If you want to create believable 3D models and environments, you need an eye for details. Always use reference. Not just in the beginning, but in every single step of the way. References are a kind of map that shows you exactly what to do and where to go. Without it, you'll inevitably get lost.

When I began developing games and learning 3D software, I had heard much about the importance of using references in your work. Every single tutorial on YouTube kept repeating the same phrases.

Step one: gather references. Step two: gather references.

Make sure they are realistic. Don't use reference in someone else's style. Use real images, or you'll copy other people's mistakes. You want to create hair? Gather references. You want to model a castle? Gather references.

I knew they were important. Even if I didn't fully grasp why yet, I kept gathering and using references. A few years later, things finally clicked. There was a switch. I went from gathering references because I was told to, to gathering references because I couldn't work without them anymore. As my eye for details developed, I realized that it was impossible to remember everything about a place or object—and if I wanted to realistically recreate it, I needed to really look at it. My memory isn't capable of that.

An Empty Room

I wanted to model a room for the yet unreleased side project. A normal, modern apartment. I wanted to really hone in on the details—to the extent that, without any additional 3D models, I wanted the empty room to already look realistic.

To achieve that goal, I had an idea. Years ago, I heard the advice that it could be a great lesson to model your own room or apartment in 3D. A fun little exercise—and also the perfect reference. I decided to give it a try. Not with the interior, but with the raw layout of the room: where the doors are, the heating, windows, outlets, and all that.

So I took out my ruler and went nuts. I measured everything. The size of the room. The distances between the doors. The height of the floorboards. The radius of the pipes. The height of the outlets. The distance from the window to the heater, from the heater to the ground. I stood at my desk, pushing and pulling 3D objects, running around the room every few minutes.

What was the shape of the pipe fittings again, and how did they connect to the ground? Which outlet was for the cable, which for the internet, and which for power? What was the shape of the door handle? How deep was the window again?

It was a lot of fun. Modeling in a way that I never had before.

Years ago, I felt like I realized the importance of using references. When I modeled this room, I realized that I had no clue. No clue as to how important it really was.

A Lesson Learned

References are everything. You can learn a new trick, a new technique, or a new technology every single day—but in the end, you can only create what you are able to envision. And references—they hone that vision. They allow you to dive in and create infinite detail.

I now know that I could spend hours, days, months modelling a single pipe. I could always find another speck of dust or chip of paint. If you watch closely and really observe, there is endless detail.

Luckily, I don't need to go that far. Can you imagine? My games would never be finished. Still, a great lesson learned.