Key Takeaways:

• ‍Small studios can deliver big results when equipped with the right tools and mindset.
• ‍D5 Render enabled real-time performance and high-quality output even for a 650-hectare urban project.
• ‍Smart use of D5’s features streamlined the workflow and eliminated the need for external post-processing.
• ‍Adopting D5 helped the studio grow its business, attract larger clients, and gain industry visibility.
• ‍Visual storytelling was the true differentiator, with D5 acting as the medium, not the message.

Studio Overview:

• ‍Location: Lampung, Indonesia
• ‍Team Size: 4 people
• ‍Studio Type: Boutique architecture and 3D visualization studio
• ‍Project Types: Urban planning, masterplans, residential, commercial, marketing visuals for developers
• ‍Modeling Tools: SketchUp, Revit

Vasaka City is anything but modest. Sprawling over 650 hectares in Bekasi, Indonesia, this envisioned smart township fuses residential clusters, retail hubs, healthcare centers, and green recreational spaces into one cohesive masterplan. With six architectural firms across Indonesia and Hong Kong contributing, the question loomed: How do you narrate the story of an entire city before a single brick is laid?

For Yoga4Arch Studio, a lean team based in Lampung, this assignment transcended typical rendering—it was a chance to shape investor perceptions, stakeholder insight, and future residents' first impressions. The key to meeting this challenge? D5 Render.

About the Studio: Yoga4Arch

Founded in 2011 by architect-visualizer Yoga Binhar, Yoga4Arch began as a local residential design studio handling layouts, site planning, and documentation. As demand grew, so did their capabilities—Over time, the team expanded into 3D visualization to deliver a more complete architectural package.

Originally serving the Lampung region, a consistent presence on YouTube and Facebook helped them expand. Today, Yoga4Arch serves clients across Indonesia and has started attracting international projects.

Project Overview: the Urban Oasis - Vasaka City

Vasaka City is an ambitious smart city initiative by Waskita Modernland. The masterplan includes a variety of programmatic zones—from residential neighborhoods and retail corridors to hospitals and high-rise towers. With six different architectural teams contributing to the vision, coordination and visual cohesion were key.

Yoga4Arch Studio was tasked with producing:

• High-quality aerial views and bird's-eye renders
• Cinematic animations for marketing
• Enhanced 3D details like roof tiles, vegetation, and environmental context
• Mood and atmosphere setting to communicate the "Urban Oasis" concept

But scale brought challenges. Visualizing 650 hectares meant processing enormous models, handling detailed environments, and rendering complex lighting scenarios—fast. That’s where the cracks in their old workflow began to show.

From Limitation to Liberation: Why D5 Was the Right Fit

As Yoga4Arch scaled up its visualization work for Vasaka City, their existing software toolchain hit a wall. They had relied on Lumion for years, but the massive site plan for Vasaka—spanning over 650 hectares—exceeded its limits. Even with a capable machine, Lumion failed to load models reliably once the scene crossed the 300-hectare mark.

This bottleneck prompted the team to reassess their tools. The shift to D5 Render was not just an upgrade—it was a necessity for keeping the project on track.

• D5 handled it effortlessly—even at 650 hectares.
• ‍No glass cheat needed. Reflections were accurate, even across dozens of buildings.
• ‍Faster everything. From syncing models to rendering views, the pipeline flew.

Their workhorse setup (i9 9900K, RTX 3090, 64GB RAM) handled real-time navigation smoothly, even with vegetation, light effects, and atmospheric depth all layered in.

Also read: Out-of-the-box Interior Parallax Assets Available in D5 Library to Save Your Time

Behind the Scenes: Solving Creative Chaos

Working with six different architects—across countries, time zones, and aesthetic tastes—isn’t for the faint of heart. Often, Yoga and his team played the role of translator, balancing bold ideas with buildable outcomes.

Revisions? Plenty. But the visual clarity D5 offered allowed smoother approvals and faster alignment. Scenes were adjusted in real time, then sent as screenshots before final renders—keeping communication tight and expectations aligned.

The Workflow: Breaking Down a Giant

To make such a massive project manageable, the team didn’t try to conquer the entire site at once. Instead, they divided Vasaka City into ~22 blocks, rendering and refining each section individually.

• ‍Geo-Based Storytelling
  Using Google Earth as a base, they recreated the actual terrain of Bekasi—rice paddies, roads, even rural homes on the edges. It wasn’t fantasy; it was familiar.

• ‍Real-Time Sky and Lighting
  ‍D5’s geosky lighting control lets them fine-tune sunlight across hours, capturing golden-hour glow and casting real-time cloud shadows over rooftops.

• ‍Manual Exposure for Maximum Mood
  ‍Instead of using auto-exposure (which often blows out subtle skies), they dialed it in manually—ensuring every scene had the right emotional tone.‍

• Vegetation at Scale
  ‍One of D5’s unsung powers: handling dense, large-scale vegetation with ease. Not cloned greens, but believable biodiversity.

All this came together in just minutes per render—and sometimes, the team even skipped Photoshop touch-ups. “What you see,” Yoga explained, “is exactly what we’d build.”

And it all happened in just 8 weeks. “A project like this can feel like a marathon,” Yoga admitted, “but with D5, it was one we could actually finish.”

Also read: Natural sunlighting for realistic architectural visualization with Geo&Sky in D5 Render

Client Response

The client commended the result for its precision, emotion, and clarity—despite complex input and tight timelines. D5’s real-time atmosphere, realistic glass reflections, and cinematic animations were instrumental.

How D5 Render Accelerated Yoga4Arch’s Growth

For Yoga4Arch Studio, the value of D5 Render extended beyond speed and visual quality. It became a business enabler:

• Winning larger, premium projects
  “Without D5, I wouldn’t have been able to accept a project as big as Vasaka City.”

• Speed equals satisfaction
  Real-time previews meant faster decisions and smoother revisions.

• Visibility that led to global clients
  YouTube videos showcasing D5 work attracted clients from outside Indonesia.

• Competitive edge as a small studio
  With D5, Yoga could match the output of bigger agencies with a smaller team and leaner budget.

• Authority through education
  D5’s accessibility made it easy to use in Yoga’s online courses, growing his influence in the 3D community.

Lessons Learned & Tips from the Studio

• ‍Pro-grade hardware is a must: Yoga’s jump to RTX 3090 and 64 GB RAM was transformative
• ‍Divide and conquer: split the projects into blocks to optimize performance and workflow
• ‍Manual exposure wins moods every time
• ‍Keep feedback tight and fast with LiveSync and embedded previews
• ‍Build your brand: social sharing boosted trust and future contracts

Conclusion

Vasaka City proved something important: a small studio with the right mindset, tools, and workflow can tackle large-scale, high-profile projects. Yoga4Arch didn’t just deliver pretty renders—they brought an unseen city to life.

With D5 as their canvas, Yoga4Arch translated architectural vision into immersive storytelling. That wasn’t just success—it was a declaration of possibility for agile, passionate creators.

“With D5 Render, we didn’t just finish the job. We proved that we could grow with it.”

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