From interior housing designs to game animations, 3D rendering helps its users visualize the vivid textures of two-dimensional designs. Inspired by thumbnails on Roblox, Shimon Arai (’25) learned to turn models into 3D through rendering, starting in middle school.
“When I was an 8th grader, I was really into Roblox at the time. Whenever I open up that game, I see a thumbnail with the game logo. I was really inspired by it because I thought It was really cool to make that [rendering] type of art. So I started researching on YouTube and I got into the local communities to do free demonstrations of my skills,” said Arai.
Starting his small business from communities on Roblox, Arai makes commissions from his 3D render pieces. He enjoys exploring various of the different tasks requested and seeing their outcomes.
“One of my main passions is making money off of it. I got commissions from many communities for 3D rendering artwork. Every commission was different in a way. You’ll make different types of scenes and backgrounds or characters. It was really cool to see the results of the time and effort that I put in,” said Arai.
The whole 3D rendering process of a model can take up to a day to complete. It not only requires lots of patience to go through each step but also the skills to adjust the lighting. It is one of the crucial elements to make the final image authentic.
“To make it work, I would first export the models from Roblox in an OBJ format and then import it into Blender or the 3D software. After that, I attach it to a rig, adjust the lighting, and render it with a camera. Then, I export it to a PNG format and finalize it with Photoshop. The longest render I’ve done is around 3 hours,” said Arai.
While Arai already has the basic skills he needs to render, he believes that it is difficult to make his work flawless without more practice.
“I’ve done it for two years, but I’m still learning. It is hard to perfect it. It takes a lot of practice. The hardest part is about the lighting in the system. You want to adjust them according to your needs of the textures on the characters. Also, another thing is about dedication. Since the rendering takes time and everything is just very time-consuming, I get burnt out often,” said Arai.
Arai is currently on a break from 3D rendering for Roblox as a junior with a heavy workload. However, he looks forward to utilizing his skills and continuing next spring.
“I’m looking forward to improving my rendering skills, preferably in the second semester of my senior year when I have more time. I haven’t been able to apply my skills anywhere [outside of Roblox]. It is mainly one of my hobbies so far. I am looking forward to applying my skills to some advertisement campaigns if possible,” said Arai.
