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    http://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/suplugins.html
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    Seams, Frames & CurvesPlus iPad pens, Movie apps, Contours and Inspiration.....all on a Leap Year!

    Hide tHe seams04 Seamless texture creation.

    Adriana Granados shows youhow to create seamless textures inPhotoshop.

    Boos clues08 Need to build a frame fast?Follow Eric Lays superb step by stepspaceframe tutorial.

    speed up?14 Optimize SketchUp to lower

    le size. Aidan Chopras top tip fromthe Google SketchUp blog is oneeveryone needs to know.

    Gallery29 Are you featured? Our members submissions to the Galleryfor February

    contours25 Use ContourMaker to get themost out of Add Location. How touse TIGs ContourMaker on terrainmaps.

    Get inspired17 MoI3D gets put through theringer. NURBS modeling app thatsever so simple and oh so SketchUp.

    Theres lots of reasons

    why we love SketchUp at

    SketchUcation. The #1 being

    its simplicity. While other apps

    may give you more dials and

    knobs, SketchUp still reigns

    supreme for pick up and play.

    This month weve focussed on

    using other apps and plugins

    to leverage some extra muscle

    and make things even easier.

    We also showcase what

    our members are doing with

    SketchUp in our Gallery

    section. You guys rock!

    Plus we have our regulars Eric,

    Adriana and Dennis showing

    you how to become a SketchUp

    ninja.

    Go on.....dig in!

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    smalldifferences

    becomemuch morenoticeable

    seamless textures in photoshopby adriana granados

    For organic materials such as wood or granite where each part of the material is unique, a perfect

    result is almost impossible unless you have a picture of the whole area to cover. However, there are

    techniques to improve the appearance and avoid the tiled result using programs like Photoshop.

    The first image is a portion of a photo of granite chosen randomly. Observe where the arrow points to

    a cloud belonging to the same material. This natural imperfection is not too noticeable in small areas.

    However, when the texture is used to cover larger areas this small difference becomes much more

    noticeable as you can see in the image on the right.

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    One way to correct these imperfections is by simply applying the Clone Stamp tool in Paint.net or

    Photoshop and re-save the image. The result wil l be similar to the image on the right. However, you can

    still see the t iled appearance although it is much less noticeable.

    A technique I use to achieve better results is done in Photoshop following these steps.

    1. Open the source image in Photoshop. Click on Image > Image Size, and noted what the image size is. You

    will need that information in the next step.

    2. Then click on Filter > Other > Offset. Enter half the height value, and half the width value of the image in

    the offset values. Select Wrap Around. This action shifts the edges of the image to the center, and the center

    of the image to the edges.

    3. To disguise the seams that is in the center use History Brush Tool (Hotkey Y). This brush instead of

    painting in a speci c color it paints with the original part of the image. You can also use Clone Stamp.

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    4. Paint over the seams. Avoid painting straight lines to fade off those seams in a natural way.

    5. Now that you have a rst draft of your seamless texture, it is a good idea to use Photoshop or SketchUp

    to tile it for you so you can make sure it tiles nicely. To do this in Photoshop select Edit > De ne Pattern from

    the main menu. Write a name.

    6. Create a new image that is many times larger than your original. With the new image selected select the

    Fill tool from the Edit menu > Fill.

    7. Select Pattern under the Use drop-down menu and your newly created pattern as the Custom Pattern.

    Once OK is clicked Photoshop will tile your texture automatically.

    8. If there are any parts of the image that stand out in the tiled image, you can go back and work on them a

    little more before nishing.

    9. In cases where I want a awless result I apply the texture to a big canvas. Then I resize the patterned

    image in Photoshop to something close to 200x200 pixels and save the new image.

    10. At the time of creating a new material in Sketchup I de ne the texture size ratio accordingly with the real

    world dimension of the image that I have saved in Photoshop. Having shrunk the texture size in Photoshop

    I am able to cover bigger areas with a seamless appearance result and manage different aspect size ratio

    using the same base image.These are some resources where you cancreate tiled or seamless texture -

    www.blitzbasic.com www.seamlesstexturegenerator.com www.pixplant.com

    Here you can find some great textures

    www.flickr.com/photos/zooboing

    For more interior design tips and tricksfor SketchUp check out Adrianas Blog

    http://sketchup-interior-design.blogspot.com/

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    http://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/simlabsoft.html
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    boos clues : BuildinG a spaceframeBy eric lay

    For this tutorial you will need four free plugins - Sphere , Mirror , Joint Push Pull and lines2tubes .

    First decide how many segments you want for your space frame. In this example I used 10 segments on the

    diameter of the semi-circle and 6 segments on the width. You can use more or less depending on the densityof the frame you want.

    01 - Start with a circle on the blue axis, 20 segments

    with an 8-0 radius. It is critical that you de ne your

    segments at this point or things will not line up later.

    02 - Draw an arc that is 8-0 wide with a bulge of

    1-6. You might need to draw the arc off to the side

    then move it by the center to place it on the edge of

    the circle, otherwise lining it up is near impossible.

    http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?p=255372#p255372http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?p=276512#p276512http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?p=42783#p42783http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?p=88592#p88592http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?p=88592#p88592http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?p=42783#p42783http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?p=276512#p276512http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?p=255372#p255372
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    03 - Fill in the arc, select the circle, click the Follow

    Me Tool and then click the arc. This will result in

    the arc shape sweeping around the circle. Turn on

    hidden geometry to see the result of the sweep.

    You can already see the outline of where the space

    frame will end up.

    Now offset the circle you rst created for a reference.

    04 - Select all unwanted geometry and delete it. This

    shows the backbone of the space frame.

    05 - Select all the geometry in the arch shape then

    activate the Joint Push Pull plugin. Before clicking

    anything press the Tab key and change the Finishing

    Options to Thickening. This will leave the original

    faces when you create the new volume. Press on

    the selected geometry, start pulling inward and then

    type your distance. Here I used 1-4.

    06 - Now delete all but one arch segment volume,

    preferably not one of the ends as they were

    triangulated during the Joint Push Pull operation.

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    07 - Delete half of the remaining segments. Draw

    a line across the face of the inner segments from

    center point to center point on the edges of the

    face. This gives us a reference point to create our

    pyramids. Now connect all the outer corners to the

    center points on the inner face.

    08 - Delete all the faces and the inner geometry

    leaving 3 pyramids of lines only. Mirror those to the

    other side then make all 6 pyramids a component.

    09 - Select the component you just made, click the

    rotate tool, hover over the edge of the reference

    circle, hold down ctrl then click at the center point

    of the circle to start the copy/rotation. Use the circle

    segments as reference to nish the rotation.

    Now edit the bottom component and draw some

    more lines. This time connect the pyramid tips to

    each other and to the tips of the component above.

    You may need to delete some faces as you go, you

    dont need them.

    10 - Copy/Rotate 9 more around the circle with the

    last one below the ground plane. We need this one

    for the connectors later.

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    11 - Edit the component then use the sphere plugin

    to place a sphere at the line vertices. I made the

    sphere with 1.5 radius, 6 longitude and 6 latitude

    lines. Move the sphere so the vertices are at the

    center of the sphere.

    12 - Now copy the sphere to all the inside vertices and

    bottom vertices. Do not copy them to the top vertices

    as they will show up on the other components.

    13 - Edit the component again, select all the lines

    then activate the lines2tubes plugin. I used a

    Diameter of 1 and Precision of 6.

    14 - Select the component that is below the ground

    plane and context click then choose Make Unique.

    Edit that component and delete everything exceptthe spheres connecting the adjacent component.

    Select the adjacent component and Make Unique,

    edit it and delete the stray geometry. You may need

    to edit the group inside this component to do so.

    Check out Erics blog at http://boofredlay.blogspot.com/

    Check out Erics Character Modeling Book at http://books.sketchucation.com/

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    speed up sketchup :extrude curves witH fewer sidesby aidan chopra

    The most sure- re way to mitigate your models

    geometric complexity (its count of faces and

    edges) is to pay attention to extruded circles and

    arcs. Experienced modelers know that curves in

    SketchUp are actually constructed out of multiple,

    straight edges. By default, circles have 24 sides and

    arcs have 12 sides. Zoom in and youll see what I

    mean.

    When you extrude a default, 24-sided circle with the

    Push/Pull tool, you create a cylinder with 26 faces.

    Choosing View > Hidden Geometry shows the

    smoothed edges between the faces.

    Using two default arcs and the Follow Me tool to

    create an fancy bullnose along the perimeter of a

    rectangular countertop yields no fewer than 90 new

    faces.

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    Modeling a simple bike rack using a combination of

    24-sided circles, 12-sided arcs and Follow Me, then

    placing ten of those bike racks in your design, adds

    more than 86,000 entities (faces and edges) to your

    model. Oof.

    T e S lut To dramatically reduce the amount of geometry in

    your models, change the number of sides in your circles and arcs before you extrude them into 3D

    shapes. Its easy:

    1) Create a circle or an arc using the appropriate

    tool.

    2) Before doing anything else, type 6s and hit

    Enter.

    This tells SketchUp to draw the curve you just

    created using six sides. The s tells it that youre

    changing the side-count and not the radius. Of

    course, you dont have to choose six sides you

    can type in any number you like.

    Note: Once youve manually changed the

    number of sides in a circle or an arc, every

    subsequent circle or arc you draw will have that

    same number of sides.

    I modeled the bike rack below using 5-sided circles

    and 6-sided arcs. It only has 322 faces -- an 89%

    reduction over the bike rack I modeled using curves

    with the default number of sides.

    For more top tips and SketchUp news you can head

    on over the the Of cial SketchUp Blog

    http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/
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    http://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/01/limitless.html
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    MoMent of InspIratIon 3d reviewby rich obrien

    Mo-ment - a brief period of time.

    Inspiration - Te process of being

    mentally stimulated to do or feel

    something creative.

    MoI3D, or Moment of Inspiration,

    is, according to the developer,

    the perfect choice for someone

    who has been frustrated with

    complexity of existing CAD

    tools. There is something very

    SketchUp about that statement. I

    frequently come across members

    on the forums who have thrown

    off the shackles of AutoCad and

    embraced SketchUp as their

    weapon of choice.

    But we are all aware of the

    limitations of SketchUp. It does not

    do organic shapes easily. Thereare people doing incredible things

    in SketchUp but the workarounds

    or ability needed is high.

    True organic shapes are best

    achieved with NURBS - Non

    Uniform Rational B-Spline. Simply

    put, it creates shapes using control

    points. These control points then

    allow you to stretch and transform

    your shape with ease.

    mentallystimulated

    to do

    or feelcreative

    http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/
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    So to the actual modeling aspect, this is MoI3Ds

    strongest point. It is so easy to get to grips with

    each function doing exactly what you expect.

    Whether you want to the llet an edge or union

    objects it is all explained as you click.

    The inferencing engine is also very natural.

    Anytime you activate a tool you can place a series

    of construction lines by clicking and dragging.

    These construction lines allow you to inference

    every possible direction and angle. As soon as

    the tool exits they are removed. Very clever and

    helpful as it constantly delivers visual feedback

    through tooltips.

    All in all getting familiar with Moi3D takes minutes

    rather than hours. It is very reminiscent of getting

    to grips with SketchUp. Its styling and general

    layout along with its quirky look are a real joy. Also

    its worth mentioning that to run MoI3D you dont

    need a high end GPU. It uses the same Direct3D

    display system as games, and so it works well on

    the lower end consumer gaming oriented video

    cards and doesnt really need the more specialized

    high end cards, although it runs ne on the high

    end cards as well.

    But Moi3D is far from being a one trick pony. It is

    extremely powerful and intuitive to use. Its sparse

    UI and comic book styling mask the plethora of

    options you have to play with.

    If you look at the opposite page you will see the

    standard UI that MoI3D has. Very uncluttered and

    easy to interact with. The workspace itself is easily

    adjustable with icon sizes, toolbar layouts and

    modeling areas all customisable.

    The toolsets are divided into 3 categories - create,

    edit or transform - with each tool opening up

    added functions when you click. This keeps the

    toolbars very focus orientated. The tools on offer

    are standard design tools. Curves and Solids

    for modeling; Join, Trim, Separate and Extend

    for editing and Boolean, Lofting and Filleting for

    constructing.

    The viewport is very Rhino-esque with Top, Front,

    Right and 3D views. These are easily maximized

    with a click and MoI3D uses a clever view reset

    system that means you never get disorientated

    while modeling.

    MoI3D takes

    minutes

    rather thanhours

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    So to the nitty gritty. Digging around the tools you

    will nd every you need to perform some serious

    lofting/skinning operations. If you are familiar with

    TIGs and Fredos skinning tools then you will feel

    immediately at home. Where MoI3D stands out is

    the extra parameters that you have to re ne your

    shapes. This is all handled through sliders and

    drop down menus that is very forgiving for new

    users to get to grips with initially.

    Unlike SketchUp, MoI3D is very fast to execute

    complex commands. If you ever encounter

    SketchUps Non Responsive state you will know

    what I mean. MoI3D can boolean, llet and loft

    in seconds if not instantly. When you do ask it to

    perform a very intensive command it will still allow

    you to orbit about while it crunches the numbers.

    You can even choose to cancel an operation if youwant by hitting Esc.

    How MoI3D handles visibility of various objects is

    also similiar to SketchUps layer pallette. Anything

    you create can be named and coloured. These

    Objects can be easily toggled on/off. Because

    you are using curves as the framework to construct

    your solids/surfaces things can quickly get

    confusing for new users. Having a simple visibilty

    system that allows you to isolate each object/

    curve just makes things easy from the offset. It is

    not something that has not been done before but it

    is just handled very eloquently.

    very easy

    for new

    users to

    get togrips

    with

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    Pascal Beeckmans - Headphones

    http://sketchupdate.blogspot.com/
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    So far so good but it gets better. MoI3d uses the

    best exporter I have ever seen. With the following

    le types supported.

    .fbx

    .obj

    .skp

    .3dm

    .stl

    .igs

    .stp

    .3ds

    .lwo

    .ai

    Since its primary role is modeling MoI allows users

    to have total control over the export process. If

    you are moving from NURBS to polygons then

    youll know meshes can get very unwieldy. MoI3Dapproaches this as it approaches other functions.

    Simple sliders bars help control the level of detail

    on export.

    You dont need to worry about the small faces

    issue in SketchUp either as you have control over

    that too! And the actual objects themselves are

    treated with some type of tesselation that means

    your SkethUp models look super smooth.

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    Up until recently Mac users were unable to enjoy

    MoI3D but since the beginning of January v2.5

    Beta has been available. The expected nal

    release is another 2 months away but judging

    from the feedback so far Mac users are highly

    impressed. You can try out the public beta version

    here .

    Verdict

    What struck me most about MoI3D was its

    immediate charm. Its uid nature and eye pleasing

    UI make the actual learning process very quick. It

    does draw comparison with SketchUp because it

    has what a lot of other apps dont, a personality.

    MoI3Ds creator, Michael Gibson, was the brains

    behind Rhino initally and this is very apparent

    within MoI3D. While Rhino is immensely powerfulit can be daunting for a new user to embrace.

    It requires you to invest time to reap rewards.

    MoI3Ds learning curve is much lower and sets in

    place the foundation to grow your skill set quickly

    and enjoyably.

    MoI3D is a stripped down Rhino, of sorts, where

    the focus is only creation rather than confusion. I

    rarely found myself digging out the user manual

    to understand a function or feature. That is not to

    say you can approach this and immediately work

    miracles.

    If you have not yet tried MoI3D then you deserve

    to treat yourself as there is an unlimited demo

    with saving disabled and a 30 day trial available here . If

    you have tried then I recommend giving the latest version

    another go as it really is very impressive.

    The focus is on

    creation rather

    than confusion

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    plugin tip : contour makerby rich obrien

    This month Im sharing another little gem from TIG.

    Its ContourMaker and if you use SketchUps Add

    Location alot then this is essential. You can get it

    here and if you have not installed a script before

    you can follow Dave Richards excellent guide here .

    Once you are up and running you will notice a new

    item in your plugins menu - Contours . To use it

    simply select your terrain and choose Contours fromthe plugins menu.

    A dialog box will appear asking for the spacing

    between the contours in whatever units you are

    currently using. Just input a value and hit ok.

    Dependent on the spacing and size of your terrain it

    will then calculate the contours.

    Once complete the contours are placed on their own

    layer and named according to the date and time.

    You can watch a video tutorial by clicking the link

    here or just subscribe to our YouTube channel to

    get all the latest tutorials and updates.

    s b b H

    http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?p=273795#p273795http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?f=323&t=35746http://youtu.be/I1VOMjDNeZshttps://www.youtube.com/user/irishsketchuphttps://www.youtube.com/user/irishsketchuphttp://youtu.be/I1VOMjDNeZshttp://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?f=323&t=35746http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?p=273795#p273795
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    adonit proBy mike lucey

    My iPad has taken over from my rarely used

    traditional sketch pad now that I have found, what I

    think, is the ideal input capacitive stylus, the Adonit

    Pro.

    Prior to using the Adonit Pro I had been trying to

    get to grips with various rubber tipped styli with not

    lot of satisfaction. I wanted something that worked

    liked the clutch pencil I had been using for years and

    the rubber tipped styli where akin to drawing with the

    eraser end of a pencil, not much better than drawing

    with a nger.

    I came across the Adonit Pro on Kickstarter andimmediately made my pledge and then kept my

    ngers crossed that it would reach its production

    target fund and become a reality. I obviously was not

    the only one looking for a better stylus as the project

    was over subscribed 6,741% and the developers

    raised $168,532 in advanced orders!

    The main advantage of the Adonit Jot over other styliis its clever tip, which consists of a nely tapered

    point, like a clutch pencil, with a clear plastic disk

    xed to a tiny ball allowing a swivel action.

    This setup allows the user to produce very detailed

    work on the iPad as they can accurately pin point

    where they want to start and nish a line. The plastic

    disk, thanks to the ball mount, swivels and glides

    along the iPad screen much better than rubber

    tipped styli.

    The feel of the Adonit Pro is also what I had been

    looking for. It is 6 long and 3/8 in diameter. The

    https://www.youtube.com/user/irishsketchuphttps://www.youtube.com/user/irishsketchuphttps://www.youtube.com/user/irishsketchuphttps://www.youtube.com/user/irishsketchuphttps://www.youtube.com/user/irishsketchuphttps://www.youtube.com/user/irishsketchuphttps://www.youtube.com/user/irishsketchuphttps://www.youtube.com/user/irishsketchuphttp://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://www.kickstarter.com/http://www.kickstarter.com/http://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.html
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    barrel is of a heavy aluminium and available in Black,

    Silver and Blue. The rubber grip makes it comfortable

    to use, even for long periods. Further features are,

    a cap that protects the disk tip and screws on the

    opposite end so that you dont loose it when the Jot

    is in use and the Jot also is magnetised so it sticks to

    the iPad. I also use the Jot on my MacBook Pro pad

    to good effect, its easier than drawing with a mouse!

    There is quite a selection of compatible devices also

    in case you are not an iPad user. Other pads covered

    are -

    Magic Trackpads

    HTC

    Samsung

    Nokia

    Motorla

    Blackberry

    The Jot is priced at $29.99 and since its launch,

    Adonit now have a Jot Classic priced at $19.99 and a

    Mini Jot at $21.99.

    Adonits newest product is the Writer Plus, an iPadkeyboard but thats for another day.

    Click here to check out some of Adonits product range

    http://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://insitebuilders.com/
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    http://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/renderplus.html
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    c o M M U n i T y

    SHOWCASEThe latest gallery submissions on SketchUcation.comE m t we w t t s w w t u mem e s e ev g us g Sket U . if s met g t kes

    u f just l k t e m ge t e ug t t t t t .

    timBer!Dvergers compelling design andexecution is a real winner.

    G-force slide Alvis highly detailed model and render isexquisite.

    joHns BullocksJohn Higgins is reliving his Emmerdaledream.

    apartments Antonio Castros gallery continues togrow and impress.

    altaredPaul Russams church was 7 years in themaking but nally it is nished.

    Go sHoppinGChris Shopping Centre in Johannesburgshows how raw output still draws thecrowds.

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    Hoek van HollandNeonGoldens use warehouse modelsand bags of talent.

    HanniBal 8Steves Professor Fate reimagining isnothing short of breathtaking.

    l.i.s.a. Eric Lays concept model L.I.S.A. isoutstanding.

    wHite BatHroomPugz bathroom scene using Vray istreemendous!

    makinG tracksChristopher Nielsens Tiger II rebuild isepic is scale and highly detailed.

    csaBas HutOur favourite Doctor still digging uptreasures from the past.

    books .sketch U cation. comlea n with the expe ts at yo pace

    http://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/adonit.htmlhttp://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/
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    mailto:mikel%40sketchucation.com?subject=Team%20SketchUcation%20Enquiry
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    photo to MovieBy mike lucey

    Ive been looking for ways to produce effective

    slideshow movies from my SketchUp models for

    some time. Of course I could just plan a movie and

    output the animation but I often dont know what

    the outcome will look like until after a long wait.Even after this wait the movie will often require

    some further editing work. One low cost alternative

    option that looks promising with its easy process for

    creating feature rich slideshow videos is Photo to

    Movie by LG Graphics.

    There are many inexpensive programs for producing

    video slide shows but most are limited to sequencing

    one image at a time with a simple transition, such as

    fade etc. however this can leave the viewer bored

    after a while. The more expensive programs while

    offering extended effects and exibility can involve

    a time consuming process and these programs canbe quite dif cult to learn.

    Photo to Movie offers an easy to learn and

    inexpensive alternative to the high-end video editing

    programs for $49.95 and works on both the Win

    and Mac platforms. In this case cheap and easy

    does not equate to nasty and basic! The program

    is capable of producing results that rival the much

    more sophisticated and expensive programs.

    http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/
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    Its easy to produce interesting animated slideshow

    movies with great motion effects. In the case of

    SketchUp models it is possible to zoom into the

    various details that you want to highlight and use

    a variety of transitions such as dissolves, wipes or

    cubes to transition between photos.

    The resulting movie can be viewed at full screen with

    added music, recorded voice overs or captions to

    enhance the viewing experience.

    There is virtually no preprocessing involved, Photo to

    Movie takes in and works with all the popular image

    formats and even rescales and crops them to suit.

    More than just zooming in and panning the program

    can easily create many interesting effects, rotations,

    move along curved paths and even move from detail

    to detail. It can work with hundred of images or justa few.

    The process is quite intuitive and easy to grasp,

    actually it is much easier to try it out than explain it

    but the following is a simple overview.

    To start a new slideshow, open PhotoToMovie and

    use the Media Browser to drag the images onto the

    timeline. If you want to rearrange the images its just

    a case of clicking Window -> Photo Organiser. Once

    you have the images arranged its time to add music,

    titles and transitions. PhotoToMovie comes with 31

    transitions and its possible to purchase 23 more for

    $19.95.

    Once the images are on the Timeline, PhotoToMovie

    automatically adds transitions and motions. Until

    you get used to the process its a good idea to play

    the slideshow to see what you have and would like

    to change. The Blue Line in the image below can be

    manipulated to adjust the ease and pauses before

    and after an image. Also changes can be made via

    the Inspector located on the right side of the window.

    What packs the punch in PhotoToMovie are the

    motion paths within the image. PhotoToMovie uses

    frames to control movement within the photo. The

    green keyframe is the start point of the motion and

    the ending keyframe is within the red keyframe.

    The blue arrow shows the direction of the motion.

    Its possible to change the size of the keyframes by

    either dragging on one of the colored box edges or

    using the Zoom scrubber within the Inspector.

    v tu ll e ess g

    http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/
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    There is a lot more to the Inspector than I can cover

    in this short review. The Inspector is all powerful

    when it comes to controlling slideshows.

    When you are happy with the slideshow the next step

    is to consider what titles and music you would like

    to add. Music is chosen from the Media Browser

    and dragged / dropped onto the audio timeline in

    the same way you handle the images. Its possible

    to adjust the slideshow to t the length of the music

    track or trim as the case may be.

    If you would like to include voice overs, this can

    be achieved by recording on an external app and

    dragging it onto the timeline or importing it under File

    Menu.

    Titles are quite easy to create, just click on Add Title

    in the menu bar. The word title will appear in the

    Inspector and in a green box on the timeline. Type

    the name you want in the Inspector and choose the

    font, color, timing and effects and then place the

    pointer anywhere within the green box and drag it to

    a location in the timeline. To nish, grab a black box

    on either side of the title to adjust the timing, if this

    was not done in the Inspector.

    Putting it all together for export is also quite an

    day process, just click the Make Movie button, and

    choose how to save the slideshow. Its quite possible

    to produce very effective presentation slideshows in

    the 3-5Mb region, ideal for emailing.

    The learning curve for Photo to Movie is quite shallow.

    In fact I think it would be much easier to demo the

    program than write about the process involved. The

    LQ Graphics site is an extremely friendly one with

    loads of helpful tutorials and tips that will get you

    up and running in no time and the developers are

    quite contactable and responsive to requests and

    suggestions, always a great incentive to go with an

    application.

    l k e e

    http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/
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    http://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/inglobe.html
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    O V E R H AN G

    Traditional roof framing

    opens room toa high gable

    ceiling

    Use Linetool to tracean outline of

    template

    Rotate guideline to matchthe angle of

    the roof

    Templateextends tofull bearing on the wall

    plate

    Use Sketch-Up V5 or

    V6 to onion skin hidden

    objects Add lines to templateto mark thebirds mouth

    Rotate andmove the

    template tothe workarea

    Explode,

    Group, andrename fram-ing compo-

    nents

    Guidelineshows bot-

    tom of rafterat the birds

    mouth

    Rotate therafter tomatch theguideline

    Guidelinemarks thebottom of

    the rafters

    UseLine tool tocut birdsmouth and

    trim overhang

    Place aridge block

    to match topof rafter and

    trim

    CONSTRUCTION MODELING - Step 7

    U-TUBEVideos from our books

    Framing the gable wallSetting the ridge beam

    Layout and trim the rafters

    Use the massing model again to visualize the roof line and set up a template. Group thetemplate and rotate it into the work area to size and trim the rafters and the ridge beam.

    In real world construction a template is snapped onto the oordecking with chalklines according to feld dimensions and the con -

    struction documents. Ridge heights, rafter sizes, and trim lines arethen transferred to framing members laid onto the deck before

    being cut and placed into the roof framing.

    http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://books.sketchucation.com/http://youtu.be/rz4nHjK-xVchttp://youtu.be/fv9TaYuS2Pshttp://youtu.be/fv9TaYuS2Pshttp://youtu.be/fv9TaYuS2Pshttp://youtu.be/rz4nHjK-xVchttp://youtu.be/y4jTIAlCGWs
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    Rotateand place raf-ter and ridgewith template

    Add a verti-cal guideline to mark ex-tent of rake

    Add rakes and fascias then Group

    and copy

    Copy thenRight-click

    and Flip Alongthe Red axis

    Align theroof fram-ing copy on

    the opposite plate

    Keep theroof framingorganized

    with Outliner

    Use thetemplate toframe thegable walls

    See the YouTube vid-eos for gable

    framing

    Gablewall supportsoutlooks along

    the rakes

    Add blocking,nailers, and

    sheathing tocomplete the

    framing *

    Set rafterbird mouth

    on the sill forbearing

    Use theScale tool to

    resize theridge block

    Use theMove tool toarray multi-ple copies ofthe rafter

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    http://sketchucation.com/catchup/2012/02/dynascape.html
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    Sketch U cation ro nd up

    Last Months Books

    promotion went down a

    storm and weve some

    further promotions to

    come so keep your eyes

    on our blog and forum for

    news.

    Dont forget you can

    preview any book on Issuu

    to get a taste of whats on

    offer.

    We are always looking for

    budding authors to share

    their techniques so feel to

    contact us.

    As always, you can send your feedback to [email protected]