I'm taking a plunge into 3D drawing, with an eye toward exporting to Sketchup for view rotation as well as modifying the elements. So far, I've been doing it a crude way with, of course, crude results. I've drawn a base plan in 2D, then exported to skp. After importing it into sketchup, I've been tracing the plan so that I can create sketchup 3D shapes and then can alter the faces/solids though push/pull, move, etc. to manipulate them into the forms I need.
This has been tedious and ends with me creating a mess as I create further shapes in Sketchup. Obviously, I'm not approaching this right.
(The drawing, btw, is exterior massing of an existing building (no fenestration, etc.) and then the simple masses of surrounding buildings -- existing and potential -- for a zoning analysis to show how that building may be impacted. The base plan I've created in DataCad is the flattened 2D outline of the building's massing with stepped roofs and roof bulkheads, etc., and the adjacent property lines and existing buildings.)
So...how should I be going about this? I'm not fluent in DataCad's 3D shapes, but when I've created some and then gotten them into Sketchup, they aren't alterable.
Can you all point me to the right (or a right) method? Are there CheapTricks articles and DataCad videos I should start with? (How can I search for and retrieve CheapTricks articles? I have many, but not all, issues saved digitally.) To start, I think I need a better understanding of DataCads's 3D shapes -- I've skimmed through the DataCad manual (V17) but, as good as it is, it didn't get me to a point where I understand which shapes to use when.
And then, how can I alter them in sketchup?
Many questions, obviously. I need some pointers to get me started.
Thanks!
David
David Bergman RA LEED AP CPHD
architect - David Bergman Architect
designer - Fire & Water Lighting
author - Sustainable Design: A Critical Guide
blog - EcoOptimism
adjunct faculty - Parsons School of Design
david@cyberg.com http://www.cyberg.com
212 475 3106 twitter: @EcoOptimism
This has been tedious and ends with me creating a mess as I create further shapes in Sketchup. Obviously, I'm not approaching this right.
(The drawing, btw, is exterior massing of an existing building (no fenestration, etc.) and then the simple masses of surrounding buildings -- existing and potential -- for a zoning analysis to show how that building may be impacted. The base plan I've created in DataCad is the flattened 2D outline of the building's massing with stepped roofs and roof bulkheads, etc., and the adjacent property lines and existing buildings.)
So...how should I be going about this? I'm not fluent in DataCad's 3D shapes, but when I've created some and then gotten them into Sketchup, they aren't alterable.
Can you all point me to the right (or a right) method? Are there CheapTricks articles and DataCad videos I should start with? (How can I search for and retrieve CheapTricks articles? I have many, but not all, issues saved digitally.) To start, I think I need a better understanding of DataCads's 3D shapes -- I've skimmed through the DataCad manual (V17) but, as good as it is, it didn't get me to a point where I understand which shapes to use when.
And then, how can I alter them in sketchup?
Many questions, obviously. I need some pointers to get me started.
Thanks!
David
David Bergman RA LEED AP CPHD
architect - David Bergman Architect
designer - Fire & Water Lighting
author - Sustainable Design: A Critical Guide
blog - EcoOptimism
adjunct faculty - Parsons School of Design
david@cyberg.com http://www.cyberg.com
212 475 3106 twitter: @EcoOptimism
David Bergman
David Bergman Architect/Fire & Water Lighting
David Bergman Architect/Fire & Water Lighting