How to prepare paver samples for rendering

Updated October 13, 2026

What to upload

A swatch of laid paving: several pavers in the pattern you sell, with the joints between them. Renders lay it where the ground is in your scene, such as a patio, a path or a pool surround, and build it unit by unit. Each paver has real thickness, its face sits above the joint, and the scene's own light catches its edges and falls into the joints.

Pavers aren't repeated into a tile the way fabric is. Renders vary each unit's color, tone and texture the way your sample does, so a sample with a natural spread of tones gives a natural patio.

A lifestyle image of a finished patio is optional. It shows renders how the surface behaves in real light, and nothing else in it is copied.

The ideal sample

A section of finished paving, or units laid out on the ground the way they're installed.

Several pavers in each direction, with the joints between them showing.
Laid in the pattern you sell: running bond, herringbone, basketweave or a mix of sizes.
From straight above, not at an angle, so the units keep their shape.
Soft daylight: an overcast day or open shade. Low sun throws long shadows across the units.
Dry, unless you sell a sealed or wet look. A wet surface shines and darkens.
Joints filled the way you'd recommend, in their real color.
Typical variation in color, as a buyer would receive it, and true color, with no filter or edit.

Do this: Ideal
Several units, joints showing, from above.
Avoid: One paver up close
No joints, no pattern, nothing to vary.
Avoid: At an angle
The units shrink toward the back.
Avoid: Long shadows
Half the patio comes out darker.
Avoid: Wet or sealed shine
A bright patch reads as a paler paver.
Avoid: Color cast
Gray concrete comes out warm.

Illustrations: the same sample each time, with one thing changed.

Measurements

Two numbers set the scale, and a third gives the paving its relief.

Width and height, in inches: one paver's width and length. Left blank, pavers are drawn 12 by 12 inches.
Selling a pattern of mixed sizes? Enter the size of the most common unit.
Depth, in inches: the paver's thickness. It shows at the edges, where the paving meets a step, a curb or a bed.
There's no pattern repeat for pavers: they are laid unit by unit, so a number in that box isn't used.

What counts as pavers

Anything laid in units on the ground outside is rendered this way.

Concrete, clay, porcelain and natural stone pavers, flagstone, cobblestones, patio slabs and stepping stones.
Stone for a wall is laid differently: see the stone wall guide.

Before you save

Check each sample:

Several pavers and their joints, in the pattern you sell.
Straight from above, soft daylight, no shine.
Typical variation, true color.
One paver's width, length and thickness entered.
JPEG, PNG or WebP, 4.5 MB or less.

Create your workspace, then choose a plan to render a few of your pavers before you prepare the rest.

Get started