A good CGI brief tells the visualiser four things: what the image is for, who will judge it, what information it must be built from, and who signs it off. Get those four right and most revisions disappear. Get them wrong and you pay for re-modelling, however talented the artist.

This guide is written for UK architects commissioning exterior, interior or planning visuals. It covers what to put in the brief, which planning-specific details to settle first, and a checklist you can paste into an email.

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TL;DR

  • State the purpose of each image first (planning, marketing, investor pitch, design review). Everything else, from accuracy to finish, follows from it.
  • For planning work, name the visualisation type you need under Landscape Institute TGN 06/19 and ask the local planning authority for its validation list before you brief.
  • Send native CAD or model files, a material schedule and site information at the start. A studio cannot guess your materials.
  • Fix camera positions, focal lengths and the number of views before modelling, not after the first render.
  • Agree one named approver, a set number of review rounds and the file formats you need back.

Table of Contents

Why the brief decides the outcome

Most disappointing renders are not a software problem. They come from a gap between what the architect knows and what the visualiser has been told. The RIBA’s guidance on appointments makes a similar point about the whole project: clear written terms define each party’s obligations and avoid confusion and disputes. A CGI commission is a small appointment of its own, and it benefits from the same discipline.

A brief does not need to be long. Two pages that answer the right questions beat twenty pages of mood boards with no scope. If you want to see how a brief is structured for a neighbouring audience, our visualisation brief guide for planning consultancies shows the same logic from the planner’s side.

Start with the purpose of each image

One scheme often needs several kinds of image, and each one has a different job. Write the purpose against every view in the brief.

Purpose What the image must do What it can leave out
Planning application Show the proposal accurately in its context so officers can assess impact Heavy atmosphere, styled interiors
Pre-application discussion Show massing, height and relationship to neighbours clearly Final materials, planting detail
Marketing or sales Sell the lifestyle and finish quality Strict survey accuracy
Investor pitch Convey scale, quality and the story of the scheme Fine technical detail
Internal design review Compare options quickly Polish

If one image has to do two jobs, say so. A planning view that doubles as a brochure cover is possible, but the brief should state which job wins when they conflict. Our guide to CGI that settles design options in one review cycle covers the design review case in more detail.

Match the brief to the RIBA stage

The level of detail you ask for should follow the project stage. The RIBA Plan of Work 2020 organises briefing, designing, delivering and using a building into eight stages, and it is a sensible frame for a visual brief.

  • Stages 1 and 2 (Preparation and Briefing, Concept Design): feasibility and massing visuals. Materials can be indicative, and you should say so in the brief so no one expects finished surfaces.
  • Stage 3 (Spatial Coordination): the scheme is stable enough for planning images. This is where most verified views and submission CGIs are commissioned.
  • Stage 4 (Technical Design): images should reflect finalised materials, lighting and environmental context, because they may be used to check or communicate what will actually be built.

Where a project runs under BIM, ISO 19650 expects the Exchange Information Requirements to state the purpose and level of information need for each stage. Cambridge’s guidance on EIRs is a useful reference, and the same thinking applies to a visual: say why the image exists and how much information it needs to carry. A 2026 article on ISO 19650 tenders makes the same point about setting out the purpose of information, whether planning, coordination, cost or handover.

Planning visuals: settle the type and the local list first

This is the part of a CGI brief that costs the most when it is wrong.

Name the visualisation type

The Landscape Institute’s Technical Guidance Note 06/19 groups visualisations into four types:

  1. Type 1: annotated viewpoint photograph
  2. Type 2: 3D wireline or model
  3. Type 3: photomontage or photowire without verification data
  4. Type 4: survey or scale-verifiable photomontage

The guidance indicates that Type 3 suits most projects, while Type 4 is for demanding or sensitive contexts where survey-verified data is needed. Specifying Type 4 when Type 3 would satisfy the officer adds survey and modelling cost and time. Specifying Type 3 when the council expects Type 4 means the work is done twice. So the brief should say which type you want, and why.

If you are unsure, ask your planning consultant or the case officer before you brief. Our planning visuals service covers CGI photomontage, aerial photomontage and verified views, and we can talk through which type fits a particular site.

Ask the council for its validation requirements

Local planning authorities publish local validation lists, and these can be specific. Islington’s April 2024 validation update is one example of a borough setting out local information requirements for applications, and its list for larger schemes includes items such as geolocated 3D models alongside annotated elevations and verified montages. Other councils differ, so check your own. Oxford publishes drawing standards for planning applications, and Lichfield’s local validation guidance sets out what a Design and Access Statement should cover.

Put the relevant requirement in the brief in the council’s own words. If the list asks for a model in a particular format, or for views of a heritage asset, the visualiser needs to know before modelling, not after submission. An application that misses a local requirement can be held up at validation, which is a delay no one budgets for.

For residential schemes, our CGI workflow for residential planning applications and the wider architectural CGI planning submission guide walk through the sequence.

Ask the council for its validation requirements — overview diagram

Fix the camera before the survey

For verified views, the photography, survey and model all have to agree. The brief should list:

  • The exact viewpoint locations, ideally marked on a plan
  • The lens or focal length you expect for each view
  • Reference points in the scene that can be surveyed
  • The co-ordinate system, which in the UK is normally Ordnance Survey grid
  • Any views the planning officer or consultee has already requested

A worked example of the method is the verified view methodology appendix submitted for East Hemel, which describes how views are modelled, set up for lighting and materials, and masked where the scheme sits behind existing buildings. A Kirklees application document also sets out the staged process once viewpoints have been chosen. Reading one of these before you write the brief shows you which details a verified view depends on.

What to send: files, materials and site data

The quality of a render depends on the quality of what it is built from. Send these with the brief, not in dribs and drabs.

Drawings and models

  • Plans, sections and elevations as DWG or PDF, plus the 3D model (Revit, SketchUp, Rhino or similar) if one exists
  • Confirmation of which drawing set is current, with a revision number
  • Any areas that are still undecided, marked clearly

Materials and finishes

  • A schedule naming each external material, colour and finish, with a manufacturer reference or sample photo where possible
  • Glazing type, frame colour and reveal depths
  • Hard landscaping and planting palette

Site and context

  • Site photographs from the agreed viewpoints, or a request that we arrange them
  • Neighbouring buildings and any trees to be kept or removed
  • Orientation, plus the time of day and season you want to show

Interiors (if relevant)

  • Furniture style, joinery details, finishes, lighting intent
  • Whether the room is staged for a buyer type, such as downsizers or students

The common failure is a vague material line such as “brick, light”. A visualiser who has to choose the brick is making a design decision for you, and you will see it as a revision. A material schedule turns that choice into a fact.

If you work in a shared model environment, say which version is the issue for rendering. ISO 19650 practice uses a common data environment so that only the correct version is used, and the Cambridge EIR guidance describes that approach. For a visual that goes to a planning officer, using an outdated model is more than an inconvenience: the image no longer matches the drawings.

Scope, process and approvals

The commercial half of the brief is as important as the design half.

  • Number of views, each with its purpose and type (exterior, interior, aerial, verified)
  • Resolution and formats for each use, such as print brochure, planning portal upload or web
  • Review rounds: how many, and at what stage (for example clay or massing first, then materials, then final)
  • One approver: the person whose sign-off is final, so contradictory comments from several people do not arrive in the same round
  • Deadline and fixed dates: committee dates, pitch dates, marketing launches
  • Usage rights: where the images will appear and for how long

Staged review is the cheapest control you have. Agreeing the camera and massing before textures and lighting means a change of angle costs minutes, not days.

A copyable CGI brief template

Paste this into an email and fill it in.

  1. Project and address: name, site, planning authority, stage
  2. Purpose of each image: planning, marketing, investor, design review
  3. Visualisation type (planning only): TGN 06/19 Type 3 or 4, and the council’s validation requirement quoted
  4. Views: list with viewpoint plan, focal length, day or night, season
  5. Files supplied: drawing set and revision, model, site photos
  6. Material schedule: attached, with gaps flagged
  7. Context: neighbours, trees, landscaping, anything to be hidden or shown
  8. Deliverables: formats, resolutions, number of final images
  9. Process: review rounds, approver, deadline and fixed dates
  10. Budget range or constraint: so the studio can propose the right scope

For pre-application work specifically, there is an 8-point pre-app CGI brief in the same spirit, and our property architect visualisation checklist covers wider preparation.

Our perspective

We produce all imagery in-house, with a single experienced operator, so the person who reads your brief is the person who builds the image. That shapes how we think about briefs.

First, we would rather ask three questions at the start than rework a scene at the end. The questions we ask most are: what is this image for, who has to approve it, and which drawing set is current. Those three catch most of the problems.

Second, accuracy is a spectrum, and the brief should say where on it you want to sit. A marketing view and a verified view are different products with different inputs, and treating them as the same thing wastes money one way or the other.

Our perspective — overview diagram

Third, direct communication and predictable deadlines matter more than a long specification. When a committee date or a pitch is fixed, a short brief that arrives complete and a clear approver will do more for the schedule than any amount of extra polish.

We adapt the workflow to the purpose and audience of each image, whether that is a planning submission, a brochure or an investor deck. If you are unsure how much to specify, send what you have and we will tell you what is missing.

— Paride

Where we can help

If you are ready to brief, our architectural visualisation service covers exterior, interior and planning images for UK architects and worldwide clients. You can also look at exterior CGI, interior CGI or CGI for planning applications directly. Send the template above to start, and we will confirm scope and timing from it. Pricing is agreed per project, and our property CGI cost guide explains what drives it.

Common mistakes to avoid

  • Briefing before the design is stable. If the massing is still moving, commission feasibility visuals and say they are indicative.
  • Asking for Type 4 by default. It is right in sensitive settings, and costly elsewhere.
  • Sending a moodboard instead of a schedule. Mood is useful for atmosphere. It does not tell the studio what the façade is made of.
  • Several approvers. Comments from five people in one round create contradictions that cost a cycle each.
  • Leaving the council’s list until validation. Ask early, quote the requirement in the brief.
  • Changing the drawing set mid-render without telling anyone. Always flag revisions with a number and date.

FAQ

What should a CGI brief for an architect include?

It should include the purpose of each image, the project stage, the views wanted with camera positions, the drawings and model, a material schedule, site photos or context, deliverable formats, review rounds, an approver and the deadline. For planning images, add the visualisation type and any local validation requirement. Leave nothing important to guesswork.

How much detail does a planning visual need?

It depends on the type the council expects. Under Landscape Institute TGN 06/19, a Type 3 photomontage suits most projects, while Type 4 verified views are for sensitive or contentious settings. Ask your planning consultant or the case officer which applies, and check the council’s local validation list.

Can I brief a visualiser before the design is finished?

Yes, if you say so. At RIBA Stages 1 and 2 you can commission massing or concept images with indicative materials. Save finished-material images for when the design is stable, so you avoid paying for the same scene twice.

Which file formats should I send?

Send DWG or PDF drawings and, if you have one, the native 3D model. Add a material schedule and site photos. If the council’s validation list asks for a particular model format, name it in the brief so it is built in from the start.

Sources