Hero
3D Animation - BESS Project

High-quality production video for marketing across social media channels and community engagement events.

Project Brief
Energy Storage

Pacific Green Technologies needed high-quality 3D visualisations of their Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) sites to support planning applications and drive community engagement across multiple projects in the UK and Australia. The challenge was producing photorealistic renders of large-scale industrial infrastructure, across remote locations - quickly enough to meet tight planning deadlines and convincingly enough to win approval.

I developed a bespoke AI-assisted rendering workflow, combining 3Ds Max and Unreal Engine 5 with Google AI Studio (Nano Banana Pro) to transform low-fidelity 3D composites into publication-ready imagery. Custom JSON prompts preserved precise site geometry while dramatically upgrading visual realism, drastically reducing rendering time. The resulting animations and renders were used across social media channels, community engagement events, and planning documentation - directly supporting successful BESS project wins in both the UK and Australia.

Design Process
3D Assets

I use 3Ds Max and Blender to create 3D Assets for my 3D Projects. I create custom texture maps and clean UV unwrapping for each 3D asset.

Unreal Engine 5 Workflow

I use Unreal Engine extensively to create 3D 'Digital Twin' of the BESS Sites and use cameras to capture the perfect compositions.

Inside Unreal Engine Editor

Final Rendered Output

A.I. Assisted Rendering Workflow

I have created a bespoke workflow that combines low-fidelity 3D rendering optimised for Google Nano Banana Pro - which means the 3D rendering has all the important feautres such as clear visible geometry, site location context, Google Earth data - that allows Nano Banana Pro to detect the details and enhance them to give unmaatched photorealism, in a few minutes.

Kiewa Valley

Using 3Ds Max and Twinmotion I created the initial 3D rendering of the BESS site, then I captured the location terrain from Google Earth and using Photoshop merged it with the 3D rendering. I used my Google AI Studio tool to enhance the composite rendering.

JSON Prompt used:
{
"system_instruction": {
"role": "Photorealistic Environmental Artist",
"task": "3D Composite to Photorealism",
"primary_objective": "Transform the provided low-poly 3D/satellite composite into a high-fidelity landscape photograph. The AI must strictly preserve the infrastructure layout while upgrading the low-resolution satellite terrain into realistic geology and vegetation."
},
"scene_context": {
"location": "Kiewa Valley, Victoria, Australia",
"coordinates": "36°27'58.2"S 146°59'14.8"E",
"environment": "Alpine valley floor transitioning to steep forested mountains",
"season": "Late Summer (Mix of dry green agricultural grasses and dark green evergreen forests)",
"lighting": "Clear Australian daylight, high visibility with unified shadows"
},
"visual_specifications": {
"style": "Wide-angle Landscape Photography",
"resolution": "8k",
"camera_properties": {
"angle": "Low-altitude aerial drone shot (matching source perspective)",
"depth_of_field": "Deep focus (sharpness maintained from foreground fence to mountain peaks)",
"atmosphere": "Realistic atmospheric scattering (blue haze) on the distant mountain slopes to establish scale"
}
},
"element_enhancement_rules": {
"terrain_and_landscape": {
"mountain_range": {
"target": "Background mountains (currently low-poly satellite mesh)",
"action": "Enhance geological realism. Add erosion details, rock outcrops, and remove polygon artifacts.",
"vegetation": "Convert the flat dark-green satellite textures on the slopes into realistic 3D volumetric Eucalyptus forests."
},
"valley_floor": {
"target": "Surrounding fields",
"action": "Render as realistic dry Australian pasture. Texture should show individual grass tufts and soil variation, replacing the blurry ground map.",
"water_features": "Detect the dark patch in the mid-ground/left and render it as a realistic small lake or marshy wetland with sky reflections."
}
},
"infrastructure_integration": {
"BESS_compound": {
"target": "The main fenced facility",
"batteries": "White industrial containers. Apply matte powder-coated metal texture with realistic panel seams and self-shadowing.",
"substation": "Galvanized steel gantries, ceramic insulators, and concrete foundations. Ensure metallic surfaces interact with the sunlight.",
"fencing": "Render fine-gauge security mesh that allows the background landscape to be seen through it."
},
"ground_surfaces": {
"target": "Compound floor and access roads",
"action": "Apply realistic crushed gravel/road-base texture.",
"details": "Add subtle tire tracks and vehicle ruts in the dust between container rows to imply maintenance activity and weight."
}
}
},
"strict_constraints": {
"geometry_preservation": "Do not alter the road layout, the position of the substation, or the footprint of the BESS facility.",
"additions": "Do not add civilian buildings, traffic, or animals.",
"consistency": "Ensure the lighting direction on the enhanced landscape matches the shadows cast by the 3D infrastructure."
}
}

Rocky Creek

Using 3Ds Max and Twinmotion I created the initial 3D rendering of the BESS site, then I captured the location terrain from Google Earth and using Photoshop merged it with the 3D rendering. I used my Google AI Studio tool to enhance the composite rendering.

JSON Prompt used:
{
"model_configuration": {
"model": "Gemini 3.1 Pro Image",
"task": "Image-to-Image Photorealistic Conversion",
"structural_guidance": "Ultra-Strict (Preserve the exact geometry, grid layout, camera perspective, and shadow casting of the input 3D rendering. Do NOT add any extra buildings, containers, or structural elements not present in the original image.)"
},
"prompt_data": {
"role": "Expert Architectural and Landscape Drone Photographer",
"primary_instruction": "Convert the attached 3D blockout rendering of a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) site into a hyper-realistic photograph. You must strictly maintain the exact layout and positioning of all existing elements. Completely replace the flat CGI textures with high-fidelity, photorealistic materials, and enhance the surrounding environment to match a lush, tropical Queensland landscape.",
"location_context": {
"place": "Rocky Creek, Queensland, Australia",
"biome": "Tropical green background landscape, characteristic of the lush, fertile regions of Far North Queensland. High rainfall area with vibrant, verdant vegetation."
},
"visual_description": {
"subject": "A newly commissioned, pristine Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) site viewed from an elevated drone perspective.",
"lighting": "CRITICAL: Strictly maintain the lighting direction and intensity from the attached 3D rendering. The sun is positioned to the front-left, casting distinct, sharp shadows to the back-right. The light should mimic a bright, clear tropical morning.",
"atmosphere": "Clear, crisp, and slightly humid air with a vibrant blue sky.",
"color_palette": "High contrast between the clinical white of the BESS units, the dark tarmac, the textured grey gravel, and the intense, vibrant tropical greens of the surrounding landscape."
},
"element_breakdown": {
"battery_containers": {
"appearance": "Factory-fresh, highly polished white BESS units. Maintain the existing 'Smart Energy Storage' text and green/blue lightning logos exactly as currently placed.",
"material": "High-gloss powder-coated steel.",
"condition": "Brand new. Absolutely NO rust, NO weathering, and NO dirt.",
"details": "Enhance realism with sharp vertical panel gaps, subtle side-mounted cooling louvers, metallic door hinges, and crisp, reflective edges."
},
"compound_ground_surfaces": {
"layout": "Within the fenced compound, clearly depict dark tarmac access roads laid over a base pad of crushed gravel.",
"tarmac_roads": "Render the distinct road paths circulating the containers as freshly laid, smooth, dark grey/black tarmac (asphalt) with realistic macadam surface texture.",
"gravel_base": "Render the underlying base pad and the narrow aisles directly beneath/between the battery blocks as highly detailed, crushed light-grey and brown gravel aggregate."
},
"background_landscape": {
"fields": "Transform the flat green 3D background into a hyper-realistic, lush tropical green agricultural landscape. Show vibrant green pastures or dense tropical crop fields (like sugarcane) stretching out.",
"trees": "The distant tree line must be rendered as a dense, rich tropical green canopy, featuring lush foliage indicative of a wet, tropical Queensland environment.",
"existing_infrastructure": "Enhance the perimeter fence into a realistic galvanized chainlink security fence. Render the existing background cylinders as shiny galvanized steel water tanks, and the existing small shed with realistic corrugated metal. Do not add any new infrastructure."
}
},
"negative_constraints":[
"extra elements",
"new buildings",
"additional containers",
"rust",
"weathering",
"dirt on containers",
"dry landscape",
"yellow grass",
"arid bushland",
"changes to lighting direction",
"low poly geometry",
"blurry textures",
"video game aesthetic",
"3D render look"
]
}
}

Portland

Using 3Ds Max and Twinmotion I created the initial 3D rendering of the BESS site, then I captured the location terrain from Google Earth and using Photoshop merged it with the 3D rendering. I used my Google AI Studio tool to enhance the composite rendering.

JSON Prompt used:
{
"system_instruction": {
"role": "Photorealistic Rendering Engine",
"task": "Image-to-Image Realism Enhancement",
"objective": "Transform the provided 3D blockout into a high-fidelity aerial photograph. The goal is to apply photorealistic textures, atmospheric depth, and lighting to the existing geometry without altering the layout, placement, or shape of any object."
},
"scene_context": {
"location": "Portland, Victoria, Australia",
"environment": "Coastal agricultural landscape",
"time_of_day": "Mid-afternoon",
"weather": "Clear sky with bright, crisp coastal sunlight"
},
"visual_specifications": {
"style": "Aerial Industrial Photography",
"resolution": "8k",
"camera_properties": {
"focus": "Sharp infinite depth of field",
"lens": "Low-distortion wide angle",
"perspective": "Strictly maintain the aerial isometric perspective of the source image"
},
"lighting": {
"type": "Natural sunlight",
"shadows": "Realistic cast shadows from the battery containers and trees to ground them in the scene",
"atmosphere": "Clean air, high visibility"
}
},
"material_directives": {
"BESS_infrastructure": {
"target": "Grid of white rectangular blocks",
"texture": "White industrial powder-coated metal containers",
"details": "Realistic panel seams, slight specular highlights, and subtle ambient occlusion at the base."
},
"ground_pads": {
"target": "Dark grey areas beneath the batteries",
"texture": "Compacted crushed rock/gravel aggregate",
"details": "Granular texture, not flat grey. Visible variation typical of industrial hardstands."
},
"drainage_basins": {
"target": "The two large kidney-shaped brownish-green areas",
"texture": "Dry, shallow grassy depressions",
"details": "Slightly different grass tone to the surrounding fields (indicating a swale), strictly no water."
},
"surrounding_landscape": {
"target": "Green fields",
"texture": "Lush Victorian agricultural pasture",
"details": "Rolling terrain, wind-swept grass patterns, varying shades of green and dry yellow patches typical of the region."
},
"vegetation": {
"target": "Tree lines and shrubs",
"texture": "Native Australian coastal flora (e.g., Sheoak, Coastal Wattle)",
"details": "Dense canopy textures, dark matte greens."
}
},
"strict_constraints": {
"geometry_preservation": "Do not move, resize, or delete any object. The layout must match the input image 1:1.",
"additions": "Do not add people, cars, livestock, or water bodies.",
"removals": "Do not remove fencing, transmission towers, or roads.",
"focus": "Texture realism only."
}
}

Final Design
Kiewa Valley, QLD, Australia
Rocky Creek, QLD, Australia
Portland, Victoria, Australia
Contact

Let's Collaborate

I’m always excited to work on new and challenging projects. Whether you're looking to build a brand from the ground up, redesign your website, or create engaging digital experiences, I'm here to help bring your vision to life.

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