Reading a site before you draw

A site visit that only measures the plot has missed most of the information. What matters as much as the dimensions is where the sun crosses, which direction carries the afternoon heat, where the noise comes from, and what is likely to be built next door.

Those constraints usually point towards a plan before any drawing starts. A west elevation that has to be shaded, an approach that has to be turned, a neighbour who will eventually build up to the boundary — each of these removes options, which is useful.

By the time the first sketch is made, a well-read site has already answered several questions that would otherwise be settled by preference.