Embed Size (px)
DESCRIPTION
CatchUp version 10
Citation preview
Trimble....WTF? [sic] Will Trimble Fail?
photomatch tip04 Create a Presidential Chair using Photomatch. Adriana Granados’ step by step tutorial in Photomatch modeling.
get twisted11 Twisted columns in minutes. Eric Lay returns with another quality tutorial using only native tools.
curviloft tips16 Organic modeling in SketchUp. Aidan Chopra’s takes a look a Fredo’s CurviLoft and explains
gallery38 Are you featured? Our members submissions to the Gallery for April.
thrupaint29 Looking into the new map-ping plugin by Fredo.
trimble study24 Mike Lucey . UV Mapping plu-gin gets chewed and reviewed. Is this a game changer for SketchUp?
Last month we were under
the umbrella of Google. Then
out of the blue comes Trimble.
SketchUp users from all
disciplines were shocked to
see their favourite 3D software
change hands. What will this
mean for Sketchup?
SketchUcation’s Commander
in Chief, Mike Lucey, takes
a look at the acquistion and
offers some insight into where
this journey will take us.
But it’s still business as usual
for CatchUp and all the regulars
return with top tips and tricks.
Using Photomatch to make
chairs, wielding CurviLoft like a
true ninja and twisted columns
without using plugins.
Enjoy the read!
ornate designs are more intricate but make a big difference
Presidential Chair in PhotomatChby adriana granados
Match Photo has been widely used as a tool for
applying photos to a building. However, this
tool can also be used to create furniture,
kitchens, lighting or any object used in interior
design. In many instances you will see an object in
a magazine that you would like to include in your
design. Creating objects or furniture sometimes
can be very time consuming. Match Photo is a
perfect alternative to model complex geometry in
a short time.
SketchUp allows you to model your designs using
the actual, real-world scale 1:1. However, digital
pictures are not to scale. Therefore, to create a 3D
model that matches a photo, you must calibrate
SketchUp’s camera to match the position and
focal length of the digital camera used to take the
picture.
For today I have selected this presidential chair
which I will use to explain the process to be
followed for modeling with Match Photo.
To be successful; with matching depends on the way your picture is taken. These are the common aspects
to take into account:
• Take photos at a roughly 45 degree angle to each corner of the model.
• Do not crop photos; the point at which you aimed the camera should be in the center of the image.
• Do not warp photos.
• Do not use wide-angle lens cameras. All cameras have a little bit of barrel distortion and it is typically worse around the edges of the image.
• Avoid stitched images and foreground elements.
To start your Match Photo process select Camera > Match New Photo. The photo will appear in the
drawing area on its own scene in SketchUp. You are also placed in a matching mode where you will calibrate
SketchUp’s camera to duplicate the position and focal length of the camera used to take the actual photo.
The words ‘Match Photo’ appear in the upper-left of the drawing area.
Right-click /Done or click on the Done button
in the Match Photo window. You are placed in
a sketching mode. This mode, unlike normal
SketchUp drawing mode, is a 2D drawing mode.
The words ‘Match Photo’ appear in the upper-
left of the drawing area. The Pencil tool is active.
Trace a face following the red and blue direc-
tionstogetaflatfaceovertheedgesoftheleft-
most side of the chair in the photo. Add the other
edges being sure that you are always On Face
when you are tracing. Erase the bottom, upper
and back lines once you have completed the left
face.
Push/Pull tool has been used to create the arm volume. I continued tracing to complete half of the chair. At
some point I needed to orbit to reach edges that are not visible from the Match Photo view. Above you can
see each part I modeled using only native SketchUp tools.
Once happy with the general look I added some extra details
to give the chair more substance. A single component was
used for the rivets and it was set to ‘Glue to any’ meaning
placing around arms and sides was quick and easy.
You could also use PhotoMatch’s ‘Project Photo’ feature
to texture the geometry using the photo itself. This would
mean adjusting the texture in areas where
there are none.
For the legs, I started with a pentagon placing it
close to the location shown in the picture even
though in a later step I moved it to match the mid-
dle point of the seat. I repeated the same process,
guessing the back part that was not visible in the
picture. I created a component that I copied, rotat-
ing it around the pentagon. I grouped the half seat
and the legs into two separate groups to prevent
the geometry sticking.
OnceIfinishedwiththelegsIcopiedandflippedtheconstructedhalfoftheseattocompletethechair.
If you wanted a more lo-poly version that uses only the Photomatch textures you can use the same technique
above but limit the level of detail in each piece. The trick here is to leverage the photo to create an illusion of
detail but keeping the actual geometry to a bare minimum.
First start with a spiral making method by Kanal von
KitoRaupp that can be found on Youtube here.
Basically you push/pull a 24 segment circle any
desired distance, erase the upper circle then rotate
the bottom circle to skew the leftover lines by 15
degrees. You then copy those lines vertically 23
times which creates 24 spirals that travel 360
degrees each. Erase all but one spiral and scale it
down about the center of the spiral. Now you can
copy that full spiral up a desired amount of times for
your column. Make that spiral a component before
you continue.
rope twistby eric lay
Line up your spiral with a reference image, this
one provided by Antoine (Marvin’s Dad) on the
SketchUcation Forums. Note that I added an extra
twistsegmentaswewillcutthebottomandtopflush
and need some extra for that purpose. Also note that
the spiral is located where the center of the circle will
follow it. However don’t worry if it does not line up
perfectlyasyoucantweakthefinalresult.
Note that this example has two spirals in the
twist of the column, kind of like two ropes
twisting around each other. So the next step
is to copy your spiral and rotate it 90 degrees.
Draw a line vertically between two points on
the spiral, divide it in half and use that as the
radius for a new circle. I used 12 segments for
this example.
Move the circle to the end of one of the
spiralsthenrotateitperpendiculartothefirst
segment on the spiral.
Cut and paste the circle into the component.
Select the spiral then use the follow me
command and click on the circle. This will
create the body of your rope column.
Move the spirals over your reference image
again. If it is not exactly aligned use the scale
tool to tweak out the alignment.
Finally add a base and cap to your column,
intersecting the top and bottom of the spirals
and removing the unwanted geometry.
sKetchUp tip: organic modeling made simpleby aidan chopraTheprocessofextrudingone2Dprofilesuchthatitendsinanother,different2Dprofileisoftencalledlofting.
There’s no easy way to do this in plain ol’ SketchUp, but there are plenty of plugins that make it possible. The
one I’ve been obsessed with lately is called Curviloft; it’s by the venerable Fredo6. If you need to learn about
plugins in general, including how to install them, visit the plugins page on our website.
Curviloft lets you do three basic operations; which one you use depends on what you’re trying to accomplish.
Forthesakeofbrevity(andsimplicity),I’mgoingtofocusononlythefirstoperationinthispost:LoftBySpline.
The Basics
Let’s say you have two
profilesthatyouwant
to connect together.
The example below
is super-simple: It’s a
circle directly above
a square. Here, I
want to connect the
two with a shape that
goes directly between
them. Curviloft’s Loft
By Spline tool was
madeforjustthiskindofthing.Istartwithtwoflatprofiles(shapes)positionedoneabovetheother.
With nothing selected, I activate Loft By Spline and click once on each shape. Because there are only two, it
doesn’tmatterwhichshapeIclickfirst.Ifthereweremorethantwo,I’dclickintheorderthatIwanttoconnect
them,startingateitherend.Whenbothprofilesarenumbered,IclickthegreencheckmarkintheCurviloft
toolbar (see below). This brings me into Preview mode, where I can see what I’m about to end up with.
The Curviloft toolbar is complicated; there’s no getting around it. The good news is that you don’t have to
understand what all the controls do in order to use the tool. In Preview mode, you can just click things to see
what happens. There’s no shame in experimentation.
IliketofiddlewiththeSplineMethodsettingsfirst(seebelow).Thisiswhereyoucontroltheshapeofthe
verticallines(splines)thatconnectthetwoprofiles—inthiscase,thecircleandthesquare.Thethreeoptions
that I find give themost interesting results are “Junction by connected lines”, “Bezier curves –Respect
tangency(Method2)”and“JunctionbyOrthogonalBezierCurves”.Byallmeans,trytheotherbuttons,too;
there’s gold in them thar hills.
Playing with the Vertex Matching controls also yields some useful options (see below). Here, you’re telling
Curviloft how to decidewhich points on the perimeter of each profile should connect to one another. In
thiscase,thecirclehas24endpointsandthecircleonlyhasfour.Thetooldoesitsbesttofigureoutthe
intermediate geometry, but the Vertex Matching settings let you provide guidance. For me, the most interesting
buttonistheoneonthefarright;often,deselecting“Orientatecontourstotheirbest-fitbox”seemstoproduce
better results. Click it a few times to see what happens.
Whenyou’resatisfied,hitEnteronyourkeyboard (orclick thegreencheckmarkon the toolbar) tofinish
generating the result.
Cool variation #1: Twisting
While you’re still in Preview mode, clicking on black part of your preview object opens yet another set of
controls.ThePropertiesoftheEditedJunctionwindowshowsyoumoreinformationabouttheconnectionsin
the operation you’re doing. My favorite widgets here have to do with twisting; they let you rotate either of your
profiles(inthiscase,thecircleandthesquare)by15or90degreeincrements.Theresultisaninsanelycool
twisting effect. Click the little right and left arrows and you’ll see what I mean. Addictive, no?
Cool variation #2: Offset profiles
LoftbySplineworksgreatonprofilesthataren’tlinedupperfectly,too.Below,I’vemovedandrotatedthe
circle.
Again, trying different Spline Method settings produces pretty wildly different results.
I dare you not to waste an afternoon playing with Curviloft. The other two tools in the set let you loft along
apathand“skin”connectedprofileedges,butLoftbySplineisprettypowerfulonitsown.Rememberthat
Curviloftisdonationware,meaningthatifyoulikeit,youcancontributetoitsauthor;you’llfindanoptionto
do so in the Curviloft menu after you install it.
Here are some quick examples of shapes I whipped up while I was working on this post:
At 7:18am on Thursday the 26th
April last, it was announced on
The Official Google SketchUp
Blog, that the SketchUp team and
technology will be leaving Google
to join Trimble. The SketchUp
Product Manager, John Bacus
advised,
‘We’ll be better able to focus on
our core communities: modelers
who have been with us from
the beginning, as well as future
SketchUppers who have yet to
discover our products. Designers,
builders and makers of things
have always been the heart and
soul of SketchUp. With Trimble’s
commitment to invest in our
growth, we’ll be able to innovate
and develop new features better
than ever before.’
I’m extremely glad that Trimble
would appear to fully recognize
that SketchUp is no ordinary 3D
application. It is far more than that
to many long time users here at
SketchUcation. Words like ‘love’
have often been used by members
to describe how highly they regard
SketchUp and the Community that
has grown up around the product.
I know of no other application that
is in this position.
John goes on to reassure
SketchUp users that SketchUp will
be in good hands. I welcome this
reassurance as there will always
be doubts about a product’s
future when ownership changes.
This was the case when Google
purchased SketchUp from @Last
and it is the same now that Trimble
is becoming the new owner.
designers, builders
and makers have
always been the
heart and soul of
SketchUp
by Mike Lucey
John bacus
SketchUp and Tekla give us the tools
for more complete solutions
As many early SketchUp adopters know, the app
was designed with building professionals in mind,
even though it has been leveraged by many other
disciplines, too many to mention.
ReadingJohn’scommentsinrelationtowhathefeels
Trimble will bring to SketchUp for building professionals
is very interesting and well worth noting...
‘For those of you in the architecture, engineering
and construction industries, the knowledge and
experience Trimble will add to the SketchUp effort are
obvious. Together with our new colleagues at Trimble,
we plan to continue making our tools for the building
professions as innovative, intuitive and (dare I say)
fun to use as we always have.’
I hope this will be the case and from what I have
read about Trimble, they certainly have the required
resources, both capital and software / hardware, to
bring SketchUp to a new level.
While SketchUp has grown in popularity under
Google’s ownership I feel the product itself did not
receive the attention it deserved. Let’s hope that it will
receive this needed attention under Trimble.
IalsoreadintoJohn’sandotherstatements,correct
or not, that there could well be a number of SketchUp
flavors.CurrentlywehavethefreeandProversions
with little difference between them with the exception of
some features that only professionals would possibly
require including LayOut.
It now looks that there could be a number of new
flavorscomingonthemarketalsothefreeversionwill
remain!
‘If you’re one of the many, many people who use
SketchUp for something else—from education to
woodworking, geo-modeling to movie-making—rest
assured that there will be a SketchUp for you, too. Our
mission has always been to make 3D modeling tools
that anyone can use. The free version of SketchUp is
an important part of our world as well, and that isn’t
changing in the least.’
Word from Trimble is thinner on the ground but I
noticed this statement from Steven Berglund, Trimble
CEO. Hebrieflyaddressed theproposedSketchUp
acquisition, saying that SketchUp is an,
“effective tool for millions of architectural, engineering
and construction users. We see SketchUp as a central
platform for providing the glue that will couple field
operations with other enterprise activities. SketchUp,
together with Tekla and a number of other recent
acquisitions and internal developments, gives us
the tools to provide these more complete solutions.
Our initial focus will be on providing solutions for
the cadastral, heavy civil and building construction
markets.”
This again is good to hear from the ‘other side’
so to speak. However I imagine a question that
is on everyone’s mind is what did Trimble pay
for SketchUp, not that it makes any difference to
ordinary users, more a case of possibly liking to
think that the price was higher than Google paid
when purchasing from @Last. In these days of
very uncertain economic times, values can hit rock
bottom overnight. However in the case of SketchUp it looks that it possibly has at least doubled in value over the
last 6 year period. This is good to know in my opinion, as something that is acquirement cheaply is not often fully
appreciated and utilized
In a recent Net assessment about the SketchUp acquisition, Steven Berglund, is
reported as saying,
….heis“comfortable with our ability to manage anticipated post SketchUp levels of
debt.”Thecompany’sguidanceincludesa$100millionto$150millionincreasein
debt levels; one analyst on the call asked it that was due to SketchUp. Mr. Berglund
declinedtobespecificbutdidsaythat“We have not disclosed the SketchUp number,
by mutual agreement with Google. But, every quarter we do 2 to 3 acquisitions. If you
look at Q1, that’s what we did. So it’s all up, it is captured in that number.”
steven berglund
ThefinalgroundIwouldliketocoverinthisarticleis
the result of a question that was asked of me shortly
after the various announcements, this was ‘Who
the hell is Trimble?’. When asked I had very little
idea except vague recollections of hearing the name
mentioned to me occasionally by surveyors that I do
business with. However I have looked up as much
as I can on the Net and now feel that Trimble Inc
could be good for SketchUp. Companies are after all
just made up of people.
I reached my very broad and hopefully correct
assessment after learning about one of Trimble’s
original co-founders, a Charles R. Trimble, who now
appears to be possibly retired from the company and
involved in the Small Business Innovation Research
Program (Policy
and Global
Affairs) under
The National
Academies. I
was gladdened
to note on the
Trimble Site, its
Small Business
P r o g r a m ,
possibly a
legacy from Mr Trimble! I also have it form a very
reliable source that Steven Berglund is a ‘beer and
pretzel guy!’, just like the SketchUp Team and many
of the SketchUp faithful! This has been very much
in evidence at the past 3 SketchUp 3D Basecamps!
So! What the bottom line?
connect the dots, look at
the picture and hope for
the best
I really don’t know, time will tell. All I can do is connect
the dots, look at the picture and hope for the best. I
just trust and hope that SketchUp under Trimble will be
fully appreciated and give the ‘loving’ and dedicated
care that the SketchUp Community has been giving
it since August 2000 also fully resource and allow
the dedicated SketchUp Team to bring it to the new
heights that are being sought here on SketchUcation,
the ‘Friendly Place For All Your SketchUp Needs’.
thrUpAiNtby rich o’brien
Last month we got an exclusive look at Dale Marten’s SketchUV plugin which brought a new level of texture
mapping to SketchUp. But then Fredo goes and drops a paint bomb on us all with ThruPaint.
Both SketchUV and ThruPaint are new mapping plugins for SketchUp but they have notable differences. If you
want to see what SketchUV is capable of then you should read our review in the last edition of CatchUp. Here
will we look at what ThruPaint can do.
First off, ThruPaint resides within a suite of tools that Fredo calls FredoTools. This toolset is available for
free on the SketchUcation forums and I encourage users to take time to make a donation to Fredo’s PayPal
account ashis contributionsover the yearshave raisedSketchUp to another level.You kind findFredo’s
donation link under
Tools > FredoTools>Donation...
Now to the meat and veg of ThruPaint. As I mentioned it resides with FredoTools and you can activate it
through either a toolbar icon or via the tools menu itself. Once activated you will see the usual screen overlay
that Fredo uses for most of his plugins. This is broken down in the images below.
Along with the ability to choose your UV painting type you can also dictate how you want your surface or face
to be painted. Which gives you great control over how you want to texture your mesh. You can even dictate
to paint only front faces, only back faces or both. This mixed with the surface selection modes really speeds
up the painting process.
Thefinalsetofparametersconcernsedgesandyoucanreallydialinthetypeofedgesyouwanttohavea
materialappliedto.WhetherSoftened,Hardened,Smoothened,Hiddenoramixtureitoffertheflexibilityto
do this in a one click operation.
Usingthetoolcouldnotbesimpleasitisaveryvisualprocess.Onceyouhavedefinedhowyouwantto
apply your texture you simply hover over any geometry and ThruPaint highlights areas dependant on your
parameters.
One of ThruPaints strongest features is it’s ability to dig into groups/components and paint. Its progressive
paint mode allows you to simply paint direct on the mesh without having to edit the group/component before
hand. If you are familiar with SketchUp’s way of handling painted groups/components then you will know
how useful this is. This, coupled with the face/edge selection setting, is a huge timesaver. But there one last
surprise on ThruPaints arsenal that really makes your jaw drop......
It is called the Visual Editor and it is simply amazing. It will only be available when you are painting textures
(notcolours)astextureshavedimensionssincetheyareimagebased.Belowyoucanseefirstlythedefault
SketchUp Paint tool result followed by the ThruPaint Natural UV showing the Visual Editor features. With the
Visual Editor you can Move, Scale, and Rotate textures using a Gizmo, Arrow Keys or via the VCB box.
ThruPaint is another excellent addition to SketchUp’s ever growing plugin
library.Ittacklesaweaknessthatusershaveidentifiedforalongtimeand
delivers great results. It is worth noting that not all meshes can be mapped
using the Quad or Natural UV method but you can selectively target areas
and use the Projection method with good results. This method even comes
with a dedicated UI that allows full control over how you can apply the
projected texture.
ThruPaint and SketchUV can draw similarities to a certain extent but they take wholly different approaches.
Fredo’s tool is still reliant on SketchUp and the users abilitiy to generate good meshes. Whilst SketchUV
offers more quick and dirty methods and it allows users to export the UVs externally and map them in another
app. Both are equally powerful and used in tandem you have a complete mapping solution
It is fair to say that Fredo has gone and done it again. He has addressed a longstanding issue and applied clever
techniques to overcome it. This can be said for all his plugins - FredoScale, RoundCorner, ToolsonSurface -
each time we are left dazzled by their depth and ease of use.
Get your version here.
IRender nXt is an easy to learn, yet powerful plugin for creating photorealistic renderings from right inside Google SketchUp. Create stunning images of your designs with this amazingly flexible, surprisingly affordable, plugin. If you can draw it in SketchUp, you can render it with iRender nXt.
Photorealistic Rendering PluginIRender nXt
plUgiN tip : growby rich o’brien
Moving, rotating and scaling in SketchUp can at times be a frustrating
task. Especially when you want to accomplish all three at once. TIG’s
Grow plugin takes the frustration out of such laborious work and
creates wonders before your very eyes!
Using the tool could not be simpler.Select either geometry, group or
component and choose ‘Grow’ from the plugins menu. Your cursor
will change and you are asked to pick the ‘Growth Point Origin’.
Once you have located the grow point then you are faced with
yourfirstsetofparameters.Simply input thenumberofcopies
you want along with any translations you would like the selected
entity to go through. So linear arrays to fancy rotational arrays are
all possible here.
Choosing to use scaling brings up a second dialog
box that offers a multitude of scaling parameters.
These parameters are also associated to three
principles of translation - spacing, rotating and
copying.
The x/y/z translations also include 3 scaling types
- linear, expotential and fibonacci. So you have a
sublime level of control over the scale factor.
Finally, you get the decide the order of the translations. This
allows you to control the order that the move/rotate/scale
operations are done. Sometimes the order has no effect on
the result, but other times it will give quite different outcomes.
Try experimenting with different ‘orders’ to see the affects.
Sometimes, just like in manual
modeling, moving an object and
rotating it about a fixed point
will give a quite different result
compared to rottaing itfirstand
then moving it.
TIG’s Grow plugin is a great
addition to SketchUp and can
make often puzzling translations
are breeze.
You can download Grow here
and make sure to read the
installation instructions carefully.
c o M M U n i T ySHOWCASEThe latest gallery submissions on SketchUcation.com
Each month we want to show what our members are achieving using SketchUp. if something takes your fancy just click the image to be brought to that topic.
ssshhhhhhhNektares’ Library render in Thea reads like a good book.
going for a pint mrMikeEsqfirstGallerysubmissionwasintoxicating.
fine dining Jerisamui dining room scene renderedwith Vray.
relaxFred’s journey with Thea oozes style and comfort.
evening shotPost processing genius at work.
more styleAlvis continues his showcase.
say Jeez!SketchNL had some spare time..... Justwow!
tiger ii rebuildChistopher Nielsen’s epic rebuild just keeps on coming.
whaat indigo?Dale’sfinalshotsusingIndigoRender.
imerial cruiserMarian anime inspired ship is simply stellar.
skater boiDavid Hier’s proxy modeling is a tour de force in using Artisan.
plymouth gtxThomthom digs out an oldie for one last cruise.
books.sketchUcation.comlearn with the experts at your pace
In this month’s Catchup I’m looking at the X100
Unmanned Aerial System from Gatewing, a newly
Trimble acquired company. I think the X100 is going
to change the aerial mapping industry as its within
possiblefinancialreachofsmalltomediumsurveying
practicesataround$50KfromwhatIgather.
The GateWing x100 is another ‘dot’ on my ‘connect
the dots’ picture that hopefully will indicated where
SketchUp is going with Google and now Trimble. I
I think the x100 would cover a lot more ground in a
few hours that a legion of SketchUppers with their
cameras!MaybeGooglehasfinallyrealisedthis!
The X100 is capable of producing highly accurate
mapping whenever the surveyor needs it, even
in quite bad weather conditions according to the
product operation description. All this can be
achieved while the operator remains with his feet
plantedfirmlyontheground.
The main advantage I feel the x100 has over other
aerial survey methods (light aircraft and piloted mini
choppers) is that the operation is fully automated
from launch to landing. No piloting skills are required
toflythex100!
• Its a case of just facilitating the x100,
• Indicating the areas to be covered on the ground station.
• Select a take-of and landing spot.
• Plan the areas to be covered using the software wizard.
• Launch the x100 with the catapult! (but please remember
not to stand in front while doing so!)
• Thex100thencoversthepredefinedareatakingtheover
lapping images.
• The ground control station is only used to monitor the
operation and carry out image quality checks etc.
I notice the landing is ‘bump down’ fashion but also
think the x100 can handle this with easy as its sturdy
body is light and made of expanded polypropylene,
reinforced with a carbon frame.
by mike lucey
What propels the x100? I hear you ask! It is a battery
system that is capable of supplying enough power to
cover several square kilometers. I was also glad to
learn that the device has a built in fail-safe system.
I trustthiswouldallowforaquickflightabort if the
need arose e.g. avoiding the casual hang glider
passing by.
It’s uses could be endless, vegetation / farmland
monitoring, forrest / habitat preservation or for
planning, visualization and flow-ups of new land
management projects that need to be updated in
short timeframes.
In operation the X100 automatically takes pictures
from the air at altitudes of between 100 and 750
meters. The images are positioned with GPS and
achieved in high precision by the large overlap of
the images. This data is the then used to create
high quality othrophotos and accurate digital surface
models.
create high quality
orthophotos and
accurate digital
surface models
Gatewing offers two data processing options. One
is with the standalone software package called
StretchOut. This is a highly automated program
which converts the raw x100 imaged into a data set.
There is also an option to upload to the Gatewing
Cloud for processing and the results are delivered
shortly after. This digital terrain mapping method
allows the user to provide their own remote sensing
imagery.
End products are ready for GIS or CAD importing!
The resulting data
is razor-sharp with
no artifacts and in intense color and high
spacial accuracy, nice just what Google
Earth needs.
One of the most attractive features of
the X100 is its light weight, a couple
of kilograms and a wingspan of just a
meter. All this makes for quick and easy
launching from
nearly every
possible location,
even steep hill
sides, I dare say.
After launch the X100 flies its
preprogrammed flight lines which are
normallyparallelflightpathscreatingthe
overlapping images.
Here are some of interesting facts about
the nuts and bolts of the x100....
For those that like to check things out on video, the
‘Gatewing X100 product video 2009’ video gives a
good overview.
It must be said that that the GateWing x100 is a
clever device, if somewhat only for the professional
Surveyor at the moment, however I imagine it will
be possible to hire the x100 in the near future at an
hourly / daily rate. All I will need then is a client with
a large parcel of land that needs an accurate 3D
model of it and I can start having some fun.
Need I say it again? This month’s
gadget is yet another iPhone
gadget! This time I am reviewing
the Magnfi, the world’s first
universal photoadapter case for
the iPhone. This device connects
the camera on the iPhone 4 / 4S to
various optical instruments, allowing
pictures to be taken through the
eyepiece. Binoculars, microscopes
and telescopes come the mind but
it should work with any device that
has an eyepiece.
The set up is quick and easy, simply
slip the iPhone 4 into the Magnifi
case and pop it over the eyepiece
of the host device, then using the
built-in camera app, slide the case
into the eyepiece until the image
border becomes crisp. Once this
is achieved its a matter of snapping
the latch to lock everything in place
and away to go taking pictures.
TheMagnifi is a lowmaintenance
afocal design as there are no
lenses to clean. This is the case
as the device works by precisely
aligning the iPhone’s camera with
the optical axis of the eyepiece its
attachedto.TheMagnifiwillworks
with eyepeices in the 25 - 38mm
range.
The Magnifi is a two-piece design. It’s case and
eyepiece adapter and connected via a unique bayonet
mount. The assembly its a matter of aligning the two
red marks and then twisting counter-clockwise to
lock.
Something that is a concern to many iPhone owners
hasalsobeenaddressedbytheMagnifidesigners.
They advise that the bayonet mount gives the device
users interchangeability between their existing
eyepieces and any future supported uPhones within
the product range. So it looks like it will also work with
thenewiPhonethatisrumoredtolaunchinJune!
Magnifiisbeingconstructedusingimpact-resistance
Polycarbonate plastic and has a safety latch below
the iPhone’s dick connector that holds everything in
place securely. The latch engages automatically with
an audible click and its a matter of just pressing it to
release.
The devise fits to iPhone snugly indeed! The
designers use the term ‘FeatherGlide’ to describe
how this works. The case hugs the iPhone’s stainless
steel ban, leaving the glass on both sides free for
touch. There is also ample room inside the case for
both front and rear screen protectors.
In the past there have been various devices to ‘get
the job done’ but most were cumbersome and bulky.
TheMagnificase isacleanandsimplydesignthat
does not add much bulk to the iPhone, so its possible
to have it in your pocket ready for bayonet attaching
and picture taking.
Availableathttp://www.arcturuslabs.com/for$79.99
Outline of target area on the Cam-era Layer
Camera jumps to top of pod facing
the target
Use the Zoom tool to move slightly
back from target
Immediately key in a new Field of View
and adjust camera
Adjust Layer visibility for the model and Add a
SceneRepeat the setup for
each camera pod
Add a marker as a fixed camera
target
Make sure only the
Camera Lay-er is visible for Scene
setups
Segmented path with
equally spaced camera pods
Drag the Po-sition Camera tool from the pod to tar-
get**
Outline, Path, Pods, and Tar-get on Cam-era Layer*
Pod heights can vary
from Scene to Scene
Use a sepa-rate layer
for all Cam-era utilities
REFERENCE LINE
CONSTRUCTION MODELING - Step 9There are three general types of animations that can be quickly recorded from a piece-based construction model. The second (See Step 8 for tutorial on phased animations) is a very simple fly over or walk through sequence using Cameras and Scenes to control placement, phasing, and transitions.
1. Set up the camera path around or through the building2. Set up a central target for camera sequence3. Position equally spaced camera pods along the path4. Mount camera on the pod and point to target5. Adjust field of views, visible layers, and times6. Add a Scene and repeat for each camera Scene7. Temporarily delete or hide the 11Camera Group8. Adjust Layer visibilities and transitions9. Test the video and adjust each frame10. Export or record as a video
1
3
2
4
POD
TARGET
TARGET
TARGET
DRIVE/FLY ANIMATION
**Add a reference line from pod to target as you complete each Scene
*Temporarily delete or hide the 11Camera Group before exporting or recording the final animation
04
REFERENCE LINE
REFERENCE LINE
http://youtu.be/pXJjQgtpZ_w
http://youtu.be/WBpgI0kUvBE
Adjust Transition
and Delay for Animation
setting
Select Play from the
View Menu to test anima-
tion
See this U-Tube video
for the drive by animation
See this U-Tube video for the pan animation
Add refer-ence lines as you complete each Scene
Add a Scene for each
camera posi-tion*
Camera Layer is not included in animation
Drag Position Camera tool from radius
center to tar-gets for each
SceneUse a single camera pod at center of
radius
Place equally spaced targets on a
radius
U-TUBE Videos from our books
Setup a sequence for animationSimple drive-by animation Simple camera pan animation
01
02
03
CENTER
TARGETS
05
06
PAN ANIMATION
*Use more Scenes to get a smoother camera movement
SketchUcation roundup
look at our lucky winner...OneofoursurveywinnerswasJeffHammondfromNewYork.
Jeffislongtimemember,TopSketchUcatorandallroundgoodguy.
But is he a hat person?
As always, you can send your feedback to [email protected]
