In the Workshop with Abe Ahmad & Becca Kim

May 06, 2025

Welcome to another installment of In the Workshop. This time, we’re talking to two designers whose roles stand alone amongst our architecture and interiors studios. Brand Designer Becca Kim leverages her natural artistic talent to create stunning assets for both the firm and its clients. Senior Visualization Specialist Abe Ahmad is an indispensable renderer who brings models to life through astonishingly realistic visuals. Read on to learn all about these content-creating phenoms.

Becca Kim

Brand Designer

Abraham Ahmad

Senior Visualization Specialist

When did you know you wanted to become a graphic/3D designer?
Becca: I wouldn’t say that i had a-ha moment, or even a dream of becoming a graphic designer. I started off with a fine arts background, and I strategically chose a path that incorporated the visual arts, hard skills, and technology. I started school barely knowing Adobe Suite – it was a steep learning curve and I had some self-doubt. But once I started working in the field, I realized it could be really cool. I interned at an agency, and discovered i loved working with people in person.

Abe: I’m glad you said it that way, Becca – I kind of fell into architectural visualization too. I started learning Autodesk 3ds Max when I was in middle school. I was playing video games and trying to teach myself how to design my own levels. Fast forward to college: I decided to study architecture. But while everyone was modeling in Revit, I hated it, so I started doing my work in 3ds Max. I started developing that skillset so I could eventually turn it into my job.

What’s the best rule of thumb you learned in design school?

Abe: In my workflow, I always stay curious – good ideas & techniques can come from anywhere. For example, just this week, I saw something on Reddit for a software I don’t even use, and I applied it to my own software. It worked perfectly.
Becca: Learning keyboard shortcuts for Adobe programs has been invaluable. It’s more efficient, it’ll take half the time, and it can even make you look cool with your coworkers.

How did your previous experience lead you to WAPD?

Abe: When I landed my first gig doing architectural visualization, it was all about figuring out how to actually do the workflow: working with architects, understanding their vision – it was baptism by fire. Everything was coming at me at once. I had a lot of long nights of “why is this not working?” But I also learned that if given enough time, I could figure anything out. Once I felt like I had gathered all of the specialized experience i could in previous roles, I came to Workshop/APD to become more of a generalist. Here, every day is filled with different projects. I never know what I might end up doing or for whom.

Becca: In my last job at a tech startup I wore a lot of hats. On the content team, I got to explore different skills: creative direction for photoshoots, social media design, production, digital advertising. I got to dabble in everything and see what I liked the most. It wasn’t until I came here that I figured out that graphic design was most likely my calling. Getting experience in those different areas and following my curiosity brought me to this point.

What helps with your creative ideation stage? Where do you start when you get a new project?

Abe: Usually if it’s an architectural project – for example a Nantucket home. A team has already worked on the project for months before me it gets to me. I use the mood boards the designers have created, grab those images and put them in a document to sort through them. I’m trying to assist the designers in showing their work, so I need to understand what look they were going for and then find a way to translate that vision into my own medium. I also see cool renderings on Behance or Instagram, and I’ll save those in case for reference. I’ll push to do certain styles if I believe they will look better, but I’m ultimately here to be a team player so I won’t push people too hard.

Becca: What I’ve realized when starting any project from the ground up is that I always want to let something breathe before diving right into it. I’ll get the brief, sleep on it, dream up some big ideas and then hone it . A lot of the foundation for branding projects at Workshop is already there – I can pull mood boards, narratives, colors, and imagery that the team has already created. It’s a unique workflow because we’re all different parts of a single project. Some of the most important parts have been laid out so it makes the ideation process a lot easier.

What’s your favorite design tool and why?

Abe: It’s got to be 3ds Max. I’ve used it for so long. Whenever it updates to the latest version, I run 30 scripts just to set up my workspace because it’s so customized to me. Even when I start sketching something by hand, I’ll give up if it doesn’t look how I want and just start in 3ds Max.

Becca: I love Figma- it’s a very intuitive program. It’s like my little playground, and there are a lot of plugins you can add to customize it, too.

What’s your dream project?

Becca: A branding project for a restaurant in Manhattan or Brooklyn. There are so many restaurants opening all the time here – it would be so cool to walk in to a local project and say, “I designed these menus!”

Abe: A super 3D virtual reality immersive experience. I wouldn’t just be making still images or videos but a whole experience, even adding soundscapes, like the sound of a door opening. It could be any space – maybe that restaurant Becca was talking about.

Where can we find you outside of the office?

Abe: When I’m not walking my dog, I’m usually at home tinkering with stuff. I always have a side project going: learning a new AI tool, building something or taking something apart. I just got an engineering box that’s sort of like an adult Lego set – you assemble and code it.

Becca: After work I like to go to boxing or try out a new restaurant. In the summertime, I’m surfing or just being by the beach.