, but it is undoubtedly fulfilling to see your hard work pay off when a project comes to completion.
