The real and computer modeling are synergetic partners to the process. I beleive that it holds true for both film special effects field and industrial design. There is no substitute for holding something in your hands. If you want to model a monster in a computer, you have to understand how the creature designers, modelers, make up artists do it at Phil Tippet Studios, Stan Winston Studios, and how the miniature modelmakers model compelex spaceships. As you can probably tell from the summary, I am in the architectural field.
Computers play a very strange role in architecture firms.
To me the only advantage of the computer in this scenario is that you have a digital record of a project that is easily reproduced and changed. The problem with this thinking is that they forget that the majority of people cannot fully comprehend plans. Some architects, however, don't want the clients to really understand the project so they can do the things they want to do rather than what the client really needs. 3d modelling also helps the architect understand the building even better because you can see what you are trying do very quickly and as a result begin to refine the design. I'm not trying to advocate that the computer and 3d are the end all and be all of architecture.