In our predictions for the 3D rendering industry in 2025 , we shared that we’ve seen a major pivot towards authenticity and realism.
Consumers are fed up with the cheap AI images that are inundating popular social media platforms like Facebook and Pinterest. These unrealistic images are overly saturated, overproduced, and unrealistic.
In response, consumers are looking to brands and 3D artists for imagery that delivers authenticity, realism, and a connection to a deeper legacy.
The work of our January 2025 Artist of the Month , Johannes Lindqvist, perfectly exemplifies this emerging trend.
On his Instagram page , Lindqvist (who goes under the handle Viz.Guru) recently shared a series of renders of the Porsche 911 GT3 RS.
From Lindqvist’s very first image in his series, you can immediately see the incredible realism that he manages to achieve.
Shadows in the foreground complement the shadow cast by the digital twin of the GT3 RS, and the canopy of a palm tree peeks out from above the wall at the top of the frame.
The casual composition and choice of location make this render feel like somebody happened upon the stunning vehicle while walking the streets of the city and snapped a photo on their phone. It’s as realistic and visually raw as a true “car spotting” shot.
Lindqvist continues this visual style with the other images in his series. Another view shows the GT3 RS viewed from the sidewalk in front of the building.
Instead of glitziness, the render captures the gritty realities of city life, showcasing the vehicle (with its own rich legacy) in a realistic, everyday setting.
Other renders show the GT3 RS with traffic passing in the background, again adding to the realism of the scene.
Lindqvist reassured his fans that it is “very much a render,” but he also shared one of his secrets to achieving this level of realism: the use of a Backplate from CGI.Backgrounds.
Our Backplate for this render, which shows the real-life Los Angeles alleyway and surrounding roads from a variety of angles, allowed Lindqvist to add extreme realism to the scene.
Because our professional photographers capture Backplates from a variety of angles and camera heights, Lindqvist could create an entire series of images in the same virtual location, adding to the impression that these images were shot in the real world.
Where AI images often struggle to capture real-life details (and fail almost entirely when it comes to consistency), using a CGI.Backgrounds Backplate captured from the real world allowed Lindqvist to create something that feels timeless, visually compelling, and hyper-realistic.
Want to add a hefty dose of realism and authenticity to your own imagery in 2025? Create a free CGI.Backgrounds account to try out our imagery, reach out at contact@cgibackgrounds.com , and join our newsletter to see all our 2025 Artist of the Month picks.
