# Make your first render Build a small set, frame a shot, generate an image. Twenty minutes from a fresh project to something you could show a client. Working through this once gives you the shape of the whole product. ## Watch ![A finished render: yellow Lamborghini on a wet Manhattan street at night, the canonical hero output of the first-render walkthrough](/files/hM1HlspfmwRKC488I3Kh) ## What you'll have at the end A project with one scene, one shot, and one rendered image of a Lamborghini on a city street at night. Not finished work, but enough that you understand the Build → Compose → Visualize loop and have a frame to riff against. ## Before you start Sign in. Create a new project from the homepage. Give it a name (don't leave it Untitled – the auto-prompt uses project and scene names later). The empty 3D scene that opens is your starting state. If your viewport feels weird, take a detour through [Move the camera](/overview/get-started/viewport-navigation.md) first. The rest of this page assumes you can orbit, pan, and frame without thinking about it. ## Build the scene Switch to **Build** mode in the top-center toolbar (it's the default for new projects). The asset library is along the bottom of the screen. 1. **Add a road.** Open the asset library. Type "city street" or "asphalt" in the search. Drag a long road segment into the viewport. It lands flat on the ground plane. 2. **Add buildings.** Search "building" or browse the Architecture category. Drop two or three buildings on either side of the road. Don't worry about exact placement; AI Composer can clean it up later. 3. **Faster: prompt for a city block.** AI Composer's prompt input runs full-width across the bottom of the Build-mode viewport. Type *"create a quiet Manhattan city street at midnight with skyscrapers"*. Hit enter. Wait. The agent returns a populator with road, buildings, sidewalks, lamp posts. The Chat History panel on the right shows the agent's response. Adjust the populator's footprint if needed. 4. **Add the hero.** Search "Lamborghini" or "supercar" in the asset library. Drag one in. Place it center-frame on the road. Press `F` with it selected to frame the camera on it. 5. **Add an image reference.** Open the contextual menu of the Lamborghini → Details → Image reference. Upload a photo of the actual Lamborghini Revuelto (or whatever car you have a reference for). The visualizer will use it to lock in the look. 6. **Set the time of day.** Open the **Edit Scene Details** panel on the left. Type `midnight` (or `11:00pm`) into the Time field. The scene goes dark; the building masses still read as silhouettes. You now have a usable set. About six minutes in. ## Compose the shot Switch to **Compose** mode. 1. **Add a shot.** Click **Add Shot** in the toolbar. The current viewport framing becomes Shot 1. 2. **Get into a low angle.** Free cam to drop the camera near street level. Press `F` on the Lamborghini to frame it. The picture-in-picture in the top-left shows where you are in the world. 3. **Set the lens.** Open the shot details panel on the right. Choose a 35mm. Wider feels more dramatic for an automotive hero shot. 4. **Set the aspect ratio.** Same panel, switch to 2.39:1 cinematic. 5. **Name the shot.** Click the shot name in the panel and rename it "Lambo hero, low angle, midnight". The visualizer reads this string when it builds the prompt. Eleven or twelve minutes in. ## Visualize the render Switch to **Visualize** mode. 1. **Read the auto-prompt.** The right panel shows the Scene tab with three blocks: \[Scene Context], \[Environment & Props], \[Subjects]. The Lamborghini should be in the Subjects block. If it's not, you skipped step 5 in Build – go back and add the image reference. 2. **Pick a model.** The top-right of the panel has the model dropdown. For a stylized hero shot, **Nano Banana Pro** is a good first call. For more photoreal material work, **Flux Pro Kontext**. 3. **Pick the resolution.** 1K is a credit-cheap way to see if the framing is right. Use 2K only when you're committing to the look. 4. **Add a style preset.** Click the Style tab. Pick **Cinematic photography** or **Storyboard concept** depending on what you want. The Style block fills with descriptive text the model uses for surface treatment. 5. **Add a lighting preset.** Click the Lighting tab. **Stormy coastal tempest** is dramatic; **Misty cobblestone dawn** is moodier. The Lighting block fills accordingly. 6. **Generate Image.** Click the green button at the bottom of the panel. The job runs; the result lands in the sidebar gallery on the right of the viewport. If the render is wrong: don't immediately regenerate. * Wrong composition? The fix is in Compose mode – move the camera, change the lens. * Wrong subject? The fix is in Build – better image reference, more specific name on the object. * Wrong style or mood? Swap the preset; that's what they're for. * Stubborn extra object that won't go away (the famous "extra cop car" problem)? Download the render, edit it in Photoshop, upload as a start frame for video. See [Edit images](/visualize/edit-images.md). If the render is right: download it, favorite it, move on. Add another shot in Compose. Render that. The loop is the same. Twenty minutes, give or take. ## What's next * [Image reference](/overview/concepts/image-reference.md): the technique most directly responsible for consistent character and product rendering. * [The three modes](/overview/concepts/the-three-modes.md): the mental model that makes everything else readable. * [How the visualizer thinks](/overview/concepts/how-the-visualizer-thinks.md): why the model is given a 3D scene and not just a paragraph. * [Sets](/build/sets.md): save the city block you just built for the next project. --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://help.intangible.ai/overview/get-started/first-render-in-20-minutes.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. 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