Rentas and his team transform engineering models into renderings that convey comfort, bringing life to components such as seat cushions and arm rests.

Mimicking light to create depth and atmosphere

Rendering the effects of lighting plays a pivotal role in creating realism and emotional impact in visualizations.

"The way that we approach lighting is basically trying to mimic what is in real life," says Rentas. "If we are rendering the interior of the airplane, for example, we set the exterior lighting to mimic the sun at a specific time of day, and that becomes our main source of light."

This natural lighting is complemented by artificial sources: "We include overhead lights and spotlights and render the effects of those on cabin surfaces to mimic how it would appear in reality."

The goal is to create visual depth: "We need to balance the light. And to have a very good balance of the light, we need to create highlights, we need to create mid-tones, and we need to create shadows. If everything is illuminated with the same kind of light, the image is going to look flat."

The devil in the details

The team's commitment to realism extends to minute details that might go unnoticed individually, but collectively create an impression of authenticity.

"We add stitches and wrinkles on seats, and we try to make the materials appear as real as possible with color as well," Rentas notes. "We have specific codes for colors, and we try to match those as close to reality with that."

However, there are strategic omissions: "There are a couple of things that we will never include in our rendering - for example, scratches or dust. Those are present in real life, but we don't want to show our product in any other condition but a pristine one,” laughs Rentas.

Creating lived-in spaces

To help airlines envision how passengers will experience the space, the team adds carefully selected props.

"We use a lot of items in our rendering to create a live environment in our seats," Rentas shares. "We use magazines, we use eyeglasses, we use laptops, iPads, cell phones. We use even food and beverages."

These props help stakeholders mentally place real passengers in the space, making the visualization more relatable and emotionally engaging.

The art behind the science

Transforming an engineering concept into a visualization represents far more than technical execution—it's about creating an emotional connection between the airline and the product.

In an industry where both technical performance and passenger experience are paramount, visualization serves as the crucial bridge between engineering excellence and brand expression. In the end, these detailed renderings help airlines envision their future and the experience they'll offer to millions of travelers.