# SketchUp to photorealistic render with AI: keep every line where you drew it

Clay Day turns a grey SketchUp view or a pen sketch into photoreal renders with the materials and light you pick. The geometry stays as you drew it.

21 Oct 2026 · 5 min read · Guides · By Sloosh

Web page: https://sloosh.ai/use-cases/sketchup-to-photorealistic-render-ai

## SketchUp to photorealistic render

A grey model view or a pen sketch in. Photoreal renders out, every line where you drew it.

[Try Clay Day](https://sloosh.ai/spaces/clay-day)

[Clay Day](https://sloosh.ai/spaces/clay-day) on Sloosh is an AI rendering tool for SketchUp. It takes a grey model view from SketchUp or any 3D tool, or a pen sketch, and returns photoreal renders with the materials and light you ask for. The geometry stays as you drew it, so the render matches the design your client already approved.

## What goes in, what comes out

| Clay Day |  |
| --- | --- |
| You upload | One sketch or model view, plus up to seven mood references if you have them |
| You write | A materials list |
| You choose | The time of day (morning, midday, golden hour, dusk or night), the aspect ratio, and 2 or 4 variations: As drawn, Lived-in, Warm grade, Crisp grade |
| You get | Photoreal renders of the same view in the variations you picked, lines kept where you drew them |
| Cost | Shown on the Generate button before you run it |

## Picture this

11 pm. The courtyard house is modelled. Every wall, every jaali screen, every step down to the sunken seating.

It's all the same flat grey.

The client meeting is at ten. A full render would run overnight on your laptop, and the fan already sounds like a pressure cooker.

You export one view, write down "kota stone floor, teak jaali, lime plaster," pick golden hour, and upload it.

You're in bed by midnight.

## How do I turn a SketchUp view into a photoreal render?

## Six steps

1. **In SketchUp, set up the camera view you want.** Hide guides, axes and section planes.
2. **Export it with File > Export > 2D Graphic, as a PNG or JPEG (SketchUp help).** A plain screenshot works too.
3. **Open Clay Day and upload the image.**
4. **Write the materials list, surface by surface:**

**Materials list**

```text
Floor: kota stone, honed, warm grey.
Walls: off-white lime plaster with soft texture.
Screen: teak jaali, oiled.
Ceiling: exposed concrete.
Add: two cane chairs, a brass urli with water, potted areca palms.
```

1. Pick the time of day, the aspect ratio that matches your export, and 2 or 4 variations. Check the cost on the Generate button, then run it.
2. Put the render over your export at 50% opacity. The edges should line up.

## How do I get a great result?

**Export clean lines.** Turn off edge profiles that are thicker than you'd draw by hand, and hide dimension text. Anything on screen can turn into an object.

**Name every material and its finish.** "Wood" comes back as a guess. "Oiled teak, vertical grain" comes back as teak.

**Pick the light on purpose.** The time of day decides the mood of the render more than any material. Golden hour gives long, warm shadows; midday gives flat, even light.

**Match the aspect ratio to your export.** A wide view cropped to a square loses the edges you drew.

**Use a real camera height.** Set the eye height near 1.5 m for interiors. A view from the ceiling reads as a model, however good the materials look.

**For pen sketches, use dark ink on white paper.** Photograph it flat under even light, with the page filling the frame. Pencil and shadow lines can read as edges you didn't mean.

**Keep furniture simple in the model.** Blocks for sofas and beds are enough. Describe what they are in the materials list.

## Clay Day or a traditional render engine?

|  | Clay Day | Traditional render engine |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Setup | Export a view, write a materials list | Materials, lights and settings in the model |
| Control | Materials by description, light by time of day | Exact control of every material, lamp and lens |
| Changing materials | Edit the list and run again | Edit materials and render again |
| Accuracy of geometry | Follows your lines; check edges | Exact to the model |
| Best for | Concept stage, early client meetings, options | Final presentation, marketing, construction sign-off |

Use Clay Day to agree a direction fast. Use your render engine when every tile joint has to be right.

## Who uses it?

- **Architects:** show a client the courtyard in kota and teak before the materials meeting.
- **Interior designers:** turn a hand sketch from the site visit into a photoreal concept the same evening.
- **Modular kitchen and wardrobe makers:** render a SketchUp layout in the laminate the customer picked.
- **Furniture designers:** see a new bed in a finished room before the sample is built. For a product on its own, use [Sketch to Product Render](https://sloosh.ai/spaces/sketch-to-product-render).
- **Students:** make a jury sheet look finished without a render farm.

## When is Sloosh the wrong tool?

- **Final marketing renders.** For a builder's brochure, where every window and railing will be compared to the real flat, use a full render engine.
- **Technical sign-off.** The render shows a look. It doesn't prove a joint, a clearance or a structural detail.
- **Views your model doesn't have.** Clay Day keeps your lines. If you need a new angle, set it up in SketchUp first.

## Can I run it from Claude or ChatGPT?

Yes, on every Sloosh plan. Claude, Codex, Cursor and VS Code can run it; ChatGPT can too, in a Business or Enterprise/Edu workspace. Connect the [Sloosh MCP server](https://sloosh.ai/docs/mcp), set a daily limit, attach your export and send:

**For Claude or ChatGPT**

```text
Run the Sloosh Space Clay Day on this SketchUp view. Materials: kota stone floor, lime plaster walls, teak jaali, exposed concrete ceiling. Time of day: golden hour. Variations: As drawn and Lived-in. Aspect ratio 16:9. Show me the quote first.
```

Starting from a floor plan instead of a model? Read [floor plan to furnished render](https://sloosh.ai/use-cases/floor-plan-to-furnished-render-ai). Restyling a real room? Try [Room Restyle](https://sloosh.ai/spaces/room-restyle).

The model was grey at 11. The client sees teak at ten.

Try it with 20 free credits at [sloosh.ai](https://sloosh.ai).

## FAQ

**Can AI turn a SketchUp model into a photorealistic render?**

Yes. Export a view from SketchUp as an image, upload it to Clay Day on Sloosh, list the materials and pick the time of day. You get photoreal renders of the same view with your lines kept.

**Can I upload a hand sketch instead of a 3D model?**

Yes. Clay Day takes pen sketches and digital line drawings as well as grey model views. Dark ink on white paper, photographed flat, gives the cleanest result.

**Will the room layout or window positions change?**

Clay Day is built to keep wall edges, windows and openings exactly where you placed them. Lay the render over your export to check the edges before you share it.

**How do I choose materials and finishes?**

List each surface with its material and finish in the Materials list, such as 'honed kota stone floor' or 'oiled teak jaali'. You can also upload up to seven mood reference images.