From Endless Revisions to One-Week Deliveries

The Impression Package is ZOA Studio’s fast-track alternative to the traditional, feedback-heavy visualization process. Based on a single briefing and the final model, the studio delivers 10–15 expressive, 2000px renders within five days. Instead of multiple comment rounds, the workflow relies on clarity and trust, enabling ZOA to produce a wide variety of perspectives, moods, and compositions that architects can immediately use for presentations, competition decks, and social media. In this interview, Bence Falussy, ZOA Studio’s Head of Art, reflects on why architects struggle to let go of control, how trust can unlock more perspectives and content, and what happens when architects like Chris Precht embrace a faster, freer way of working.

Q: In architecture, we often see hours of work dedicated to comment rounds. What made you think there could be another way to work with architectural offices on the visualization process?

Bence: Architects naturally care deeply about their projects — they’ve spent weeks or months thinking through every design decision, so of course they want to make sure the renders look right. The feedback process makes perfect sense for this; it helps ensure the building looks exactly like what they had in mind. But we noticed that toward the end of projects, things can slow down when everyone gets focused on adjusting tiny details that don’t really change the overall impact of the image. With the Impression Package, we just wanted to rethink the cycle and create a workflow where images serve the project and support designers instead of becoming THE project. The idea was to deliver a large set of strong, on-brief images in just one week, many to choose from. Because even without visualization, architects already spend overtime polishing their decks, and our role should be to help them, not add another round of stress.

Q: Could you briefly explain what you mean by the Impression Package, and how it shifts your usual visualization process?

Bence: The Impression Package is a new workflow where we receive the final model and all the critical input at the start, and instead of three or four comment cycles stretched over weeks, we produce fifteen strong, 2000px architectural renders in just five days. It’s a storytelling tool for closed-room design reviews, client meetings, or even social media. The difference is scale and speed: architects get more content and they get it faster, with less manual steering. It works best when there’s no time to go through traditional feedback loops.

Q: How does the competition workflow change with top architectural studios when feedback rounds disappear?

Bence: Without feedback rounds, the workflow becomes lighter and more direct. The energy that usually goes into managing small corrections on two or three key renders can instead fuel creativity and output. That gives us the chance to deliver a package that covers everything — eye-level compositions, lifestyle images, close-ups, and seasonal moods — fully showcasing the project. The result is a broad, colourful presentation that would normally exceed most competition budgets and take weeks to produce with the usual comment rounds. It’s a creative sprint where you set the intent once, and we turn that into a wide range of visuals.

Q: What does it demand from both sides — the architect and the visualization team?

Bence: It really comes down to clarity and trust. From the architect’s side, it means giving us the final model and a sharp brief at the beginning — every important aspect, feature, and story we can use to build the renders. From our side, it means listening carefully, interpreting that intent, and putting all our creativity into those ten or even fifteen renders. When both sides step into that mindset and lean on each other, the process runs smoother. Once our clients saw and tested the concept, it became something they can return to — a tool in their kit they can pull out whenever it fits.

Q: The idea of “no comment rounds” is very unusual. How should architects prepare a brief to make this system work without manual steering?

Bence: Communicating clearly is still the architect’s responsibility, but we give them a framework so it’s easier to structure that input. We’ve seen cases where one strong initial briefing unlocked 20–30 compelling visuals. That first case was the foundation; we just turned it into a system.

Q: Why do many architects struggle with letting go of control in visualization?

Bence: Architects are trained to be perfectionists and to take responsibility for every detail. Losing control can feel like risking quality or intent — and in a high-stakes project, that can mean losing after weeks or months of work, which nobody wants. But that constant need for control often slows communication. I believe the struggle isn’t only on the architect’s side, but also on visualization studios. If an architect can’t let go and trust their partner, it usually means they haven’t found the right studio or the right team — one that can deliver quality and effective work without constant manual steering.

Q: What kind of trust is needed for this collaboration to work?

Bence: Feedback rounds are a safety net. Giving that up means the architect has to believe the studio will treat their project with the same respect and ownership they do, not as subcontractors, but as co-authors. When an architect feels we “get it,” they can step back. Of course, that kind of trust is hard to build in a first meeting, or just from a few reference images. With something new and a bit unconventional like this, it takes time. But once trust builds project by project, the Impression Package becomes a tool they know they can reach for when deadlines are tight, presentations need all the team’s focus, and there’s no time to chase feedback all day. With Chris Precht we had a unique relationship. We basically set up our own rules and built the first prototype of the Impression Package together for Studio Precht. At the start of each project, we’d have one detailed briefing, and five days later, we’d deliver the full package right before his pitch. There were no sketch rounds, no low-res previews to debate lighting or compositions. We were free to create, because he wanted a process that gave him back time. At that moment, his child had just been born, so he literally had no time to think about renderings. For him, saving time was the clearest proof of what happens when you let go of micromanagement. And of course, that’s only one of the advantages, as we’ve already discussed.

Q: Do you have an example where “letting go” actually produced better results than expected?

Bence: Working on your own project, you usually fixate on your perspective — setting up camera angles and deciding the exact mood — and in that process you can easily miss things. When we’re given full freedom after the initial brief, we can deliver a diverse set of colourful explorations. In the review, architects often realize we’ve shown perspectives they hadn’t considered, angles they hadn’t even seen. Sometimes they even fall back in love with their project, realizing how many more opportunities it holds and how many different ideas can be expressed. From our tests, we can confidently say: letting go didn’t narrow the options — it opened them.

Q: What’s the impact on presentations and pitches?

Bence: Stakeholders respond to richness, and they connect more with a variety of ideas than with one “perfect” image. Showing a broader set of visuals communicates ambition and gives a much better chance the project will stick in their memory, or spark the kind of conversation that convinces them of its potential. People don’t remember text slides and numbers; they remember images and feelings. And architects tell us those meetings run smoother, because the visuals do half the talking.

Q: In what situations does the Impression Package not work?

Bence: Impressions are about mood, opportunities, and intent, not construction details and perfect joints. The Impression Package is a mid-phase tool, not a final one. It doesn’t work when the architect needs hyper-polished, detailed imagery for print. Its role is to show potential: to communicate the main intent, prove the project looks strong from every angle, and show it fits naturally into its context.

Q: What are the risks if architects don’t give enough input at the beginning?

Bence: The biggest risk is misalignment. If crucial details aren’t shared upfront, the results can feel off or the message inconsistent. The whole process depends on one clear conversation where we set the key story the images need to tell. If the input isn’t sharp or detailed enough at the start, the output won’t hit the mark.

Q: How do architects and studios balance speed, cost, and quality in this model?

Bence: Because the process is lean — no comment rounds, no endless iterations — the price stays on the lower end. It’s less than what fifteen images would cost with feedback rounds, and in many cases even less than having an in-house team produce them. We balance cost and speed by accepting that “impression” means expressive rather than detail-oriented. The quality is still high — we deliver in 2000px, which is ideal for presentations, reviews, and even social media. The Impression Package is about capturing mood, not about being pixel-perfect. That trade-off is what makes both speed and volume possible.

Q: Do you see architectural visualization playing a bigger role in early design phases?

Bence: Yes. I believe visualization is moving upstream — it’s becoming part of the design process, not just the end of it. It’s no longer only about showing finished projects; it’s becoming a tool to think with — to test options, visualize materials, and redesign based on first impressions. We already see many cases where clients make decisions on design direction after seeing renders, even asking architects to adjust and reverse-engineer the project. That’s why the first images and early visual showcases play such a crucial role in shaping the final results — and, ultimately, our built environment.

Q: What does this mean for the future relationship between architects, clients, and visualization studios?

Bence: As AI speeds up production, architects will need more renders, faster, while clients will demand a clearer picture of future projects. Teams will have days, not weeks, to deliver. This shift means closer relationships will become the norm across the chain. Architects, clients, stakeholders, and studios will co-author the vision together, rather than just exchange deliverables.

Q: If you could give one piece of advice to senior architects, project leads, or design directors, what would it be regarding the visualization process?

Bence: Trust your partners earlier. If you rely on external visualization studios, be prepared to give them all the critical inputs in the kick-off — model, vision, mood, features, and story — right from the very first conversation. Find a team you can trust and give artists more space, you’ll see angles and ideas you may have missed or never even considered — perspectives that can add extra stories to sell your concept. Great visualization studios are here to take work off your shoulders and free up time for your team.

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