Working on top of the existing may duplicate some slightly-off geometry. Of course impossible to know until you've tried, but I've found that sometimes with imported 2d CAD. It sometimes is just "off" enough to keep messing you up.

I want to do exactly what Tig described in one of my models. (Anytime I import a survey actually)

In Smustard's plugin posted by Gaieus, the description says the following:

@unknownuser said:

Explodes all groups and components, then regroups all entities by layer

Does Tig's snippet simply run through the selection organizing geometry (edges and faces) by group by layer as described?

Or does it explode whatever it finds first? Because in my model I have some components that I want to keep.

@pmolson said:

I actualy like the impending storm. But I am not a normal human. I think andybot is correct in suggesting a less foreboding back drop.
The best place to get backgound images in my opinion is outside in the real world. Take your camera for a walk.

paul

[attachment=0:2vff31vk]<!-- ia0 -->SUadjusted.jpg<!-- ia0 -->[/attachment:2vff31vk]

Hope you don't mind...I just grabbed your image and threw an image in the background that I took with my cheapy digital camera as an example
of how real world shots can work. Granted the lighting of the image does not match your render, but if you go hunting in your own area at the right time of day in the right neighborhood for your needs you will end up with a pretty convincing back drop.

This place looks like it would have a neighbor so if it were me I would be tempted to maybe show just a little bit of a neighboring home in the distance and maybe a power line or some other "normal" neighborhood item to add realism.

One more thing I would say...actualy two more things I would say. I would move a little further away from your building to show a little more foreground and a little more sky above. It feels a little squeezed. Moving back may also help a little with the verticals. The building feels like it is falling away from the viewer. Straightening up those verticals would help I think.

Now...I am done.

Did I say nice job?

Nice job.

p

Nice tip Pmolson - I didnt even think of that... so much easier than scouring around the net trying to find something fitting... simple solutions are always the best as they say 😄

In regards to the vertical lines, i should have fixed those in photoshop using the lens correction... hard to remember all this when i do post pro lol

thanks for the feedback! Working on a similiar house which will be built near this one... ill post it here when done

Very nice and very clean.
The sky might work better if it was flipped horizontally,that way you would have the dark clouds accentuated against the 2 outside lights.It would also pick up the reflected light on the right hand gable which seems to suggest the brightest part of the sky is to the right.

@rspierenburg said:

You could try this material for the metal.

thanks so much ill give it a try

@unknownuser said:

@unknownuser said:

Hi

Is there a plug in that could help me with alucobond style panelling? Soemthing that can also do tiles?

no, not really.. as seen in the above responses, you're going to have to do it manually or use some plugins that might get you half way there 😉
You could approach this a thousand different ways.. bjornkn's suggestion of components is a good one depending on the complexity and/or number of unique sized/shaped panels..

my approach (at the moment 😄 ) would be something like this:
(using solids)

[sorry, 10+ minutes long.. even after i edited out the parts when waiting for sketchup to process]
[flash=853,480:2e3b2nwv]http://www.youtube.com/v/HO1Qdd-SiGM?version=3&hl=en_US&rel=0[/flash:2e3b2nwv]

Dude! WOW thanks so much for creating a VID... really really appreciated! Thanks bro!!

Just small color correction and a little bit contrast. Hope you do not mind.

1house design SM2_Finaljpe2g.jpg

scostumatu: WOW Thanx man. really 3 years I've been using vray sketchup, never knew about this. I'm not sure how that works, but i'll give a try and let you know. Tanx man 😄

@andybot said:

If you get a good bump map - you can use that either in the bump or displacement slot. You could also try playing with the noise and stucco texture in the vray materials textures. As far as color, you can create an additional diffuse layer to adjust color only, and use the Alpha color trick to make your first diffuse layer transparent (and use the bump map as your texture to control the mapping.) Hope that all makes sense

Andy

Thanks heaps Andy, Ill have a play tonight when i get a chance and let you know if it works... you wouldnt happen to have a vismat you could share so I can study it to be sure im doing it right?

appreciate the response!

As an archViz, I use Sketchup all the time, and I Have created a very personal workflow. Let's just say I wouldn't be so quick in modeling without a number of plugins.

The plugins I use the most are:

Extrusion Tools Tools on surface Opener (also referred to as HOLE) Lattice-izer Instances (so I can select all the instances of a component in 2 clicks) round corner joint push pull fredo scale mirror selection Rot90

I also make vast use of the sandbox tools, and I have a personal set of keyboard shortcuts. Section cuts I use a lot too.

To make roofs with tiles and everything you could use: IstantRoof

Link Preview Image Instant Roof, instant productivity

Follow the SketchUpdate blog for SketchUp news, modeling tips and tricks, user stories and more.

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(sketchupdate.blogspot.com)

wich comes in two versions: free and pro.

Hope this helps 😄

There is no API to modify V-Ray settings. 😞

I think the same things happens for files on the same computer... re-opening a file with vray materials it sometimes forgets vray material settings 😕

P.s: Devin, the ability to copy a Layer between materials would be awesome!!

Looks much better. I know this sounds nitpicky, but it looks like the sky has a plane's contrail on the right, and it is lined up directly with the corner of the building. You should shift the camera slightly so it's off the corner.

They both look fantastic

Thanks for your posts. They are so interesting. Finally I found this wonderful thread...Great job, guys 😄

wow thanks guys...

solo thats awesome!!! thanks mate... i been keeping an eye out for SDS2, so ill wait for that to come.... hopefully soon!!!!

Do you have a 3ds file that you can share so we can test it?

-brodie

@scostumatu said:

never mind - figured it out... i had to de select the forground option in the styles menu under match photo... it was making it lag

That seems to solve the problem of the unbearable slowness.
It appears it is a bug then, cause in previous versions - sketchup 8 - that problem didn't exist. You could freely work with the forground option on and with transparencies both of the model and of the photomatched photo.

Anyone aware of this bug?

Very nice tip. I didn't know about 'laydel'

I'd always done a right click -> select similar -> delete and then purge after i'm done. your method saves a lot of clicking!

-Brodie