Posts by Glorybound:
- Import .PTS format point cloud data into 3ds Max or 3ds Max Design scenes (release 2010 & 2011)
- Display the point cloud data in the 3ds Max viewport with a variety of rendering options and levels of detail
- Render point clouds using the mental ray rendering option
- Slice point clouds into pieces using geometric display volumes
- Export multiple clouds or parts of clouds to a new .PTS files
- Snap to specific points within the data
- Render with shadows for quick shadow studies
- Apply materials or projection map images onto the point cloud data
- Display captured per point color in viewport
- Independent LOD control for viewport and render settings
- Focal point: A primary center of interest (or focus) in a drawing.
- Overlapping: The visual separation of a drawing into foreground, middle ground, and distant space by overlapping (or layering) objects.
- Negative space: The space within your drawing not occupied by a focal point, important subject, or area of interest.
- Lines: Navigation tools used to guide the viewer through the different elements of a drawing.
- Balance: A stable arrangement of subjects within a composition.
- Contrast: Extremes of light and dark values that create shapes and patterns in your composition.
- Proportion: The amount of space allocated to the various components of a drawing.
- Always place your focal point off-center in your composition. Stay away from the bull’s eye. A focal point placed in the very center of your drawing space is a big NO unless you have a specific expressive or artistic reason to do so. Any object that you place dead center commands the viewer’s full attention. All the other important elements of your drawing may be ignored, and the drawing loses its impact.In Figure 1, the main member of the Headde family appears right of center. Your eye may go to this figure intuitively at first, but you still register the other members of the family off to the left.
- Make good use of secondary focal points. Drawing less interesting objects close to the primary focal point helps direct the viewer’s eye toward your center of interest. In Figure 1, the small cluster of family members off to the left draws your eye, but then the eyes on these figures direct you straight back to the main figure on the right.
- Use objects within your drawing space to point to your focal point. The lines of the two steps on the platform in Figure 1 lead the view’s eye to the focal point.
- Define the focal point with more detail and a stronger contrast in values than other aspects of your drawing. The shading of the hair, eyes, and nose is more detailed in the focal point. Also, a very dark value is used to shade the pupils of his eyes and for the shadows under him.
- Curved lines reflect beauty, gentleness, and calmness. The s-curve denotes balance and grace.
- Horizontal lines create stability, peace, and serenity.
- Vertical lines reflect strength, grandeur, and dignity.
- Diagonal lines offer a sense of movement and power. When diagonal lines meet to form an arrow, they can direct the viewer’s eye.
- What do I consider to be the most important subject within this composition? The answer to this question may decide what your focal point (center of interest) should be.
- Where should I put my focal point and how much of my total drawing space should my focal point occupy? Many beginners choose to make their focal point the largest object in the drawing.
- How much of my drawing format should be background (negative space)? Negative space is sometimes thought of as a resting place for the viewer’s eyes.
- Modeless Properties Palette
- Repeat last command / Repeat Commands recently used
- Quick Access Toolbar (QAT):
- Single QAT per application
- Increased number of default commands in the QAT
- Customization options via dialog box: move command up/down, add separator, remove command
- Improved access to Worksets and Design Options on status bar
- Ribbon Enhancements:
- Redesigned Modify tab:
- Consistent modify tools – panels and buttons are always in the same order on the left side of the Modify tab. Buttons enable/ disable as necessary.
- Modify tab name updates to reflect the active contextual tab appended.
- Contextual tab content is appended to the right side of the Modify tab when active.
- Modify and contextual contents are separated by a gray visual bar.
- Persistent access to core modify tools (Object-Action commands):
- Move
- Copy
- Rotate
- Mirror – Pick Axis
- Mirror – Draw Axis
- Delete
- Type Selector EnhancementsType Selector is combined with the Properties Palette. Open at all times; can be opened/closed using the Properties Palette button available in the Properties ribbon panel.
- Group Edit Mode accessPanel is removed from the ribbon and will float in drawing area when invoked. Default is upper left corner of drawing area and can be moved.
- Model In-PlaceProject ribbon replaced with the family ribbon when an in-place model is started or edited. When you finish editing in-place, the ribbon will revert to the project ribbon.
- Redesigned Modify tab:
- Improved icons based on user feedback
- Enhancements to the Visibility Control of Worksets in workshared files:
- Visibility by Default for Worksets
- Ability to open/close Worksets for linked models
- Ability to control visibility of linked models according to host model
- Ability to apply View Filters to linked models from host model
- Ability to tag elements in linked files, with the exception of rooms, spaces, and areas
- Ability to automatically generate a ceiling grid from walls in a linked model
- Ability to apply View Filters to linked files
- Realistic materials available in editable views
- Hardware acceleration (DX9) on by default
- Levels of Details (adaptive to zoom)
- Ambient occlusion
- Display performance improvements (over 30%)
- Significant performance improvement in display of mechanical and electrical drawings (up to 200%)
- Protein 2.0 appearances, in single project library
- Increased interoperability with 3ds Max through:
- Export of FBX files to Max with Protein 2 appearances
- Import of DWG files and ADSK files with Protein 2 appearances
Note3ds Max/Design 2011 is required for materials to transfer. - Support for new realistic display style through Protein 2 materials
- New material classes available in Protein 2, including procedural appearances
- Support for oval duct, cable tray, and conduit connectors
- Support of new electrical properties (such as Motor)
- Improved performance when importing ADSK files
- Improved AEC Exchange functionality
- Support of Protein materials
- Graphics
- MultiCore Operations
- Sync with Central
- Model Open
- User interface reaction time
- Linked Models
- Increased visual fidelity when exporting Revit files to DWG
- Export option for True Color
- Export option for Text treatment
- Interactive exploration of parameter values in Revit families
- Ability to lock labeled dimensions
- Reporting Parameters
- Default parameter type (length vs. text)
- Parameters groups automatically set
- Remembering witness lines
- Family Editor: right-click permanent dimensions to select labels
- Ability to control temporary dimension font size and background (transparent or opaque)
- Align tool now works on an element’s node, vertex, edge, surface, form, or level
- Previous versions of Revit were unable to maintain the expected level of geometric accuracy at locations farther than 1 mile from the project origin. Revit will now maintain a high level of geometric accuracy for elements placed within 20 miles of the project origin.
- Select All Instances in the current view or in the entire project
- Additional leader attachment points: Top Left (TL), Middle Left (ML), Bottom Left (BL), Top Right (TR), Middle Right (MR), and Bottom Right (BR).
- Ability to adjust leader end distance
- Ability to show box around text
- Ability to create bullets and numbering
- Create new sheet list rows to create placeholder sheets
- Convert placeholder sheets to project sheets
- Grid guide for sheets, enabling consistent sheet creation
- Ability to set span direction for metal deck floors
- Sun PathInteractive tool for visualizing the impact of natural light and shadows on buildings and sites
- Solid-Solid Cut: Ability to cut one solid from another solid
- Dissolving Forms: Ability to dissolve a form back to the curves from which it was created.
- Generic mass template
- Flexible component mass
- Sketch Edit mode for Form Profiles
- Dividing Surfaces with Intersects by:
- Intersecting levels, reference planes, and lines on reference planes
- Combination of U or V grids and intersects
- Conditional Formatting in Schedule
- Element Section Area and Linear Weight in Schedules
- Span Direction Tool
- DWG Export enhancements (Index color and True Color support)
- Beam Coping for steel beams framed into joined beams and columns
- Text Formatting Shortcuts (Ctrl+B, Ctrl+I, and Ctrl+U)
- Beam System Tags
- Split Walls with Gap
- Keyboard Shortcut UI
- Find and Replace Text in Notes
- Convert between Line Types: Model, Detail, Symbolic
- Export to DWG with correct RGB colors
- Linked File Performance Enhancements
- New API for slope angle and elevation for x,y location in given slab with choice of top and bottom
- Structural Components and Modeling:
- Slanted Columns
- Beam Placement using 3D CAD Geometry
- Curved Beams
- Structural Trusses
- Metal and Structural Deck Assembly
- Control beam length tolerance
- Beam Coping Tool
- Shared Parameters Converter
- Model Review
- Autodesk Revit DB Link
- Road and Terrain modules
- Wall framing enhancements:
- New method to choose the location of the studs (wall layers are exposed)
- Multi-selection of walls and openings
- Transition to Web Help, which includes improved search capabilities
- Streamlined Help reference content
- Short Tutorials in video format
- Additional Enhanced Tooltips
- New animated ToolClips
- Improved First Experience
- Custom elevation tag
- List sheets not in a project on drawing list
- Background images in renderings
- Repeat last command
- Sheet layout grid
- Removal of 4 core rendering limit
- Google Maps™ mapping service interface (Location dialog) lets you visualize project locations
Wood Framing Pack for Revit Architecture
July 30th, 2010Wood framing in a fraction of the time with the Wood Framing Pack.
The time intensive tasks associated with the creation of wood framing for roof and floor systems has been greatly simplified with the Wood Framing Pack. The creation of these systems is often required for visual and model checking purposes, and the Wood Framing Pack allows you to perform these tasks in a fraction of the time. Consisting of Express Trusses and Express Framing, the Wood Framing Pack enables the rapid generation of roof and floor systems within Revit software.
The Wood Framing Pack is a suite package consisting of Express Framing and Express Trusses at a discounted price.
Automatically frame any roof with truss systems in Revit Architecture.
July 30th, 2010Express Trusses reads roof information in a Revit model, then automatically frames out any roof situation with systems of trusses. You can now generate roof truss layouts in a fraction of the time it takes compared to using the standard truss tool within Revit. Trusses, web layouts, and framing sizes can all be customized to user needs. Increase efficiency and add visualization capabilities with Express Trusses.
Revit 2011 Hangs at Splash Screen or Crashes with Unrecoverable Error
July 30th, 2010Revit 2011 Hangs at Splash Screen or Crashes with Unrecoverable Error
You launch Revit 2011 and it doesn’t get past the splash screen. Or you launch it and you see the splash screen followed by an unrecoverable error message. So what do you try next?
I have included the 3 most common causes for this behavior below, in the most common order. If you run into a scenario where these do not resolve the issue please do not hesitate to let us know!
1. WSCommcntr2.exe Process
I’ve included a technical solution for this one below. The technical solution is for AutoCAD, but the same process applies for Revit 2011:
http://usa.autodesk.com/getdoc/id=TS15228698
2. Corrupt WSCommCntrData.xml File
If the WSCommCntrData.xml file becomes corrupt, Revit may hang when attempting to read it at startup.
While Revit is closed, move or delete the WSCommCntrData.xml file at the location below:
Windows XP
C:\Documents and Settings\%username%\Local Settings\Application Data\Autodesk\Revit\<Autodesk Revit Version>\ENU\Components\WebServices\WSCommCntrData.xml
Windows Vista & Windows 7
C:\Users\%username%\Appdata\local\Autodesk\Revit\<Autodesk Revit Version>\ENU\Components\WebServices\WSCommCntrData.xml
3. Corrupt UIState.dat File
This could also be potentially related to a corrupt UIState.dat file. While Revit is closed, move or delete the UIState.dat file at the location below:
Windows XPC:\Documents and Settings\%username%\Local Settings\Application Data\Autodesk\Revit\<Autodesk Revit Version>\UIState.dat
Windows Vista & Windows 7C:\Users\%username%\Appdata\local\Autodesk\Revit\<Autodesk Revit Version>\UIState.dat
#2 & #3 are user-specific, so if you see this behavior where it happens to one user but not another on the same workstation, this is typically the conflict.
Original post taken from the Revit Clinic blog
Interactive 3D Visualization of Building Envelope Systems Using Infrared Thermography and Sketch Up
July 30th, 2010Interactive 3D Visualization of Building Envelope Systems Using Infrared Thermography and Sketch Up
March 2, 2010 Filed Under: PDF, Sketch-Up
Infrared thermography also known as thermal imaging can provide accurate, nondestructive information about the thermal envelope performance of any building. This includes validation of structural details, verification of energy performance (conduction and air leakage), location of moisture intrusion, and the identification of structural and system degradation of roofs and facades.
Thermography has been used since the 1960s to detect and diagnose building problems. During the 1970s fuel crisis, it was widely used to visualize the thermal signatures related to many building problems. It is common today for many professional home inspectors and energy auditors to use infrared imaging technology to evaluate the performance of this “thermal envelope” (i.e. the walls, fenestration, foundation, and ceiling or roof) for performing energy auditing of homes and buildings. Although thermography can be used to measure spot temperatures on a building envelope, it is commonly used to generate false-color images that relate a temperature scale to a color scale.
This paper discusses the application of the visualization capabilities of IR in conjunction with 3D models of buildings. 3D modeling is a powerful tool for visualizing and representing building conditions that is used by architects, builders, and contractors. Also, a 3D model is better understandable than a more abstract 2D representation (like a floor plan or an image).
A method will be presented to apply IR images to simplified exterior and interior models of a building using the freely available 3D modeler Google SketchUp. A variety of common application scenarios will be presented and examples for these will be shown. In addition, the viability of exploring the 3D model interactively and on the web will be discussed.
Project Photofly
July 29th, 2010Tilt Shift
July 21st, 2010
Small Worlds – Preview. from Keith Loutit on Vimeo.
Lagoa Multiphysics 1.0 – Teaser
July 20th, 2010
Lagoa Multiphysics 1.0 – Teaser from Thiago Costa on Vimeo.
Project Helix, Point Cloud Tools for Autodesk® 3ds Max® 2010
July 14th, 2010
I am pleased to announce the first Autodesk Labs project for 3ds Max, a technology preview enabling display and rendering of 3D laser scanning/LiDAR data sets with Autodesk® 3ds Max® 2010 & 2011 and Autodesk® 3ds Max® Design 2010 & 2011. With the 3ds Max Point Cloud Tools you can import reference data that has been captured from various 3D scanning devices and use as a snapping reference for modeling workflows, or simply apply a material and render the point cloud using the mental ray renderer. We anticipate seeing a wide variety of use cases for this technology preview and have already seen users load up to 1 billion points within the viewport.
The Point Cloud Tools for 3ds Max and 3ds Max Design allows you to:
Working with 3D point cloud data is very memory intensive, we recommend at a minimum Win 7, 64bit, 8GB RAM, and a 64bit version of 3ds Max. Stability problems will increase on lower spec systems and the amount of data you can work with is dependent upon the amount of RAM in the system. Although there are a number of very functional features in the technology preview, it has not been widely tested on a range of hardware and configurations.
3D Glasses – Polarizing
July 3rd, 2010IES lights with VRay
June 30th, 2010IES lights with VRay from VrayART on Vimeo.
Revit 2011 Service Pack 1 Released
June 30th, 2010Revit 2011 Service Pack 1 Released
The first service pack has been released for Autodesk Revit Architecture 2011, Structure 2011 and MEP 2011.
Revit 2011 Service Pack 1 can be downloaded by visiting the downloads section here:
For Revit Architecture 2011:
http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/item?siteID=123112&id=14973244
Dont forget to read the Update Enhancement List.pdf
Focusing on the Elements of Composition in Drawing
June 24th, 2010Composition refers to the organization, arrangement, and combination of objects within the borders of a drawing space. You want to bring the eyes of the viewer toward your center of interest within an aesthetically pleasing composition.
Strong composition can intuitively engage your viewers. Many “rules” define a good composition, but these rules are only guidelines. Your personal preferences and natural instincts are also important.
When planning the overall appearance of a drawing, you need to be familiar with the following:
Emphasizing the focal point
A drawing becomes much more interesting when it has a focal point — a specific area where you want your viewer to focus the majority of their attention when looking at your drawing.
Your drawings illustrate your choice of subjects from your own unique perspective. Think about what you want your drawing to say and choose a focal point that helps you express that message.
In a portrait, the focal point may be the eyes, and in a landscape it may be one specific tree or flower. You may choose to have more than one area of focus in your drawing; in this case, you have a primary focal point and secondary focal point(s).
After you choose your main point (or points) of interest, you can use many artistic devices and techniques to highlight the point. In Figure 1, the Headde Family illustrates the following tips for emphasizing your focal point:
Figure 1: In the Headde family, a primary focal point out-stages the secondary focal points.
Overlapping for unity and depth
Overlapping objects, or placing some objects over (or in front of) others, unifies a drawing, enhances depth of field, and creates an aesthetically pleasing composition.
Observe your subject carefully before you begin your drawing and plan for places where you can utilize overlapping. To overlap subjects in a drawing, you simply draw closer objects in front of those farther away. For example, if two trees appear side-by-side in a scene, consider drawing them in such a way that one is slightly in front of the other. When you overlap objects, you create a strong three-dimensional illusion.
In Figure 2, the larger child (with lots of hair) is in the foreground (the front), the light haired adult and the baby are in the middle ground, and the dark haired adult (with the grumpy facial expression) is in the distant space (behind the others).
Figure 2: Creating depth by overlapping your subjects.
Using lines to your advantage
In the cartoon drawing in Figure 1, the lines outlining the family members and objects are actual lines. The lines of the steps, on which the largest character is standing, point toward him. But of course, bold black lines, like in this cartoon or a coloring book drawing, do not outline objects in the real world around us.
Representational drawings that include realistic three-dimensional subjects can use implied lines to strengthen a composition. This means lines that are not really there, but are formed (or implied) by the edges of the shapes of the objects in your drawing.
Following the leading line
Effective leading lines can invite and encourage the viewer to enter the drawing space, explore the focal point, and linger to investigate the many facets of the composition.
Either actual lines or implied lines can be used to navigate the viewer around a nonrepresentational drawing. However, in a representational drawing, leading lines are usually implied, rather than actual. For example, in a realistic landscape drawing, a leading line can be a pathway, a river, a row of trees, or a fence. When properly rendered, the eye follows this line (or lines) directly into and through the drawing.
Most viewers begin looking at a drawing in the lower-left hand corner, making this corner the best location for a leading line.
Placing leading lines on the right side of your drawing may take the viewer’s eye out of your composition. Also, don’t put leading lines exactly in a corner. When a leading line points directly to a corner it forms the shape of an arrowhead, pointing the viewer directly out of the drawing, just as effectively as a big bold neon EXIT sign.
Lining up emotions with composition lines
Various types of lines put diverse emotions and moods in your compositions. Remain conscious of the following effects lines can have in your drawings:
Balancing subjects in a composition
Most good drawings result from carefully planning the balance of the various subjects. A balanced drawing is more aesthetically pleasing and harmonious. When creating this balancing act, you must take the sizes, placements, and values of the subjects into account.
Playing with the teeter-totter principle
Think of your drawing subjects on a teeter-totter. If your subjects are the same size, then they balance perfectly with both the same distance from the center point, as in the first drawing in Figure 3. On the other hand, a tiny object on one side balances a larger object on the other end, by being farther away from the center point, as in the second drawing in Figure 3.
Figure 3: Balancing subjects of the same and differing masses.
Without balance, your drawings may end up visually lopsided and inharmonious. Of course, if you want a particular drawing subject to appear distressing and jarring, using an unbalanced composition can help.
Arrange your objects asymmetrically. Taller objects usually look better off to one side.
Balancing values and shapes
Masses of light and dark values become shapes. These shapes need to be identified and planned before you begin to draw.
Balance dark and light values in your drawing space, in much the same way as objects. Grouping all the dark objects or all the light objects on one side of your drawing space can create a visually lopsided composition. Sometimes simply moving objects slightly to the right or left in your drawing space, or making them lighter or darker than their actual values, can balance the composition.
Placing an odd number of objects into a grouping (rather than an even number) makes a composition more artistically pleasing. Balancing three objects on one side of a composition and five on the other is much more interesting than a static arrangement of four on either side
Delegating proportions to your subjects
When you plan a drawing, you have to decide how big to make each object in the composition. The proportion of each element relative to the others depends on what you want to emphasize in your composition.
It’s completely up to you to call upon your creative mind to help you make decisions about the proportions in your composition. Ask yourself the following questions:
Revit Architecture 2011 – Sun Path
June 23rd, 2010Revit Architecture – Sun Path
Revit Architecture 2011 has a hint of Ecotech… check it out!
Autodesk Revit Architecture 2011 Visual Styles & Rendering
June 20th, 2010Bryan O’Neil Hughes on Adobe Photoshop CS5
June 16th, 2010Bryan O’Neill Hughes posted a review of Adobe Photoshop CS5 new features on Scott Kelby’s, the president of NAPP the National Association of Photoshop Professionals, blog. Bryan O’Neill Hughes did not mean to speak about major feature set which has already been explained extremely thoroughly, but he dwelled on some of the tricks, polish and little known tweaks that went into making these features so magical. So, here is the “inside scoop from the perspective of a product manager”.
3DVIA Plugin for Photoshop
June 15th, 2010New in Revit Architecture 2011
June 15th, 2010The following features are new or enhanced for Revit Architecture.
For additional detail and a more interactive listing of New Features for Revit Architecture, go to the following: http://www.autodesk.com/revitarchitecture-features.
Large Team Workflow: Linked ModelsGraphicsMaterialsInventor InteroperabilityPerformance ImprovementsDWG ExportFamily Editor EnhancementsParameter EnhancementsTemporary Dimension Enhancements3D Alignment EnhancementsExpanded Region of High Geometric AccuracySelection EnhancementsText Notes EnhancementsSheet EnhancementsFloor EnhancementsAnalysisConceptual Design Environment (CDE) / Conceptual Form Making and Editing Tool EnhancementsSurface Rationalization EnhancementsSubscription Advantage PackRevit ExtensionsUser Assistance (Documentation)Other EnhancementsStereoscopic Rendering
June 10th, 2010Here is a stereoscopic render I did for a lake cabin. You’ll of coarse need a pair of stereo red/cyan glasses to enjoy the 3rd dimension.
Stereoscopy, stereoscopic imaging or 3-D (three-dimensional) imaging is any technique capable of recording three-dimensional visual information or creating the illusion of depth in an image. The illusion of depth in a photograph, movie, or other two-dimensional image is created by presenting a slightly different image to each eye. Many 3D displays use this method to convey images. It was first invented by Sir Charles Wheatstone in 1838. Stereoscopy is used in photogrammetry and also for entertainment through the production of stereograms. Stereoscopy is useful in viewing images rendered from large multi-dimensional data sets such as are produced by experimental data. Modern industrial three dimensional photography may use 3D scanners to detect and record 3 dimensional information. The 3 dimensional depth information can be reconstructed from two images using a computer by corresponding the pixels in the left and right images. Solving the Correspondence problem in the field of Computer Vision aims to create meaningful depth information from two images.
Traditional stereoscopic photography consists of creating a 3-D illusion starting from a pair of 2-D images. The easiest way to create depth perception in the brain is to provide to the eyes of the viewer two different images, representing two perspectives of the same object, with a minor deviation similar to the perspectives that both eyes naturally receive in binocular vision.
Tips on Drawing Dimension with Shadow
June 9th, 20103ds Max Advanced Modeling
June 9th, 2010I just attended the 3ds Max Advanced Modeling (live from Spine3D in USA) webinar and it was very good and informative.
3DATS, CGarchitect & Spine 3D have come together to form CGschool.
CGschool provides high quality training solutions for design visualization professionals. Our products and services include customized training, 3D design consultation, training books and DVDs, as well as some of the best content available in the visualization industry.
