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Laura | 3D Artist Freelancer

@iamvirtuala

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For 3D artists & creative freelancers
Clients, AI & the messy middle - unfiltered from
✨️ Founder of @virtuala.co

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I've been running @virtuala.co for almost four years, booked out the whole time, working with dream brands like Sheraton, Four Seasons or Louis Vuitton alongside studios I admire from all over the world. And what I've shown is only ever the final render, the polished version, made to show other brands just how fabulous working with me looks 😉

But what I've been wanting to share, for months now, is the rest.

The experimenting.

The hours when nothing works.

The days I doubt myself and measure my chaos against creators who seem to have it all figured out.

The mistakes.

The lessons.

The improvements.

I've been lucky to find a circle of creative people who helped me see things from new angles, ask questions freely and bounce ideas around. And when I realised that 90% of my DMs come from fellow artists looking for exactly that, I knew I wanted to build the same thing here: not the portfolio-perfect version I will keep at @virtuala.co, something more authentic, aimed at building real human connection.

So, my name is Laura, super happy to have you here. I'm the human behind Virtuala, and this is where I'll probably (over)share the grind, the all-nighters, the process, the personality and the expertise I've built over ten years in this field, so you don't make the same mistakes I did.

Because, as @maidenstudio said beautifully, this creative path feels a little less crazy when you know other people are walking it too.

#3dartist #higgsfieldai #nanobanana #cgartist #3dvisualizations by @iamvirtuala

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3 months ago

Bye-bye to that moment of panic when a client picks one painfully specific decor piece for the render.

Not long ago, that meant either spending far too many hours modelling it or attempting a last-minute Photoshop plug-and-pray.

Now the entire internet can be part of my 3D prop library.

see something I like → screenshot it → use AI to turn it into a 3D model → bring it into the scene.

Want the full workflow, including the exact combination of AI tools I use?
Tell me below and I’ll make the tutorial next.

Happy creating! ✨

#cgartist #tripo #tripoai #aiartist #3dsmax by @iamvirtuala

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2 days ago

Client wants MORE?
“Happy to add that. It falls outside what we originally agreed, so I’ll send an updated quote for your approval before I start.”

Client wants CHANGES?
"Of course I can make that change. We've now used the revision rounds included in the project, so I'll send over the cost for an additional round before I continue."

Client wants it FASTER?
“I can prioritise it. That would involve a rush fee, so I’ll send the revised cost and timeline for your approval.”

Clients can (and will) ask. You can (and should) say what it costs.
Because “just one more view” is still another image. “Just one more change” is still another round of revisions. And “just a little earlier” is still a calendar headache.

Managing expectations from the beginning isn’t confrontational, but agreeing through gritted teeth and exploding later is.

You can be generous and still set firm boundaries.

Which one do you get the most: extra deliverables, extra revisions, or rush deadlines?

#cgiartist #freelancerproblems #freelancerlife #creativefreelancers #3dartist by @iamvirtuala

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10 days ago

No booking = No money 🫠🫠🫠

#freelancerlife #freelancerhumor #freelancer #freelancedesigner #interiorvisualization by @iamvirtuala

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22 days ago

A project doesn't end with the last frame buffer tweaks, nor with the @wetransfer of the final renders.

It ends with a series of small tasks I haven't seen anybody talk about: the unsexy process of putting everything in order.

I used to think this was a waste of an evening, so I closed the laptop and left the mess exactly where it was. Then a client would come back months later with one more request, and I'd spend a full afternoon playing spot the difference between the originals and the re-dos.

Now, once the approval is in, one last process begins. I delete everything I downloaded and never sorted: old versions, exports, material libraries, the Corona files. All gone, to save space.

I also open the scene one last time and take out everything that didn't make it into the final image.
Relink Bitmaps to find the maps that wandered off, then Purge to clean what's left, and a Resource Collector, so every texture and every proxy lives from now on in the same folder.
I save the VFB layers and the LightMix I used to render the final images.

And with that, the project stops belonging to me.

It takes me the best part of a day, and when it's done, the folder sits there neat, waiting for an email that may never come. But if it does, I know the scene will open and render exactly the way it did the last time.

Save it for the exact steps, next time you're about to hit send!

#cgartist #3drendering #archviz #interiorvisualization #lightingvisualization by @iamvirtuala

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25 days ago

Nothing beats the sound of revisions on a Saturday morning.

#freelancedesigner #cgartist #freelancerlife #freelancerlifestyle #creativeentrepreneur

original idea: @rainbow_yew taken in Barcelona by @iamvirtuala

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a month ago

You probably don't know this, but I looove travelling (I've visited more than 40 countries already), and I looove my job as a freelance 3D Visualiser (I've done projects in more than 15 different countries). And when the two worlds collide, I am the happiest nut.

The no-overlap list? In order:

🇦🇪 Dubai
🇲🇽 Tulum
🇸🇦 Riyadh
🇩🇴 Santo Domingo
🇨🇬 Brazzaville
🇺🇸 Miami

Never been to any of them (yet!), but knowing that in each one there's a real place I rendered before it existed is the best reason I can think of to go someday.

Anyone here from one of these cities? Say hi! I'd love to know what they're really like.

#3dvisualiser #interiorrendering #interiordesigner #freelancedesigner #3dfreelancer by @iamvirtuala

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a month ago

Productivity at its peak... until the first goal.
IYKYK

#cgartist #freelancerlife #freelancehumor #freelancerlifestyle #designerhumor by @iamvirtuala

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a month ago

posted vs. deleted, AI edition

You usually only see the one image, but AI creation is never a straight line.

Behind the one that got posted, there were 20 iterations (minimum!) that were nearly there but still not quite. The perspective, the size, the position, the lighting, the material, the plastic face, the weird hands.

It looks effortless because we make it look that way. Thinking it was made with one prompt and a bit of magic is a sexier sell than trial and error 😉

So next time an image looks like it was created with a couple of clicks, assume there was someone behind it, as frustrated as you are, burning credits at midnight.

#cgartist #aitools #nanobanana #higgsfield #kreaai by @iamvirtuala

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a month ago

It took me hours to make this, and I am not ashamed.

Maybe a little.

But AI is fast right up until you know exactly what you want. Magical prompts, done-for-you apps, click-bait claims?
All of it works beautifully as long as you'll take whatever comes back.
Sure, you can guide it.
But controlling it? Good luck!

In this case, I had a clear vision of what I wanted my visuals to be, and no intention of bending it to follow an AI preference.

Anyway, after a long battle, I am happy with where this landed.
Was this the original point I wanted to make? No. But I got so frustrated that I changed the whole caption so I could have the visuals I envisioned.

Go to my stories for a sneak peek on serious AI slop I got, or comment SLOP. If I get enough, I'll make a reel with all the AI-gone-wrong I endured ;)

#cgartist #aiartist #nanobanana #klingai #higgsfieldai by @iamvirtuala

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a month ago

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2 months ago

Ah, if only!

AI has made some things faster, but even with good prompts and daily practice, great visuals don't appear like that.

It's never the first version. And it's never as fast as we make it seem.

#cgartist #interiorrendering #3drender #designhumor #aiartist by @iamvirtuala

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2 months ago