New user---want to use SU for landscape design
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Hi All,
I am a new user. Hoping to SU for simple, very simple landscape design. At this point, I mostly just want to do 2D site plans. Is there any way to lock in Top View and just use it as a drafting program?
I am also having trouble navigating---I am trying to "scroll" but can only figure out how to pan or zoom in or out.
Finally, are there any plant libraries which have growth simulators attached to the plant models?
Any suggestions on using this for landscape design are greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
Park
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Hi Park,
First read the help in sketchup ,and visit this forum regulary ,and look at you tube.
Search the 3D warehouse for models.Have fun,
Bep
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Hello Park and welcome to the SketchUcation forums.
Regarding navigation, if you have a 3-button mouse it is really easy. Scroll the middle mouse button to zoom in and out, press the middle mouse button and move the mouse to rotate around your model and hit the middle mouse button while holding the Shift key to pan. You'll get the hang of it pretty quickly. Took me awhile before I discovered this. It made navigation so much easier.
Also, if you go to View > Toolbars > Views and select top view you will be able to stay in a 2D view looking down from above. You can pan and zoom while in this view but make sure that if you rotate you go back to top view mode when you start modelling again. This prevents you from thinking you are modelling in 2D while you aren't and messing things up.
About your plant model generator, I don't think anything like that exists in SketchUp. However, search the 3D Warehouse as Bep said to look for 2D and 3D trees.
You could take a look at the SketchUp Ivy plug-in and try using that to make trees or bushes.
You could also check out Solo's Place for some 3D plant models. Also, try a search on these forums in the Component forum for free plants. I am working on a simple 2D plant component pack myself. I can give it to you when I am finished if you are interested.
Finally, if you cannot find what you need you could attempt making it yourself. Feel free to come to these forums if you have any questions.
Hope you find what you're looking for and that SketchUp will work for you.
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About 1 - 2 years ago there was this fellow that posted great landscape images here. Try researching old posts to use his work as an example. Maybe someone else remembers who he was.
Addenda: Here he is.
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I have a blog about SketchUp and landscape design called http://sketchupland.posterous.com/.
It's been more general stuff lately, but I'll have more landscape specific articles soon.
Here is a list of good 3D trees from 3D Warehouse: http://sketchupland.posterous.com/best-3d-trees-from-3d-warehouse.
There are a number of good landscape designers/architects on the forum. Hopefully they will showoff their inspiring work, and show you the ropes.
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