by sketchup guide 3d pple3d-apple.com/sketchup_guide.pdf · 4 setcup gude part i: he asics o...
TRANSCRIPT
Sketchup guideby
3d PPLE
Sketchup Guide2
3Sketchup Guide
Contents
Part I: The basics of Sketchup
1.1. Workspaceandfloatingwindows 1.2. Units 1.3. Preferences 1.4. WorkingwithLayers 1.5. WorkingwithMaterials 1.6. Groups and components
Part II: Modeling in Sketchup
2.1. Basicmodelingtechniques 2.2. Usefulplugins
Part III: Working with complex models
3.1. Organizingthemodel 3.2. Howtoavoidproblems
Part IV: Presentation of Sketchup work
4.1. Sketchupstyles 4.2. Templates 4.3. Cameras and scenes 4.4. RenderinginSketchupandoutsideSketchup
Part V: Conclusion
5.1. Goodtoknow...
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Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup4
Part I: The basics of Sketchup1.1. Workspace and floating windows
Sketchupisaveryintuitiveandeasytousemodelingprogram.Allthemodelingandeditingtoolsareavailablethroughthemainmenuandthroughfloatingwindows.
BelowisascreenshotofaSketchupwindowwithsomebasictoolbarsandsomeextensions(pl-ugins)accessiblethroughicons.
Image1.1.1.
5Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
ToorganizeyourworkspaceaccordingtoyourneedsandpreferencesgotoView - Toolbarsandchoosetoolbarsyouwouldliketoseeonyourscreen.
Image1.1.2.showsthelistofdefaulttool-barsandpluginsinstalledonmycomputer.
OnceyouarrangeallthetoolbarsasyouwishtoseethemyoucansaveyourtoolbarpositionsbyclickingonSave Toolbar Positions,whichyoucanseeinthemiddleofthelist.
Ifyouprefertoseelargericons,chooseLarge Buttonsfromthebottomofthelist.
defaulttoolbars
plugins
Image1.1.2.
Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup6
WhileworkinginSketchupyouwillneedtosetcertainparametersthroughfloating windows,whichareessencialpartofyourworkset.
Tochoosefloatingwindowsthatyouwishtohavehandy,gotoWindowandselectallthosethatyouwouldliketoseeonyourscreen(seeimage1.1.3.)
Whenyouchooseyourfloatingwindows,yourscreenmaylooklikethat:
Ifyouhavetwomonitors,itisusefultouseoneofyourscreensforthemainwindowandthesecondoneforyourfloatingpallets.
Image1.1.3
Image1.1.4.
7Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
Themostcommonlyusedfloatingpallettesare:
• EntityInfo
• SoftenEdges
• ShadowSettings
• Stles
• Layers
• Materials
• Components
• Scenes
• MatchPhoto
Entity Info Pallette
EntityInfopalletteisoneofthefloatingwindowswhichyouwilllookatmostfrequently.Itgivesyouvariousinformationdependingonwhetheryouclickonasurface,grouporcomponent.
Whenyouselectasurface,EntityInfowilldisplaythefollowinginformation:
Image1.1.5.
whatmaterialiscurrentlyas-signedtoeach
faceofthesurfaceyou
highlighted(atthemomenttherearenomaterialsin
ourmodel,butonceyoucre-atesome,youwillbeabletopickthemfrom
thelist)
theareaofthesurfaceinsquaremm
thelayerwhichthesurfaceisdrawnon(youcanexpandthelistofthelayer
andchangethelayerofthesurfacehere)
Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup8
Whenyouclickonagroup,EntityInfowilltellyou,thatyouhavehighlighedagroup.Itwillgiveyouthevolumeofthegroupanditwillalsocountthenumberofthatgroupsplacedinyourmodelandwillshowyouthelayercontainingtheelement.YoucanexpandthelistoflayersandchangethelayerofthehighlightedgroupthroughEntityInfo,exactlyasyouwoulddoitusingtheLayersToolbar.
Whenyouclickonacomponent,EntityInfowilltellyou,thatyouhavehighlighedacomponent.Itwillgiveyouthevolumeofthecomponentanditwillalsocountthenumberofthatparticularcom-ponents inyourmodel. Itwillshowyouthe layercontainingtheelement,whichyoucanchangebyexpandingthelayerslist.Mostimportantly,itwilldisplaythedefinitionnameofthecomponent,whichyougivewhilecreatingthecomponent.Youcanrenameyourcomponenthere.Also,whenyoumakeoneofyourcomponentsunique,thenamewillbechangedautomaticallytoname#1.Youcanchangethisnamehere.
Image1.1.6.
Image1.1.7.
9Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
Whenyouclickonacircle or an archthatyouhavedrawn,EntityInfowillshowyouthelayerwhichtheyhavebeendrawnon, theradiusandalsothenumberofsegmentsformingthecircleor thearch.BydefaultSketchupwillcreateacirclewith24segmentsandanarchwith12segments.YoucanchangethenumberofsegmentsinEntityInfowindow(refertoimages1.1.8,1.1.9and1.1.10below).
Image1.1.8.Circlewith24segments.
Image1.1.9.
Image1.1.10.
type the value here
Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup10
Whenyouincreasethenumberofsegments,yourcircleandarchwilllooksmoother.Thismighthelpwhenyouneedtomodellargesurfaceswitharchs/curves.
Image1.1.11.Circlewith48segments.
Image1.1.12.Archwith12segments.
11Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
Image1.1.15.Archwith36segments.
Image1.1.13.
Image1.1.14.
Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup12
Thenumberofsegmentsofacircleoranarchcanmakeabigdifferenceafterextrusion:
Image1.1.17.Surfacecreatedbyextrusionof36-segmentarch.
13Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
Image1.1.18.Cylindercreatedbyextrusionof48segmentscircle.Clicktheetimestoselectallconnectedsurfacesandedges.EntityInfoshowsyouthatcurrentlyyourangleissetto20degrees.Edgesbetweensegmentsarehiddenandshownasdashedlines.Theperimeterofthecylinderisasinglesurface.
Image1.1.19.Angleforthecylinderchangedto0degrees.Edgesbetweensegmentsarevisibleandeachsegmentisnowanindividualsurface.
Soften Edges Pallette
SoftenEdgesisanotherusefulfloatingpallet,thatyouwillbeusingwhileworkingwithcurvedsur-faces,terrainmodelsororganicforms.
Itallowsyoutodeterminehowsmoothyoursurfaceisgoingtolooklikebyadjustingtheanglebe-tweensurfacesofyourobject.
Theextrudedarchseenonimages1.1.16and1.1.17isaverygoodexampleofhowSoftenEdgescanhelpwhenitcomesdeterminingthesmoothnessofthesurface.
angle set to 20 degrees
angle set to 0 degrees
individual surfaces
Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup14
Image1.1.20.Angleforthecylinderchangedto80degrees.Edgesbetweensegmentsareinvisible.
Image1.1.21.Angleforthecylindersettoavalueexceeding90degrees.Alledgesarenowhidden,becausetheanglebetweenverticalsegmentsofthecylinderandtopandbottomcylindercapsis90degrees.Settingvaluebe-yond90degreesinthissituationaffectsalsotheedgesbetweenverticalandhorizontalfacesofthecylinder.
angle set to >80 degrees
angle set to more than 90 degrees
15Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
AnotherexamplewhenSoftenEdgestoolcomesusefulisterrainandfreeformmodeling.
Image1.1.22.
Image1.1.23.SoftenEdgeswithSoftenCoplanar.
soften coplanar enabled
Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup16
Image1.1.24.
Image1.1.25.
Shadow Settings Pallette
ShadowSettingspalletteallowsyoutoquicklysettheexactdateandtimeforyourscene.Itispar-ticularilyusefulwhenyouneedtoillustratetheshadowcastonthesiteandsurroundingbuildingsindifferenttimesoftheyear.
InShadowSettingspalletteyoucanalsoadjustthebrightnessofyourimageandthedarknessoftheshadows.
Youcanalsodeterminewhetheryouwantshadowstobedisplayedonfaces,ongroundorcastbyindi-vidualedges.Thislastoptionisbydefaultdisabled,butitmaybeusefulsometimeswhenyouhaveameshbuiltonlywithlinesandnotwithsurfaces.
17Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
Image1.1.26.
Image1.1.27.
Casting shadows on groundmeans, that shadowswill be automatically cast onSketchup’s vir-tualground.Thismightbeuseful,butisnotdesiredwhereyouhaveelementsofyourmodelbe-lowSketchup’svirtualgroundlevel(seeimage1.1.26).Inthesecasesyoushoulddisablethe‘OnGround’option(seeimage1.1.27).
‘On ground’ option activated. Shadow cast on Sketchup’s
virtual ground
‘On ground’ option disactivated. Shadow cast only on surfaces
Workingwithshadowsoncomplexmodelsmayslowyoudown.Tryandenableshadowsonlywhenyouarereadytoexportyourviewas2Dimage.
Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup18
Styles Pallette
Styleswindowallowscontrolofthicknessandstyleoflinesandsurfaces.
Therearetwowaysofplayingwithlinethickness:
• viaStyles Toolbar(image1.1.28)
• viaStyles floating pallette(image1.1.29)
styles toolbar allows to enable / disable wireframe, hidden lines, invisible lines,
plain colour and texture
styles floating palette allows customization of lines and surface styles
click here to see styles used in your model
Image1.1.28.
Image1.1.29.
19Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
Image1.1.30.
Image1.1.31.Sketchylinestyles.
click here to expand list of styles
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Toeditindividualstyle,addprofilesandadjustotherproperties,clickon‘Edit’buttininStylesfloatingpallette.YoucanalsouseStyleBuilderavailableinSketchupProtobuildyourownstyles.
Workingwithastylewithmanypropertiesenabled(likeprofiles,extensions,endpointsetc.)orwithsketchyedgestyleswillslowyoudownandifyoualsohaveshadowsenabled,youmayfindnavigatingyourmodelquitedifficult.Thebestpracticeistoworkwithasimplethinlinestraightedgestyleandonlyenablecustomizedstylesandshadowsforpresetscenesforthepurposeofexportingyourviewsasimages.
Image1.1.32.Editinglinestyles.
21Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
Image1.1.33.
Image1.1.34.
Layers Pallette
Layerspalletteshowsyouthelistoflayersthatyoucreatedandlayersthatcamewiththemodelthatyouimported.Layersfloatingpalletteallowsyoudothefollowing:
• addingandremovinglayers
• renamingyourlayers
• settingyourcurrentlayer
• controllinglayersvisibility
• purgindlayers
• enabling/disabling‘ColourByLayer’mode
• adjustingcoloursofyourlayers
click on ‘+’ and ‘-’ to add or remove layer
click here to change the colour of the layer
double click on layer’s name to edit it
Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup22
Image1.1.35.
Image1.1.36.
this is your active layer
this layer is switched off
purge unused layers
enable ‘Colour by Layer’ mode
Image1.1.37.
23Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
Image1.1.38. Image1.1.39.
currently there are no materials in your model
material preview
default materials
editing material
click here to display materials used in your model
Materials Pallette
Materialspalletteallowsyoutocreate,editandapplymaterialstosurfaces.
WhenyoustartSketchupwillshowyousomefolderswithdefaultmaterials(seeimage1.1.38).Byclickingonthelittlehomebutton(orbychoosing‘InModel’fromthelist)youcanswitchtoseema-terialsusedinyourmodel(refertoimage1.1.39).
FormoreinformationonhowtoworkwithmaterialspleaserefertoWorking with materialssection(part1.5).
Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup24
Components Pallette
Componentsfloatingpallettedisplaysthepreviewsofcomponentsthatyouhaveeithercreatedinyourmodelorimportedtoyourmodel.
Image1.1.40. Image1.1.41.
click here to display components in your model
look for components online in 3D Warehouse
currently there are no components in your model
FormoreinformationonworkingwithcomponentspleaserefertoGroups and componentssection(part1.6.).
25Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
Scenes Pallette
Scenefloatingpalletteisalistofsavedviews(scenes)inyourmodel.
Image1.1.42.
Image1.1.43.Listofsavedsceneswiththumbnails.
Image1.1.44.Creatinganewscene.
click on ‘+’ and ‘-’ buttons to create or delete scenes
use the arrows to move scenes up and down the list
view options
hide / show details
menu
here you can determine which properties will be saved each time you update the scene
here you can determine which scenes will be included in animation, if you need to export a movie or image sequence
Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup26
Youcanswitchbetweenscenes,deletescenesorrenamethemusing theeither the tabsor thesceneslist.
Ifyousaveasceneandmakechanges toyourperspectivesettings,stylepropertiesorshadowsettings,youcanupdateyourscenebyright-clickingonthetabandchoosingUpdate scene.
Image1.1.46.
Image1.1.45.
Whenyoucreateanewscene,atabwiththenameofyourscenewillappear:
Havingmanyscenesinyourmodeldisplayedonthesceneslistasthumbnailsmaytakeamomenttoupdateifyourmodeliscomplex.
27Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
Image1.1.47.
Image1.1.48.
Match Photo Pallette
Sometimesweneedtocomposeourmodelswithphotographs.ItcanbedoneinPhotoshop,butinsomecircumstancesSketchup’sMatch Phototoolcomesuseful.GotoWindow - Match Photo to displaythefloatingwindow.
click here to import a new photo
Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup28
Ifyouhavemodelledsomethingthatyouwouldliketomergewithaphotograph(seeexampleimage1.1.48),youneedtoimportthisphotographtoyourmodel.
As soon as you import an image, Sketchup will create a new scene named as your importedphotograph.
Dependingon the sizeof your photograph, the imported imagemight bemuchbigger ormuchsmallerthanyouractualmodel.To adjust the size of your model click on the red horizontal line.Theyellowlineisthehorizon,moveitupordowntosetthehorizonatthecorrectlevel.
Green and red dashed lines determine the perspective.Refertoimagebelowtoseehowtoadjusttheperspectivetomatchthephotograph.
Whenyouarehappywithyourperspective,right-clickonthephotoandchooseDone.
Ifyouwould liketoedityourperspective later,right-clickonthephotoandchooseEdit Matched Photo (refertoimage1.1.50below).
Image1.1.49.
Image1.1.50.
perspective lines
drag the green box to adjustthe position of the perspective lines intersection point
drag the yellow box to move the model
horizon
Youcancarryonworkingonthemodelaftermatchingitwithphotograph.Yourmatchedviewissavedasascene,thereforeyoucanspinaroundthemodelandyourworkwon’tbelost.
29Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
Image1.2.1
Image1.2.2
1.2. Units
ThefirstthingyoushoulddowhenyoustartworkinginSketchupismakingsurewhatunitsyouaregoingtoworkwith.BydefaultSketchupstartswithatemplatesetwithinches.Youcansetpreferredunits throughthestart-upwindowthatopenswhenyouopentheprogramor laterbyclickingonWindow - Model Info:
BydefaultPreci-sionissetto0.0.Youvanincreaseit,butitdoesn’tusuallymakemuchsensetoworkwithmilime-tersuptoseveralnumbersaftercommawhilemodelingarchi-tecture.
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1.3. Preferences: shortcuts and file paths
WhenworkinginSketchup,youcanexecutecommandsbyclickingoniconsorbyusingkeyboard shorcuts.BydefaultSketchuphassomeshortcutspre-assigned.Ifyouwishtopersonalizeyourshortcuts,gotoWindow - Preferences:
Image1.3.1.
Image1.3.2.
Select tool which you would like to as-sogn a new shortcut
to
Type in your shortcut here
Click OK
Click on ‘+’ to add the shortcut
31Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
BydetaultSketchupissavingallthetexturesyouuseinyourmodelandsomeotherrelatedfilesonyourCdriveinyourDocumentsfolder.Ifyouwouldliketodefinedifferentlocationforyourimages,materials,componentsandotherfiles,gotoWindow - PreferencesandclickonFiles:
Image1.3.3.
Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup32
1.4. Working with Layers
UnderstandingandusingSketchuplayersystemcorrectlyisessentialfororganizingthemodelinanefficientwayandforavoidingproblemsinthefuture,whenthemodelgetscomplex.
In order toworkwith Layers inSketchup you need to display theLayers Toolbar and Layers floating pallette (seeimagesbelow).
Forbasicinformationonadding,removingandrenaminglayersrefertosection1(pages21-22,Layers floating pallette).
Image1.4.1.Layerstoolbar
Image1.4.2.Layersfloatingpallette
click here to expand the list of layers used
in your model
click here to show and hide layers
floating pallet
BydefaultSketchupstartswith‘Layer0’setascurrentlayer.Layer0isadefaultlayer.Youcanchangeitscolour,youcanswitchitoff,butyoucannotdeleteitorrenameit.
33Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
OneofthemostcommonproblemsthatSketchupusersexperiencewithSketchup’slayersystemis managing layers of Sketchupmodel, which contains a lot of components imported from 3DWarehouseorCADdrawingswiththeirownlayersystem.
UsuallyweimportadwgplansandsectionsrightattheverybegginingofourworkwithSketchup.Ifwebringmanylayersandifwedon’torganizethem,wewillendupscrollingthroughtensoflayersandwewillworkalotslowerrightfromtheverybeginning.
UsuallymanyofthelayersthatcomewithdwgdrawingsarenotusefulforusinSketchup.
Thelayerswewillneedwilldependonthetypeofmodelthatweneedtoproduce.
Ifweneedtobuildageneralmasterplan/blockmodel,wewillprobablyneedlayerssuchasExistingBuildings,ProposedBuildings,Trees,People,Landscape,Carsetc..
Tomoveobjectsbetweenlayers,youneedtousethelayertoolbar(seeimage1.4.3)orEntityInfofloatingpallette(seeimage1.4.4).
Image1.4.3.
Image1.4.4.
Youcanquicklychangethelayerofanobjectbyhighlightinganobject,thenexpandingthelistoflayersandtypinginthefirstletterofthelayerthatyouwishyourobjecttobemovedto.Forexampletype pifyouwanttomoveanobjecttolayercalledPeople or hit p twiceifyouwouldliketheobjecttobemovedtoanotherlayerstartingwithp,forexampleProposed Buildings.
Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup34
InsuchsituationMicrostationlayerssuchasAG25-G-Wall, AG32-G-Opng, AG5-G-Serv, AG59-G-ServOthr, AZ090-D-Dims, AZ442-H-HtchBldg, AZ900G-NPltmightnotbeneededinourmodelandwillsimplyconfuseus.
Image1.4.5.
35Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
Image1.4.5.showsanexampleofanemptySketchupmodeljustafterimportingadwgsiteplanfromMicrostation.
Itisgoodpracticetoalwaysimport CAD drawing to an empty Sketchup model first.AfterimportingyourCADdrawingcreatealayerwhichtellsussomethingaboutthisparticularimporteddrawing,forexampledwg_L0 or dwg_L1 or dwg_sectionA-A, dwg_sectionB-Bandthenhighlightallthelayersandmovethemtoyournewlycreatedlayer(refertoimage1.4.6.below).
Image1.4.6.
Image1.4.7.
1. Create a new layer and rename it.
2. Make your new layer a current layer.
3. Select all layers that you would like to be merged with that layer.
4. Click on the ‘-’ button.
5. A dialog box will appear (see image 1.4.7). Choose Move contents to Current Layer and click OK.
click here to make the newly created layer your current layer
By choosing the option Move conents to Default Layer you would move all thecontentstoLayer0.
Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup36
Nowyouendedupwithacleanlayerpalletteandyoucanstartcreatingyourownlayers,accordingtoyourmodelrequirements.
ItisgoodtoalwaysimportCADfiles(andalsoothermodels,suchasmodelsfrom3DWarehouseormodelscreatedinother3Dapplications)toanemptySketchupmodel,becauseitiseasiertocleanthemodelfromredundantlayers,materials,componentsorscenes.
ItalsogivesanopportunitytosaveallplansinaseparatefolderandupdatethemviaComponentsfloatingpalleteoncetheygetdevelopped.
YouwillfindmoreinformationonworkingwithcomponentsinPart1.6.Groups and components.
Image1.4.8.Cleanedlayers
Image1.4.9.Newlycreatedproject-specificlayers.
37Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
Clickonthecoloursnexttothelayerstoadjustthecolour,opacityortoassigntextureimage.
Note,thatyouwillstillseeallyoursurfacesdisplayedaswhiteandgrey-ish,evenifyoumoveyourobjectstodifferentlayersthathavedifferentcoloursassigned.ThisisbecausebydefaultSketchupworksinColour by Material mode.InordertoseeyourobectsincoloursassignedtovariouslayersthattheybelongtoyouneedtoenableColur by Layer mode.TodothatclickonthemenubuttononthetoprightcorneroftheLayersfloatingpallette(refertoimage1.4.10.above).
Sometimesitmayhappenthatyouendupwithvariouslayersthatdon’thaveanycontentonthem.Insteadofdelitingthemoneafteranother,youcanselectPurgeoptionfromthesamemenuandallyouremptylayerswillbedeleted.
Image1.4.10.
Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup38
1.5. Working with Materials
ToworkwithmaterialinSketchupyouneedtohavetheMaterialsfloatingpaletteopen(refertoPart1.1. Materials floating palette).
Asmentionedearlier,whenyoustartanewmodel, therewillbenomaterials inyourmodelandMaterialspalettewillshowsomefolderswithpre-setdefaultSketchupmaterials.Youcanusethemastheyare,editthemormostlikelyyouwillbecreatingyourownmaterialsusingtextureimages.
Image1.5.1.
39Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
InSketchupeachsurfacehastwofaces.ToemphasizethatSketchupisshowingtheminwhiteorgrey-ishcolour.Youcanapplyonematerialtoonefaceofthesurfaceandanothermaterialtotheotherfaceofthesurface.
Image1.5.2.
Image1.5.3.
used materials (materials in your model, that have been applied to some objects)
unused materials
click here to edit material
click here to materials menu and to purge unused materials
click here to match material
click here to create new material
click here to show or hide details
indication of two faces of one surface
Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup40
Itisgoodtohaveahabitofapplyingmaterialstobothfacesofthesurfacewhereyoucan,especiallywhenitcomestotransparentmaterials,suchasglass.Ifyouareplanningtorenderyour imagewith oneof the render engines, for examplewithVray, transparentmaterialsappliedonlytoonefaceofthesurfacemaynotrendercorrectly.
InSketchupeachsurfacehastwosides/twofaces.ToemphasizethatSketchupisshowingthemintwodifferentcolours:whiteorgrey-ish.Youcanapplyonematerialtoonefaceofthesurfaceandanothermaterialtotheotherfaceofthesamesurface.
Image1.5.4.Nomaterialsappliedtoanyofthefaces.
41Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
TherearetwowaysofassigningmaterialtosurfaceinSketchup:
• youcanselectasurface,clickoneachfaceinEntityInfofloatingwindowandchooseamaterialfromthelist(seeimage1.1.6.)
• itisprobablyeasierandquickedtochooseamaterialinMaterialsfloatingwindowandthen‘drop’itonsurfacesusingthepaintbuckettool(seeimage1.1.7.)
Image1.5.6.Applyingmaterialsthrough
EntityInfowindow
Image1.5.7.ApplyingmaterialsthroughMaterialsfloatingwindowandpaintbucket
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Thesizeofyourbricksorfloortilesdependsontheactualsizeofthetextureitself.Itmightthereforebetoobigortoosmallandsometimesyoumaywanttoadjustthescaleofyourmaterial.
Therearetwowaysofadjustingthescaleofthematerial:
• byeditingmaterialpropertiesinMaterialsfloatingwindow(seeimage1.5.8.)
• byscalingmaterialmanually(seeimages1.5.9to1.5.12.)
Anotherwayofadjustingthescaleofthetextureismanualadjustment.Tore-size,stretchorrotatetexturemanually,right-clickonthesurfaceandselectTexture - Position (refertoimage1.5.9).Fourhandleswillappear(refertoimage1.5.10).Draggingdifferenthandleswillallowyoutotransformthetextureindifferentway.Ifyouwanttoresizeorrotatethetexture,usethegreenhandleandstretchtheimage(refertoimage1.5.11).Whenyouarehappywiththeresult,rightclickandchooseDone (refertoimage1.5.12).
Image1.5.8.EditingmaterialsthroughMaterialsfloatingwindow.
click here to browse for texture imagesclick here to adjust the scale of the texture
43Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
Image1.5.9.
Image1.5.10.
right-click and select Texture - Position
drag green handle to resize or rotate texture
Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup44
Image1.5.11.Scaling/rotatingtexture.Notice,thatSketchupisshowingyouthetexturetiles(highlightedinredontheaboveillustration).
Image1.5.12.
right-click and choose Done when you finish editing
45Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
Image1.5.13.
Nowwhenyouhaveadjustedthesizeandpositionofthetexture,youmaywantothersurfacestohaveexactlythesametexturesize.Insteadofadjustingsurfacebysurfaceindividually, justusetheMatch AttributestoolandPaint Bucket.Theexactscaleandpositionofyourtexturewillbematched.Youcanapplythepropertiestomultiplesurfacesatonce.
AllthetexturesthatyouusetobuildyourmaterialsinSketchupwillbeautomaticallystoredinprogram’sdefaultlocationonyourCdrive.Tochangethislocationgotopreferencesandselectdifferentfolder(refertoPart1.3.Preferences: shortcuts and file paths).
Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup46
1.6. Groups and components
Ifyouareusedtoworkinginanother3dmodelingapplication,suchas3d studio max or Cinema 4d, youmightbesurprisedthatinSketchupthereisnoparametricprimitives.
OnlyrecentversionsofSketchupandsomepluginsallowtoworkwithprimitivesabitlikeinother3dmodelingsoftware.
ItiskeytolearnhowtoworkwithgroupswherepossibleandwithcomponentswhererequiredtomakethemostofSketchupandtoallowyourselfgreaterflexibilityforfutureamendments.
Thedifferencebetweengroupsandcomponentsisthefact,thatcomponents are parametric and therefore updating one component will automatically update all of them.
Also,components can be stored outside your model.Forexample,yourindividualbuildingsorfloorplanscanbestoredascomponentsoutsideyourmodel.Thismaybedesired incircumstances,whenyourmodelisverycomplexandwhenmakingchangestosmalldetailofoneofyourbuildingscouldbedifficultbecauseofthesizeandcomplexityofyourmodel.
Groupsonlykeepthegeometrytogether.Changesappliedtoagrouparenotautomaticallyreflectedinotherinstancesofthisgroup.Tocreateagroup,selectthegeometrythatyouwishtogroup,thenrightclickandselectMake a Group(refertoimage1.6.3).
Image1.6.1.
47Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
Image1.6.1.showsanexample,whereagrouphasbeencreatedandadditional4copiesofthisgrouphasbeenplacedinthemodel.Whenwehighlightoneofthegroups,Entity Infoshowsusthatwehavehighlightedagroupandthatwehave5oftheminthemodel.
Ifwestartediting the group(toeditthegroup,doubleclickonthegrouporright-clickandchooseEdit Group),onlythisgroupisbeingamended,otherinstancesremainunchanged(refertoimage1.6.2.below).
Itisthereforeusefultocreategroupswhenweneedsomegeometrytobekepttogether(andeasytomovearoundormodify),butourgrouppedobjectisuniqueandtherewillnotbeanymoreobjectslikethatinourmodel.Forexample,wecouldgroupaterrainoranexistingbuildingadjacenttooursite.
For repetitive objects (like buildings, building elements, furniture, trees etc.) it is best to usecomponents,whichwillallowustoapplychangestothemquicklyatlaterstage,becauseallofthemwillupdateautomatically,similarilytoMicrostationcellsorAutoCADblocks.Tocreateacomponent,selectgeometry,thenright-clickandchooseMake Component(orusekeyboardshortcutthatyouhaveassignedtothisactionthroughPreferences).Adialogwindowwillappear,whereyoucantypeincomponent’snameandotherproperties(refertoimage1.6.4).
Image1.6.3.
Image1.6.2.Editingagroup.
right-click and choose Make Component to create a component or Make Group
when you want to create a group
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Image1.6.5.
type in the name of your component here (each component has to have a
unique name)
provide description if required (you can leave this field blank)
set component’s axis (you can leave default axis location)
you may want to set which surface the components will ‘glue’ to (for example
vertical, horizontal or sloped)
select this option if you are creating 2D component that you would like to
always face the camera
Image1.6.4.Creatingacomponent.
49Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
Image1.6.7.
Image1.6.6.
Whenyouhighlightacomponent, Entity Infowilltellyou,thatitisacomponentandwilltellyouhowmanyofthosecomponentstherearecurrentlyinyourmodel(refertoimage1.6.5).
Makingchangestoanyinstanceofacomponentwillbereflectedinallofthem(seeimagebelow).
Sometimesyoumaywanttomakeoneormoreofyourcomponentsdifferentfromothers.Tomakesure that your changes will not affect all instances, right-click and chooseMake Unique. Yourcomponentwill be automatically renamed toComponent Name#1. Use Entity Info to rename itaccordingtoyourpreferences.Ifyounolongerneedittobeacomponent,youcanchooseExplode.
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Itispossible(andoftenrequired)tocreatecomponentswithincomponentsorgroupswithingroupsorgroupswithincomponentsorcomponentswithingroups.Ifitimportantthough,thatthenumberofgroupsandcomponentsdoesnotgrowtoohigh.Unfortunately,groupsandcomponentsusedirresponsibly and in large numbersmay slowdown yourmodel significantly andmakeapplyingchangesandevennavigatingitverydifficult.Thishappensveryoftenespeciallywhenusingmodelsimported directly from 3D Warehouse. Sometimes importing just few very high-poly trees anddetailedcars,multipliedby20,maymakeworkingwiththemodelveryhard.
Therefore it is crucial to understand when to use groups, when to use components and when it is best to just work with live geometry.
Image1.6.8.Makingchangestoacomponentthathasbeenmadeuniquewillnotaffectotherinstancesofthiscomponent.
Image1.6.9.
all the component that you create or import to your model will appear in
Components Floating Palette
51Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
WhenyouimportanotherSketchupmodel,amodelcreatedinanother3DmodelingprogramoraCADdrawingcreatedwithsoftwarelikeAutoCADorMicrostation,youwillbringthismodeltoyourSketchupmodelalongwithallitscomponents.AllMicrostationcellswillappearbebroughttoyourSketchupmodelsasindividualcomponents.WhenyouimportacomplexCADplans,sectionsorelevations,itmightbe,thatyouwillendupwithhundredsofcomponentsthatyoudonotneedtohave inyourmodel (suchaswashbasins, toiletsorotherelements).Theseobjectwill notonlyconfuseyou,butwillalsoslowyoudownalot,especiallyifdrawnwithcurvesandarches.
Below isanexampleofanemptySketchupfile,whereCADplanwas imported (refer to image1.6.10).
Image1.6.10.
Image1.6.11.
trees (Microstation cells)
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Image1.6.11showstheComponents Floating Windowandthelistofallcomponentscurrentlyusedinyourmodel.Youhaven’tcreatedanycomponentsyet,butasyoucansee,allthetreesandotherMicrostationgroupsandcellswereimportedtothemodelascomponents.Thiscouldhavebeenavoided if theoriginalCADfilewaseditedbeforehand (someobjects couldhavebeendeleted,somegroupsandcellscouldhavebeenexploded).Itisnowstillpossibletocleanitup,becausethedrawinghasbeenimportedtoanemptySketchupmodel.Individualcomponentscanbedeletedbyright-clickingonthecomponentinComponents Floating WindowandchoosingDelete Component. Itismuchbetterthoughtodotheclean-upbeforeimportingthedrawingtoSketchup.
Components can be saved externally, outside your main Sketchup model. When working withcomplexmodels,youmayprefertocreatethemainSketchupmodel,whichwillbeyourmastermodelaswellasseriousofcomponents,savedasindividualSketchupfiles.Youcanthenimportthesecomponentsintoyourmainmastermodelandworkindividuallyoneachofthecomponents.Whenyouapplychangestoyourindividualcomponents,youcanreloadthemthroughtheComponentsFloatingWindow.
Thisway of workingmight be desiredwhenworkingwith very complexmodels, wheremakingamendmentstosmalldetailsofalargeprojectcanbedifficult.ThisalsoallowsmoreteammemberstoworkononeSketchupmodel.
Image 1.6.12. below shows an example,where individual buildings can be saved externally asSketchupmodelsandthenimportedtothemastermodel.
Itisagoodhabittoprepareasetoftidied-upCADdrawingsandalwaysimportDWGsandmodelsdownloadedfrom3DWarehousetoanempty Sketchup modeltocheckthem,cleanuptheirlayers,materialsandcomponentsstructure,simplifythemifrequiredandthenimporttothemainSketchupmodel.Modelswithverylargenumberofcomponentsworkslower.
Image1.6.12.
Block A Block C Block E Block HBlock FBlock B Block G
53Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
Image1.6.14.ResidentialblockssavedasindividualSketchupmodelsoutsidemainSketchupmodel.
Image1.6.13.ImportingcomponentsstoredoutsideSketchupmastermodel.
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Image1.6.15. List of imported componentsinSketchup’sComponents Floating Window.
Image 1.6.16. Updating externally savedcomponentsafterapplyingchanges.
55Sketchup Guide | Part I: The basics of Sketchup
Image1.6.18.BlockAbeforeamendments.
Image1.6.17.EachbuildingofthemasterplanimportedtomainSketchupmodelandplacedinthecorrectlocation.
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Image1.6.20.BlockAcomponentreloadedinmastermodel.
Image1.6.19.AmendedresidentialblockinBlockA.skpfile.
57Sketchup Guide | Part II: Modeling in SketchupImage2.1.1.
Part II: Modeling in Sketchup2.1. Basic modeling techniques
Sketchupisaveryeasytouse3dmodelingprogram.Perhapsbecauseitissoeasytolearn,itisthoughttobeverylimited.InfactitcanhandlecomplexgeometryandverydetailedmodelscanbecreatedinSketchup,ifonlythemodelissetupcarefully(refertoprevioussectionsaboutLayersandComponents).
WhenyoustartusingSketchup,youmayfinditusefultodisplaytheLarge Tool Set(View - Toolbars - Large Tool Set).
Make ComponentSelect
EraserPaint Bucket
LineRectangle
ArcCircle
FreehandPolygon
Push & PullMove
Follow MeRotate
OffsetScale
DimensionTape Measure
LabelProtractor
3D TextAxes
PanOrbit
Zoom ExtentsZoom
Redo ViewUndo View
Look AroundPosition Camera
Section PlaneWalk
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Select
Selectiontoolisoneofthemostfrequentlyusedtools,thereforeitisgoodtoassignashortcuttoit(Window - Preferences - Shortcuts).
Itisprettyobviouswhatthistooldoes,butitisprobablygoodtomention,that:
• single clickselectssinglesurface,edge,grouporcomponent(pressCtrltoselectmultipleandShifttoaddorremoveobjectsfromselection);refertoimages1.6.22.and1.6.23.
• double clickselectssurfaceanditsperimiteredges;refertoimage1.6.24.
• tripple clickselectsallconnectedgeometry;refertoimage1.6.25.
Byright-clickingandgoingtoSelect(refertoimage1.6.26.)givesyouthefollowingoptions:
• boundingedges
• connectededges
• allconnected
• allonsamelayer
• allwithsamematerial
Image2.1.2.Selectsurface.
Image2.1.3.Selectedges.
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Image2.1.4.Selectsurfaceandboundingedges(doubleclick).
Image2.1.6.Selectionoptions.
Image2.1.5.Selectallconnectedsurfacesandedges.
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Ifyousetupyourmodelinaway,thatdifferentwallmaterialsaredifferentlayers,youcaneasilyassignrelevantmaterialstoallsurfacesoncertainlayers.Forexample,ifinsteadofhavingjustonelayer:Wallsyoucreatelayers:Brick, Render, Metal Cladding,youcanselectallsurfacesonthesamelayerandassignamaterialtoallofthematonce(forexamplebrickmaterialtoallsurfacesonlayerBrick).
Image2.1.7.Exampleoflayerspreset.
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Selectingmultipleobjects:
• left to right selection(refertoimage1.6.28and1.6.29)willonlyselectobjectsentirelywithintherectangularselectionmarkedbycontinuousline
• right to left selection(refertoimages1.6.30and1.6.31)willselectallobjects‘touched’bytherectangularselectionmarkedbydashedline
Image2.1.8.Lefttorightselection.
Image2.1.10.Righttoleftselection.
Image2.1.9.Lefttorightselection.
Image2.1.12.Righttoleftselection.
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Make Component
Youcancreateacomponentbyclickonthisiconorbyright-clickingandchoosingMake Component (refertosection 1.6. Groups and components).
Paint Bucket
ClickonPaint Bucketicontoassignmaterialtoasurface.YoucanassignmaterialsalsothroughMaterials Floating Palette(refertosection 1.5. Working with materials).Note,thatifyouworkinCol-our By Layermode,clickingonPaint BucketiconwillautomaticallyenableColour By Material mode.
Eraser
UsingEraserisprobablytheeasiestwayofdeletinggeometry,groupsandcomponents,butitmaybequickerinsomecasestojustselectunwantedgeometryandpressDelete.
Line
Line tool isthetoolthatyouwillusemostoften.BecauseSketchupdoesnothaveparametricprimi-tives,allgeometryneedstobeconstructedbydrawingashapein2Dandextrudingit.Toplacealine,clickonthepenciliconortypeL,definestartingpointandfurthervertexes.Ifyouneedtodrawalineofcertainlength,definestartingpoint,thenshowdirection,thentypeinthelengthandpressEnter.Thelengthisshownatbottomrightcornerofyourscreen(refertoimage1.6.32.below).
In some situations you may want to draw a line until certain point, but you don’t know the distance. In this situation locking axes will help. To lock axis press:
• right arrow to lock red axis (axis X)
• left arrow to lock green axis (axis Y)
• up or down arrow to lock blue axis (Axis Z)
Image1.6.32.
Image2.1.13. Image2.1.14.X
Y
Z
Lock X axis
Lock Z axisLock Z axis
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Arc
Arc tool workssimilartolinetool.Todrawarcyouhavetospecify:start,endandmidpoint.Youcanalsospecifyradius.Radiuslengthisdisplayedatrightbottomofyourscreen(seeimage1.6.35).Sketchupwillshow‘HalfCircle’signwhenyourradiusis50%ofthedistancebetweenthestartandandpointsthatyouspecified(seeimage1.6.36).
Start
Mid
End
Image2.1.15.
Image2.1.16.
r r
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Rectangle
Rectangle tool isanotheressentialtoolthatisusedveryfreequently.Youcandrawarectanglebyspecifyingtwooppositevertexes.Dimensionsofyourrectanglearedisplayedattherightbottomcorner(refertoimage1.6.35.below).
Image2.1.18.
Start
End
Freehand
Freehand tool allowsyoutosketchlineworkasyouwoulddowithabrushinPhotoshop.Thistoolisnotusedveryoften thoughas it isnotveryaccurate.BezierCurvesplugingivesmuchmoreflexibility(refertosection 2.2. Useful Plugins).
Youcanincrease(ordecrease)thenumberoffacettesviaEntity Info(refertosection1.1.whereyoufindmoredetailsaboutEntity Infofloatingpalette).
Image2.1.17.
type in the number of segments here
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Polygon
Polygon tool worksexactly likeCircletool.Todrawapolygonyouneedtospecifystartingpoint,thenendpointsoryoucangiveradiusandhitEnter.Beforeyoustartyoucangivethenumberofsegments(sides).BydetaultSketchupdrawsapolygoncontainingof6segments.Ifyouwouldliketodrawapolygoncontainingofdifferentnumberofsegments,youhavetospecifythenumberofsegmentsbeforestartingtodraw(refertoimage1.6.37.below).Thenumberofsegmentsisshownattherightbottomcornerofyourscreen.YoucanchangeradiusandnumberofsegmentslaterviaEntity Info(refertoimage1.6.40).
Circle
Circle tool isexecutedsimilarilytoarctool.Todrawacircleyouneedtospecifythecenterandanendpointwhichwillgivetheradius.AlternativelyyoucantypeintheradiusandpressEnter.Theradiusisshownattherightbottomcornerofyourscreen.
Image2.1.19.
Image2.1.20.
Start End click or type in the value and
press Enter
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Start
Start
End
Image2.1.21.
Image2.1.22.
r
67Sketchup Guide | Part II: Modeling in Sketchup
Image2.1.23.
r
adjust radius and number of segments
Move
Use Move tool torelocateindividualormultiplevertexes,edges,surfaces,groupsandcomponents.
ChooseMoveandholdCtrltocreateacopy.
If youwould like tomovean object of a certain distance, select the object, click and show thedirectioninwhichyouwouldliketheobjecttobemoved(forexamplealongredaxisoralonganedge)andthentypeinathevalueandpressEnter.
Ifyouwouldliketoalignanobjectwithanotheroneandyoudon’tknowthedistance,youcanlock axes(refertoimages1.6.33and1.6.34atpage62).
Tocreatemultiplecopies, just type in thenumberofcopies thatyouwould like tocreatefollowedbyx,forexample8x and press Enter.
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Rotate
To Rotate anobjectormultipleobjects(edges,surfaces,groups,components)selectanobjectandspecify rotationcenterpoint.Aprotractorwillappear,ason image1.6.41.below.Youcaneitherspecifyapointbyleft-clickingifyouwouldliketorotateofrandomeangleortypeintheangleandpress Enter.
Thecolouroftheprotractorchangesdependingonthesurfaceparalleltowhichyourotate.
Blue Protractor-appearswhenyoursurfaceofrotationisperpendiculartoblueaxis(Z).
Red Protractor -appearswhenyoursurfaceofrotationisperpendiculartoredaxis(X).
Green Protractor -appearswhenyoursurfaceofrotationisperpendiculartogreenaxis(Y).
BlackProtractor-appearswhenyoursurfaceofrotationisnotperpendiculartoanyoftheaxis.
Images2.1.24.and2.1.25.Rotatingonsurfaceperpendiculartoblueaxis.
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Images2.1.26.and2.1.27.Rotatingonsurfaceperpendiculartoredaxis.
Images2.1.28.and2.1.29.Rotatingonsurfaceperpendiculartogreenaxis.
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Tocreateacopyoftherotatingelement,pressCtrl.
Image2.1.30.Rotateandcopy.
Image2.1.31.Rotateandcopy.
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Image2.1.32.Rotateandcopy-step1:showthedirectionofrotation.
Image2.1.33.Rotateandcopy-step2:typeintherotationangleandpressEnter.
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Image2.1.34.Rotateandcopy-step3:typeinthe number of copies followed by x and press Enter, inexample5x.
Image2.1.35.Rotateandcopyresult.
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Insomecircumstancesyoumaywanttorotateanobjectparalleltoasurfacethatisoutsideofyourobject.YoucanlocktheprotractorbyholdingShift andthenpickarotationpointatanyplaceofyourmodel.
Image2.1.36.Lockingtheprotractor-step1.
Image2.1.37.Lockingtheprotractor-step2.
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Follow Me
Follow Meallowstoextrudeasurfacealongthepath.Toexecutethetoolselectthepath (serious of connected lines and curves)andthenpickthesurface (profile)thatyouwouldliketobeextrudedalongthispath.Theprofilewillbeextrudedalongalltheconnectedlinesthatyouselected.
Alternativelyyoucanclickonthesurfacefirstandfollowthepathuntilthepointwhereyouwillwanttostoptheextrusion.
Image2.1.38.Followme-selectthepath.
Image2.1.39.Pickthesurfaceandyourprofilewillbeextrudedalongtheselectedpath.
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Image2.1.40.Followme-alongpre-existingpath.
Image2.1.41.Followme-alongpre-existingpath.
Youcanobviouslyuseapre-existingpath,likeontheexamplebelow:
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Scale
Scaletoolworkssimilarilytoothertools.Youcanscalemanually,bydraggingtheskalinghandlesoryoucantypeintheexactvalueandhitEnter.
ScalingtoolinSketchupallowsnotonlytoscale butalsoto mirror objects.AsSketchupdoesnothaveamirrortool,elementscanbemirrorededusingtheScaletoolbytypiginnegativevaluesorbydraggingthescalinghandlesmanually,asshownontheexamplesbelow.
Image2.1.42.
Image2.1.43.
Image2.1.44.
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Itispossibletoscaleentiremodelmodelledinincorrectunitsorimportednottoscale.
Toscaleentiremodelortogiveafixeddimensiontoanedgeofincorrectdimensioncreateagroup,measureadiscancebetweentwopointsinyourmodelandtypeinthevaluethatthisdistanceshouldmatchandyourmodelwillbescaled.
Image2.1.45.Scalingvalue‘-1’(mirroredobject).
Image2.1.46.Scalingbyspecifyingafixedvalue.Specifydiscancebetween2points.
Image2.1.47.Scalingbyspecifyingafixedvalue.TypeinthevalueandpressEnter.
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Image2.1.48.Scalingbyspecifyingafixedvalue.Youwill beaskedwhetheryouwant toresizethemodel.
Image2.1.49.Scalingbyspecifyingafixedvalue.Nowthedistancebetween the2pointsthatyouspecifiedis2,000mm.
Image2.1.50.
Offset
OffsettoolisanequivalenttoMicrostation’scopy paralleltool.Itworksforflatsurfacesandcurves.Tooffsetacurvedsurfaceyouneedtouseaplugin(refertochapter2.2.UsefulPlugins).Images1.6.65.to1.6.69.showsurfaceoffset.Images1.6.70.to1.6.72.showcurveoffset.
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Image2.1.51.
Image2.1.52.
Image2.1.53.
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Image2.1.54.
Image2.1.55.
Image2.1.56.
Image2.1.57.
81Sketchup Guide | Part II: Modeling in Sketchup
Image2.1.58.
Image2.1.59.
Tape Measure
Tape Measuretoolallowsyoutomeasuredistancebetweenpointsandobjects.ToplacedimensiononyourmodeluseDimension Tool.
Dimension
Dimension toolallowsyou toplacedimensionson themodel.Tosetprecissiongo toWindow -ModelInfo-Units.
Protractor
ProtractortoolallowsyoutoplacePhotoshop-likeguidesonyourmodel,whichyoucansnaptoanduseasagridforyourmodelingwork.Guidescanbeplacedonalayerandswitchedofforlocked.
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Axes
Axestoolallowsyoutomoveandrotateaxes.ItisagoodideatosetashortcutforAxesasyouwillbeusingitalotduringmodelingprocess.
Label
Labeltoolallowsyoutoplacesomenotesonyuormodelormarkareas.
Image2.1.60.
Image2.1.61.Movingaxes.
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3D Text
With3D Text toolyoucancreate3Dsignage.Thetextisplacedasacomponentanditis‘glued’toasurface.Unfortunatelyitisnotpossibletoeditthewordsafteryouhaveplacedthetext.
Image2.1.63.Placing3Dtext.
Image2.1.64.
Image2.1.62.Movingaxes.
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Zoom
Zoom tool(aswellasthescroll)allowsyoutozoominandoutthemodel.
ZoomingwiththeShiftkeywillchangethefieldofview.
Zoom Extents
Zoom Extents toolframestheentiremodelonyourscreen.Itisagood‘wayout’whenyouzoomintoocloseor‘getlost’onabigmodel.
Position Camera
Position camera toolpositionsacameraateye-levelheight.
Look Around
Look Around toolpivotscameraaroundastationarypointandallowsyoutolookaroundthemodelwithouttheneedofpanningorspinningaroundwiththeorbit.
Walk
Walk toolallowstowalkwiththecamera(withouttheuseofpantoolororbittool).
Undo Zoom and Redo Zoom
Undo Zoom and Redo Zoom buttonsallowtoundoandredoonlythezoom(usefulifyouacciden-tallychangeaview).
Orbit
Orbit toolallowsyoutospinaroundthemodel(whichyoucanalsodobypressingthescroll).
Pan
Pan toolallowsyoutopantheview.YoucanassignakayboardshortcuttoPantoolthatwillbemoreintuitivethanthedefaultone.
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Section
Section toolcutsaflatsectionofyour3dmodel.
Youcancutasectionwhereveryoulikeandproduceverticalsectionorhorizontalsection.
TocontrolvisibilityofSectionplaneorcutlinesusetheSectiontoolbarorthroughViewmenu:
Image2.1.65.SectionToolbar
Image2.1.66.ControlingsectionedgesthroughViewmenu.
cut section
show section plane
show section cut lines
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Whencuttingasection,thesectionplanewillautomaticallyalignwithasurfacethatyoupick:
BydefaultSketchupwillcutasectionatthesurfacewhichyoupickandyouwillneedtomovethesectioncuttingplaneusingMovetooltothedesiredposition.
Images2.1.67and2.1.68.Creatingasectioncut
Image2.1.69.Sectioncutswithsectionsplanesvisible.
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BydefaultSketchupwillleavethecuttingplanevisible.UsetheSectiontoolbar(Image1.6.80)orViewmenu(Image1.6.81)tohideit.
Sometimesyoumaywanttoexporta2Dsectionasapng,jpgordwgandyoumaywanttomakethecamerafacingthecuttingplane.Youcaneitherusetheviewstosettheview:
orbyright-clickingonthesectioncuttingplaneandchoosingAlign View.Theviewwillthenbealignedtothecuttingplane.
Image2.1.70.Sectioncutwithsectionsplaneinvisible.
Image2.1.71.
Image2.1.72.
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Image2.1.73.Viewalignedtosectioncuttingplane.Camerasettoperspective.
Image2.1.75.Viewalignedtosectioncuttingplane.Camerasettoparallelprojection.
Image2.1.74.Changingcameratoparallelprojection.
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Image2.2.1.Warehousetoolbar.
Image2.2.2.ExtensionWarehouse.
TheseareprettymuchallthebasicSketchuptools,brieflyexplained.Youwillprobablybeabletomodelmostofyourarchitecturalprojectsusing just thesetools,butsometimesusingextensionsinSketchupmayspeedupyourworkflowandallowyoutomodelquickerorcreatemorecomplexgeometrythatwouldn’tbeeasytobuildusingjustthebasicfeaturesofSketchup.
2.2. Useful plugins.
SomeSketchupusersclaim, thatcertainextensionsmakeSketchupadifferentprogram -morepowerfulandmorefuntouse.
Wherecanextensionsbefoundandhowtheycanbeinstalled?
Sketchup extensions sources
ProbablythemostpopularsiteswithSketchuppluginsare:sketchucation.com and smustard.com,
butthereareplentyotherwebsitesandforumswhereyoucanfindsomeusefulSketchupplugins,usuallydevelopedbySketchupenthusiastsandsharedforfreeorforasmalldonation.
Installation
InolderversionsofSketchupprobablytheeasiestwaytoinstallanextensionwastojustcopytheplugintopluginsfolder.NewerversionsofSketchupmakestheprocessmucheasier.
ThelasticonontheWarehousetoolbargetsyoutoExtentionWarehouse,whereyoucansearchforplugins.YoucaninstallanextensiondirectlyfromtheWarehouse.
Extension Warehouse
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TofindandinstallanextensioninSketchupjusttypeinapluginthatyouarelookingfor.Usuallyalistoffewpluginsappears.Beforeinstallingreadthedescriptiontomakesurethatthisissomethingyouwereactuallylookingforandclick‘Install’buttononthetop.
Whenyouclick‘Install’,youwillbeaskedtoconfirmwhetheryouwouldliketoinstallthisextension:
Image2.2.3.ExtensionWarehouse-plugindetails.
Image2.2.4.Installinganextension.
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Whenthepluginisinstalledyouwillbenotifiedthatitisreadytouse.
Image2.2.6.Exportingsavedscenes.
Image2.2.5.Extensioninstalled.
Here is a list of some useful plugins that you may wish to try.
Page ExIm (Page Export - Import)
Ifyouhaveeverthoughtthatitwouldbenicetobeabletoexportthescenesthatyouhavesavedinyourmodelintoadifferentfile-youwillbepleasedtoknowthatitisactuallypossiblewithPage ExImpugin.
Thisextensioncanbepurchasedthroughsmustard.com.
PageExImwillexportandimportpages(scenes)betweenmodels.Cameraandshadowsettingswillberetained.Hiddenentitiesandhiddenlayerscannotberetainedduetothedifferencesbetweenmodels.Whetherapage(scene)isincludedinaslideshowcanbesaved,butcannotbechangedbyruby.Displaysettingsarenotyetretained(seenotebelow).
InthemodelthatcontaisyoursavedscenesgotoView - Pages andchooseExport.
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Youwillbenotifiedthatyoursceneshavebeenexported.
Theexportedscenesaresavedasan.sup(SketcuhpPage)fileinthesamelocationwhereyourmodelis.ThefilenamewillbethesameasthenameoftheSketchupmodelthatyouhaveexportedthescenesfrom.
NowyoucangototheSketchupmodelwhereyouwouldliketoimportthescenesandimportthemthroughtheViewmenubychoosingPages - Import.
Image2.2.7.
Image2.2.8.SketchupPage(.sup)filecontainingexportedscenes.
Image2.2.9.Importingsavedscenes.
Image2.2.10.Importingscenestoanewfile.
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Youwillbeaskedwhetheryouwouldliketousethenamesthatyouhaveusedforthescenesinyourpreviousmodel.
Youwillbenotifiedwhentheimportiscomplete.
Andyoursceneswillappearinyournewmodel.
Image2.2.11.Importingsavedscenes.Retainingthenames.
Image2.2.12.Importingsavedscenes.
Image2.2.13.Imported scenes.
This isquiteausefulplugin thatmaysavea lofof time.However, it is important tonotethat the sceneswill always correspondwith the origin of themodel. If you have createdfewoptionsofaprojectandlatermovedyourmodelinsomefiles,butnotintheoldoneswhereyou’vecreatedyourscenes,thenyourscenesimportedfromonemodertoanotherwillobviouslynotlookthesame!
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Joint Push Pull
Sketchupdoesnowallowtoextrudenon-flatsurfaces.Therearefewwaysaroundthislimitation,butprobablythequickestoneisaplugincalledJoint Push Pull.TheextensioncanbefoundontheSketchucationwebsiteandinstalledthroughextensionmanager.
Image2.2.14.JointPushPullplugintoolbar.
Images2.2.15and2.2.16.UsingJointPushPullplugin.
Thepluginisveryeasytouse.Justselectasurfaceorfewsurfacesandextrude.YoucantypeinavalueandpressEnterifyouwishtoextrudeofacertainvalue.
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Tools on Surface
Tools on SurfaceisasetoftoolsthatdealwithasimilarSketchuplimitation-offsettinganddrawingonnon-flatsurfaces.
Image2.2.18.ToolsonSurfacetoolbar.
Image2.2.19.UsingOffsetToolfromToolsonSurfaceset.
Image2.2.17.Extrudingmultiplefaces.
Youcanalsoeitherkeeptheoriginalsurfaceordeleteit.
An offset tool allowsto offset contours ofanon-flatsurface:
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Image2.2.20.Usingoffsetpush/pulltooloncurvedsurface.
Image2.2.21.Usingoffsetpush/pulltooloncurvedsurface.
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Image2.2.22.Usingoffsetpush/pulltooloncurvedsurface.
Image2.2.23.Usingoffsetpush/pulltooloncurvedsurface.
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Curviloft
Curviloftisascriptdedicatedtoloftandskinning/generationofsurfacesfromcontours.
Image2.2.25.Loft by Spline-joinsseparatecontours,openorclosed,bysmoothsplines.
Image2.2.24.Curvilofttoolbar.
Image2.2.26.Loft along Path-joinscontoursalongagivenrailcurve.
Image2.2.27.Skinning-createssurfacesboundedby3or4contours.
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Curvizard
Curvizardisasuiteofinteractivetoolsoperatingonsequencesofedges(contours)andSketchupcurves.
Make Curves (weld)joinscurvesandcreateasinglecurve.
Make Curves (weld)explodescurvestosegments.
Tolls:Cleanup / Simplify / Smooth Contours giveyoumoreoptions throughanadditionalmenu:
Image2.2.28.Curvizardtoolbar.
Image2.2.29.Curvizardlauncher.
Image2.2.30.Curvizardoptions.
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Round Corner
Round Corner isoneoftheseextentionsthatreallyshouldbeabuilt-intoolwithinSketchup.Forsomereasonitdoesnotcomewiththebasicversionoftheprogram,butfortunatelycanbefoundonSketchucationwebsiteandeasilyinstalled.
Theextensionperformstheroundingoftheedgesandcornersof3Dshapesalonga2Dprofile,in3modes:Roundcorners,SharpcornersandBevel.Round Corneralsosupportsconcavecorners(alwaysrenderedasRound)andnon-orthogonaledgefaces.Cornerscanhave2,3,ormoreedges.
Image2.2.31.RoundCornertoolbar.
Image2.2.32.Roundingcorners.
Image2.2.33.Roundedcorners.
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Image2.2.34.Sharpingcorners.
Image2.2.35.Sharpcorners.
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Image2.2.36.Bevellingcorners.
Image2.2.37.Bevelledcorners.
WhenusingRound Cornersextensionyoucancontrolnotonlytheroundingradiusbutalsothenumberoffacetes.
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Currentlythetooldoesnotworkfor2Dcomponents.
Edge Tools
Edge toolsisasuiteoftoolsforworkingwithedges.
Itsimplifiescurves-reducingthenumberofsegments.Veryusefulwhengeneratingterrainfromimportedsiteplans.TheEpsilonvalueaskedforishowmuchthesimplifiedcurveisallowedtodevi-atefromtheoriginal.
Italsoclosessmallgaps-usefulforimportingDWGdrawingswhereedgesdoesn’tquitelineup.Givesyouavisualmapofwherethereareedgeswithopenendsandoffersolutionsforclosingthemwithoneclick.
TheDivideEdgestoolletyouoffsetedgesthatfitextendstotheboundaryofthefaceitself.
Component Replacer
Component Replacer replaces selected groupsorcomponentswhilepreservingpositionandscale.Thereplacementwillensuretheboundingboxof the instanceremainsthesame-regardlessofscaleororigin.
Justmake a selection containing groups and components. (Doesn’tmatter if it containsmore,it’llbeignored.),activatethetoolandpickanothergrouporcomponentinstancetoreplacetheonesinyourselection.
Image2.2.38.EdgeToolstoolbar.
Image 2.2.39. Replacing groups and componentsusingcomponentreplacementplugin.
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Layer Tools
Asmallutilitytoquicklyhidelayersbyclickonfaces/edges.VeryusefulpluginwhenworkingwithcomplexmodelsorimportedCADinformationwithmanylayers.
Theextension canbedownloaded fromSketchucationandafter installation it canbeaccessedthroughTools - Hide Layer by Pick.
3D Text Editor
Youwereprobablythinkingmanytimeshowtoeditthe3Dtext.3D Text Editor isapluginthatallowstodothat.ThetoolcanbaaccessedthroughDraw-Editable3dTextandContextMenu-EditText.
TheplugincanbeinstalledthroughExtensionWarehouse.
Image2.2.40.AccessingLayerTools.
Image2.2.41.AccessingEditable3DTextplugin.
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Bezier Curve Tool
AtooltocreateBéziercurves.Theextensionisusedtomodelsmoothcurvesthatcanbescaledindefinitelyandaren’tconfinedtothelimitationsoftheArctool,allowingformorenaturalandintricateshapes.
CurrentlythisextensiondoesnotworkaswellunderOSXasitdoesunderWindows.Theplugindeveloperislookingintotheissue.
Image2.2.42.Editing3Dtext.
Image2.2.43.Beziertoolbar.
Image2.2.44.Usingtheplugin.
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Bezier Surface
Createsbeziersurfacesfrombezierpatches.
Image2.2.45.Pluginoverview.
Thepluginisstillbeingdevelpedandwasreleasedforfreesouserscantestitandfivecommentsbacktothedeveloper.
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Slicer
Ausefultooltosliceamass(agrouporcomponent).Youcanspecifythethicknessoftheslicesandthegapbetweenthemaswellasanofsetfromthestartingpoint.
TheplugincanbeaccessedthroughPlugins - Slicer5.
Toexecutethetoolyoufirstneedtocreateagrouporcomponent.Selectitandactivatetheplugin.Awindowwillappearandyouwillbeabletoadjustthevalues,suchasslicethicknessorspacing.
Image2.2.46.AccessingSlicerextension.
Image2.2.47.Adjustingparameters.
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Image2.2.48.Massbeforeslicing.
Image2.2.49.Massafterslicing.
Youcanalsochoosetohaveallsliceslaiddownflatandnumbered.Thismightbeusefulifyouwanttousetheslicestobuildaphysicalmodel(youcanexportatopviewto2DCADandprintouttoscale).
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Image2.2.50.Individualsliceslaidflatandnumbered.
Image2.2.51.Source:http://www.thomthom.net/software/vertex_tools/features
Vertex Tools
VertexToolsisasetoftoolstomodifycomplexshapes.
Herearesomeofthefeaturesofthisplugin:
Extrude edges -youcanquicklyextrudeedgesfromaselectionusingthegizmo:
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Soft selection - type inaLength in theVCBwhilea selection tool isactive.Verticeswithin thisdistancefromtheselectedverticesarealsoaffectedbytoolsthatmodifythegeometry.Thefurtherawayfromtheselection,thelesstheyareaffected.Thisisillustratedbycolour-codingtheverticesfromRed,Orange,Yellow,GreenandBlue–whereRedis100%andBlueis0%.
Therearetwotypesoffall-offforthesoft-selctionradius:linearfall-offandcosinerfall-off:
Image2.2.52.Source:http://www.thomthom.net/software/vertex_tools/features
Image2.2.53.Linearfall-off.Source:http://www.thomthom.net/software/vertex_tools/features
Image2.2.54.Cosinerfall-off.Source:http://www.thomthom.net/software/vertex_tools/features
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ThisYouTubevideoshowshowtomodelacharacterusingVertexTools:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfM02PleFMg
Lock UV mapping -preserveUVmappingwhenyoumanipulatethemodel’sgeometry.
Auto-Smooth -Whena face isdeformed insuchaway that itsverticesareno longercoplanar,SketchupAutofoldsthefacebyaddingnewedges.
Image2.2.55.Source:http://www.thomthom.net/software/vertex_tools/features
Image2.2.56.Source:http://www.thomthom.net/software/vertex_tools/features
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Proxy functions
Image2.2.57.Source:http://www.thomthom.net/software/vertex_tools/features
VertexToolscanbepurchasedfrom https://www.google.co.uk/?gws_rd=ssl#q=vertex+tools+plugin+for+sketchup
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Image2.2.58.Architecttoolsmenu.
Features:
Super Section
Placesanexistingsectioncutonitsownlayerandit’sownscene,andalignstheview.
TheSuperSectionpluginisusedtocreate2Dslicesthroughyourmodel.(TimberFramers:thinkbentsectionsandwallsections).
Makeasectioncutinyourmodel,thenright-clickontheresultingsectionplane.Anewmenuop-tion,supersectionwillbeavailable.Clickthat,provideaname,andthepluginwillrun.
Itwillplacethesectioncutonitsownlayerwithitsownscene.Thenewlayerwillbevisibleonlyonthatscene-notinanyexistingscenes,orfuturescenesthatyouadd.Italsoswitchesthecamerafromperspectivetoparallelprojection,andalignstheviewwiththesectionplaneforthatscene.
Thenewlayerwillbetheactivelayerwhenthepluginfinishes.Anythingyouaddtothislayer,likelabelsanddimensions,willonlybevisibleinthisscene.Createasmanysupersectionsasyoulike.Nothingyouaddwillbevisibleonanyotherscenes.
Source: https://extensions.sketchup.com/en/content/super-section
Architect Tools
Suiteoftoolsforworkingwithimportedmapdatatogeneratebuildingsandsteppedterrains.
• GenerateBuildings
• MergeSolidBuildings
• FillSolidHoles
• SelectNon-Solids
• Make2:1RoadProfile
• MovetoZ
• ContourTool(Forclosingcontourlineswithopenends)
• ExtrudeUp(Forgeneratingsteppedterrain)
• ProjectDownTool
• MagnetTool
• MovetoPlane
• FlattenSelection
• CropSelectiontoBoundary
• PutGeometryonLayer0
• GridDivide
Source: https://extensions.sketchup.com/en/content/architect-tools
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Image2.2.59.Extrusiontoolsmenu.
Image2.2.60.Extrudingedgesbyvector.
Image2.2.61.Extrudingedgesbyvector.
ExtrusionTools
Setoftoolsallowingtoextrudeedgesindifferentways.
Youhaveprobablywonderedmanytimeshowtoextrudeedgesonlyandnotsolidsorhowtoex-trudebyvector.Thistooldoesexactlythat(andmore).
ProbablythemostfrequentlyusedisExtrudeedgesbyvector:
Let’ssayyou’vegotachainofarchsandedgesthatyouwouldliketoextrudeofdistanceA,soitisthesameheightastheboxopposite.Youjustneedtoselecttheedgesandspecifytwopointsofthevector.
A
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Image2.2.63.Extrudingedgesbyvector.
Image2.2.62.Extrudingedgesbyvector.
1
2
A
A
specify vector
edges are extruded by vector
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Youwillnowbeaskedwhetheryouwouldliketoreverseextrusion’sfacesandwhetheryouwouldliketoexpodetheextrusion’sgroup:
Youcanobviouslyextrudeinanydirection:
Image2.2.64.Extrudingedgesbyvector.
Image2.2.65.Extrudingedgesbyvector.
Image2.2.66.Extrudingedgesbyvector.
A
A
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Itisalsopossibletoextrudemultiplechainsofedgesandcurveswithoneclick:
Image2.2.67.Extrudingedgesbyvector.
Image2.2.68.Extrudingmultiplechaisofedges.
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Image2.2.69.Extrudingmultiplechaisofedges.
Image2.2.70.Extrudingmultiplechaisofedges.
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Simple Plugin Installer
SketchUp’s“InstallExtension”buttononlyallows.RBZfiles,andyouhavetonavigatethroughseveralclickstogettothebutton.
SimplePluginInstallerisasimpleutilitytomakeiteasiertoinstall.RBZ,.ZIPpackages.Italsoletsyoupick.RBfileswhichwillbecopiedtothePluginsfolder.
Formoreinformationoninstallingplugins:http://www.thomthom.net/thoughts/2012/01/installing-plugins-for-google-sketchup/
Features:
• ZIPPackage-allowsforinstallationof.ZIPfilesasiftheywhere.RBZfiles.
• RBZPackage-doesthesameasSketchUp’s“InstallExtension”button.
• RBFile-copiesselected.rbfiletothePluginsfolder.
• RBSFile-copiesselected.rbsfiletothePluginsfolder.
• OpenExtensionManager-simplyopenstheExtensionpageunderSketchUp’sPreferenceswindow.
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Part III: Working with complex models3.1. Organising the model
Someofthetipsinthischapteryoumayfindveryobvious,butperhapstheycanbeusefultonewusersofSketchup.
Inchapteronethereissomeexplenationonorganisinglayers,materials,viewsandkeepingthemodeltidy.
Generallyitisagoodpracticetokeepthelayersystemtidyandlogicallyorganized,withclearandconsistentnamingconvention.Thishelpsa lotwhen themodelgetsbiggerandmoreandmorecomplex.
Thesameiswiththematerials.Avoidingmaterialscalled‘Material1’,‘Colour029’etc.andgivinglogicalnameshelps,especiallywhenyoulaterwanttorenderyourscenewithVray(orotherrenderengine)andeditmaterialfeatures.
Betteryouorganiseyourmodelrightatthebeginning,smootheryourworkflowwillbeinthefuture.
Files withmany layers, materials and components (even unused components) quickly becomeextremelyheavyandworkingwiththemisaslowprocess.
Thereforebeforeyoustart,itisgoodideatothinkwhatsortofmodelyouneedtocreateandwhatlayersyoumayneed.Forexample fora largemasterplanmodelyoumaywant tocreate layerslike:existingbuildings,proposedbuildings,trees,terrain,people,carsetc..Whilewhencreatingadetailedmodelofaninterior,youwillprobablyneedlayerslike:furniture,wallfinishes,floorfinishesetc.Thisisonlyanexampleanditisentirelyuptoyouhowyouwillorganizeyourlayers,butitisjustgoodideatoorganizethemsomehowandkeepthenamingconsistent.
Ifyouhappentoworkwithamodelthathasbeencreatedbysomebodyelse,itisalsoagoodideatofollowtheirlayer/material/scenenamingconventionsoyoudon’tendupwithlayersormaterialscalled‘Windows’and‘Windows-type1’or‘Brickwalls’and‘Walls_brick’etc.
Thesameiswithcomponents.Componentsarelistedinalphabeticalorderanditismucheasiertobrowsethemandplacetheminyourmodelwhenyouhavethemnamedcorrectly,soforexample:‘WindowType01’,WindowType02’, ‘WindowType03’andnot: ‘WindowType01’,Window_2’,LargeWindowgroundfloor’.
Theaboveexamplesseemobviousbutunfortunatelythesemistakesappeartohappenveryofteninmodelseditedbydifferentpeopleintheteam.
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3.1. How to avoid problems
MakingthemostofSketchupmeansunderstandingitslimitations.
Sketchupcanhandlecomplexgeometryandlargeprojects,aslongasthemodelsarekeptorganizedandtidy.Herearefewtipsthatyoumayfindhelpful:
Layers:
Nameyourlayersinalogicalwayandkeepthenamingconsistent.
Working with imported geometry (.dwgs etc):
Always importadwgdrawing toanewemptySketchupmodelandnotdirectly toyourworkingfile.Afterimporting,selectallthelayersandmovetoLayer0oranotherlayerthatyoucreate,forexampleL0 plan or Section A-A.CADlayersareusuallyuselessinyourSketchupmodelandhavingawholelistoflayerscalledAF3--G-Circ, AG1--G-SitePrepetc.justdoesn’thelp.
Whenyourdwgdrawing is tidy,whenyoudeleteunwanted layersandpurgeunusedoruselessmaterialsorcomponents,thensaveyourfileinasubfolderandthengobackyouyourworkingfileandimportyourL0planorSectionA-Aandputitonalayerwiththesamename.Thiswillallowyuotoavoidhavinghundredsofmeanlesslayersandyouwillbeabletoquicklyswichonandoffvariousdwgplans,sectionsandelevationsthatyouimport.
Image3.1.1.onthenextpageshowsalistoflayersinafilewithimporteddwgplandrawing.Theycanallbemovedtoasinglelayer.
Working with 3D Warehouse models
3DWarehouseisagreatresourceandyoucanfindmanygoodmodelsthere.Itistemptingtojustputalotofnicedetailed3Dcars,treesorfurniture.Unfortunatelyamodeloverloadedwiththesemodelscanquicklybecomeanightmaretoworkon.
Thebesthabitisthereforefirstofallalwaysimport3Dwarehousemodelstoanemptyfile,similarlytoworkingwithdwgdescribedabove.Thenyoucancheckwhetheryourcarhastoomuchdetail(maybeithastoomuchgeometryinside,thatyoudon’tneedforyourmasterplanviews).Youcancleanupyourmodelfromunwantedgeometry,re-nameorremoveunwantedlayers,materialsandscenesandthenyourmodelwillbereadytoimporttoyourworkingfile.
Thesameiswithany3Dmodelsthatyoumayreceivefromanotherarchitectworkingonthesameprojectorimportedfrom3dstudiomaxorother3dsoftware.
2D camera facing components
ThesearethemostSketchup-friendlycomponentsastheyaresimpleflatshapesandhavingalotoftheminthemodelwillnotslowyoudown.Itisgoodideatouse2Dcomponentswhenevertheycanreplaceheavy3Dmodels.
Unused components
Unusedcomponents,eveniftheyonlyappearonyourlistofcomponentsinthefloatingwindowandarenotplacedinyourmodelcansignificantlyincreasethefilesize.Purgningcomponentsregularlyisagoodhabit.
OnmanyoccasionsIhaveseensimplemodelssize80MB,whichhavebeenverydifficulttoworkwith.Aftertidyinguptheirsizecamedowntoaroung15MB.
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Image3.1.1.Layersofimporteddwgfile.
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Scenes:
Saved views (Scenes) with clear naming convention help navigating the model. Sometimes,especiallywhenthemodelhasalotofsavedviews,namingscenesnotonlyas:View 1, View 2, View 3,butprovidingabitmoredescription,like:View 1_Main entrance, View 2_Reception, View 3_Car Parketc.maybehelpfulespeciallytopeoplenotfamiliarwiththemodelandwhohavebeenaskedtoapplysomechangestoyourfile.
Styles:
Youhaveprobablynoticedthatworkingwithshadows,extentionsorendpointsonslowsyoudownalot.Itisbettertoworkinthesimplestpossiblemodeandonlyhavesomescenessetupwithsuchfeaturesifneeded.
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Part IV: Presentation of Sketchup work4.1. Sketchup Styles
Sketchupallowstopresentthescenesinavarietyofdifferentline/colourstyles.ThelatestversionsofSketchupincludeaStyle builderwhichallowstocreateandsaveapersonalisedstyle.
InordertogetSketchupworkingfastandsmoothyoushouldworkusingthemostsimplestyle(noendpoints,noextensions,noshadows,noprofiles,ifpossiblewithplaincoloursratherthantexturesandjustwithstraightlines).Butifyoudoneedtomakeyourimagelooklikeasketchorifyouwouldliketohaveextendedlinesetc.thenitisbesttosavesuchpersonalizedviewasascene,butstillworkina‘workingscene’withbasicsetup.
BelowaresomeexamplesofSketchupdefaultstyles.YoucanstilltweakeachstylebyclickingonEditlabelandadjustinglinethicknessesandotherproperties.
Image4.1.1.Basicstyles. Image4.1.2.Sketchyedges.
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Image4.1.3.Straightlines. Image4.1.4.Colorsets.
YouwouldthinkthatSketchupstylescouldbeagreatandquicksolutionwhenyouneedtoshowanimagethatlookslikeafreehandsketch.UnfortunatelySketchupisabit‘dummy’in this caseanddoesnot recognise theperspective verywell. Itwill traceovereverysinglelineandmaymakeyourviewslookingabitheavy.Thesketchylinestylesorotherpersonalisedstylesusuallyworkbestwithsimplemodels,diagramaticmassingdiagrams,simplemasterplanningmodelsetc., butdon’t givegreatoutcomewhenexported fromverydetailedmodelsofcomplexprojects.
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Image4.1.5.ImageexportedfromSketchupandcolouredupinPhotoshop.
Image4.1.6.ImageexportedfromSketchupandrenderedusinganothersoftware.
Sometimesexportingaviewasasimple thin lineblackandwhitepictureandcolouring itup inPhotoshopgivesbetterresultsthananexportwithSketchupdefaultcolours.
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Image4.2.1.Savingtemplates.
4.2. Templates
Ifyoupersonalizeyourworkingscene,edityourlinestyles,adjustproperties,purgecomponents,removeunusedmaterialsandwouldliketosavesuchstyleasatemplatesoitactivateswhenyoustartSketchup,youcandosobychoosingFile - Save as template.
Image4.2.2.Savingtemplates.
MakesurethatSet as detault templateistickedifyouwouldlikeyourpersonalisedstyletobeusedbySketchupeachtimeitstarts.
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Image4.3.1.Camerasettings.
4.3. Cameras and scenes
Itiseasytocreate,modifyscenesandnavigatebetweenthemthroughtheScenesfloatingwindow(refertoPartI,page25).Itisalsopossibletoadjustcamerasettingsandsave.
Sketchupgives3basicoptions:
• ParallelProjection
• Perspective
• Two-PointPerspective
YouwillprobablyworkmostofteninPerspectivemode.YoumaywanttoexportyourscenesasTwo-PointPerspectiveandyour2DelevationsorsectionsasParallelProjection.
ButyoumayalsowanttoadjusttheFieldofView.Todothat,clickonFile-FieldofVieworonZoomicon.Theanglewillbedisplayedattherightbottomcornerofyourscreen.Justtypethevalueandpress Enter.
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Image4.3.2.Adjustingfieldofview.
YoucanalsoadjustthefieldofviewbyusingtheZoomtoolwhileholdingShiftkey.
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4.4. Rendering in Sketchup and outside Sketchup
Sketchupdoesnothaveabuiltinrenderengine,buttherearemanypluginsthatallowrenderingwithingSketchup.Notallofthemgivethesamequalityandnotallofthemworkinthesameway,buttherearequiteafewoptionstochosefrom.
ProbablythemostpopularonesareVrayandMaxwellRender.Theyworkinaverydifferentwayandprovidedifferentresults,buttheybothallowtosetupandrenderSketchupscenesrelativelyquickly.Vrayisperhapsabitfaster,butitalldependsonthescenesetupandcomplexityofthemodel.LatestversionofVrayforSketchuphasproxiesandsomeotherfeaturesthatSketchupwasmissinguntilrecently.
ThebenefitofrenderingwithinSketchupisobvious-youmodelandrenderwithinthesamesoftware,soitiseasytoapplychangesandre-render.ThedownsideofrenderingwithinSketchupisthefactthatSketchupitselfisquitelimitedanddoesnothandlelargemodelsverywell,especiallywithlargeamountofartifficiallighting.
ThebestsourcetolearnVrayforSketchupistheofficialVisualDynamicswebsite,whereyouwillfindVrayforSketchupManual:
http://www.vray.com/vray_for_sketchup/manual/
Image4.4.1.VrayforSketchuponlinemanual
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OnMaxwellRenderwebsitetherearesomeusefulandeasytofollowvideotutorialsthathelpwithlearningtheprogramandunderstandinghowthisrenderengineworks:
http://www.maxwellrender.com/index.php/products/maxwell_for_sketchup/tutorials
Themanualiswritteninawaythatifyoufollowitstepbystep,youwillquicklylearnhowtousetheprogram.
Image4.4.2.MaxwellRenderonlinevideotutorials
Alternative solution is exporting Sketchup model and rendering it using another 3d renderingsoftware.This is sometimes thebest option, especiallywhen youneed to create a highqualityphotorealisticrenderoranimation.
Inthissituationhoweverithelpsalotwhenthemodelissetupinacertainway,sotheamountofworkrequiredafterimportingyourmodelintoanotherprogramisminimized.Thatcouldmeanforexamplenamingthematerialsclearlyandconsistentlyoralternativelysettingupentiremodelwithnomaterials,butonlyinColour by Layermode,whereeachlayerrepresentsdifferentmaterial.
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BelowisanexampleofaSketchupmodelsetupincolourbymaterialmode,exportedandrederedinCinema4D:
Image4.4.3.Sketchupmodelscreenshot
Image4.4.4.SketchupmodelpreparedforMaterial by layerexportmethod.
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Image4.4.5.ThesameSketchupmodelimportedtoCinema4D.MaterialsareasSketchuplayers.
Image4.4.6.ModelrenderedwithVrayforCinema4D.
materials as Sketchup layers
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IfyouhavesetupyourmodelinColour by layermodeandwishtoexporttoa3dsformatpreservinglayersasmaterials,thenbelowarethesettingsyoushoulduse:
ThemajordisadvantageofexportingSketchupmodelstootherprogramsisthedifficultyofapplyingfurtheramendments(unlessyouareabletomodelintheothersoftwarewiththesameefficiencyandunlessyour team-matesarealsoable tousethissoftwareandcanapply furtherchanges ifrequired).
Themainbenefitfromdoingthatistheopportunitytopopulatethescenewithhigh-poly3dobjects,lightsandhigherresolutiontextureswithoutthefearofmakingthesoftwarecrash!
select ‘By layer’
untick these boxes
tick this box if you want to convert your Sketchup scenes to cameras in your chosen rendering program
set units for your 3ds file
Image4.4.7.Exportingto3dsfromColour by layer mode.
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Part V: Conclusion5.1. Good to know...
Sketchupisdefinitelyausefulandintuitivemodelingtool,thatcanhandlecomplexmodelswithabitofhelpofpluginsandothersoftwarecanproducegoodqualityimagesandmostimportantly,canbeagreatdesigntoolthankstotheeasinesstolernanduseit.
Itisgoodtoknowhoweveraboutitslimitationsinordertomakethemostofthisprogramandavoidfrustrationanddisappointmentwhentryingtopushittoofarortryingtousethisprogrambeyondwhatithasbeendesignedfor.
Therearemanyusefulpluginsandstand-alongprogramsthatcanexpandSketchup’sabilities,suchasParacloudandothergreatandpowerfultoolsthatworkverywellwithSketchupandallowtotakeyourSketchupmodelastepfurther.
Image4.5.1.SketchupmodelsdevelopedinParacloudGEM
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Ihopeyoufoundthisguideuseful.
Lookingforwardtoreceivingyourcomments.
Kasia
3d PPLE3D modeling, visualisation& graphic design services
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