12 replies to this topic

[Dave Pazyniak]

I have a client that prefers the live elevations to look more like the linework drawings he is used to.  I have searched the forums and found how to create a texture file that is just linework, and I created one for a standing seam roof.  That was pretty easy, just a few lines, but he other hatch patterns I want to use are all more complex.  Has this been done already?  If not, can someone suggest an easier way than using a paint program to edit an existing texture jpg and tracing the mortar lines (for brick or block) then erasing the old jpg?  I use the existing texture file to keep it all in scale...

 

Thanks,

Dave

[Mark Petri]

Try using SketchUp's texture hatches. They are TIFF files, but ought to work. I just tried it and it worked okay on a 2018 drawing. You can google SketchUp texture patterns.

[Keith Almond]

If you're doing it with "LIVE" elevations, consider using a customized mode to display them more like linework, rather than changing all your textures. Have a look at this thread ... http://softplan.com/...strated-3d-mode ... and consider downloading the mode settings that Joseph kindly supplied.

[Dave Pazyniak]

Thanks, Guys.  LOVE what Joseph did, and I use that for my projects, but no matter how much I tweak the settings, the rendered textures never get to the point of looking like clean lines.  I am trying to use a paint program to take the softplan hatch pattern and cut a sample down so it repeats cleanly on the building.  I am having trouble getting it to repeat cleanly.  any hints? 

[Dave Pazyniak]

This is my best of quite a few attempts... Close, but not good enough...

 

Dave

Attached Files

•  hatch as texture.jpg   86.13KB   7 downloads

[Dave Pazyniak]

Sorry for the multiple responses.  I did get some from Sketchup textures, and those work, but I need a few more options.

 

thanks again,

Dave

[Steve Haarmann]

I took a number of Softplan texture files into Photoshop and converted them to black and white.

This gives a nice rendered image but without the colors that frequently cause clients to spend more time looking at the textures than the structure.

[Martin Wrobel]

I agree with Dave. I would love some nice black and white images also. 

[Dave Pazyniak]

OK, I have block, block w/ mortar, brick, brick w/ mortar, and a standing seam metal roof.  These are line work, black and white textures created to look like the paint patterns used if you were drawing a linework elevation.  I will continue with some siding and roofing materials tomorrow and through the weekend, and I will post them when I'm done if anyone is interested.  I feel this is something that softplan has always missed.  The renderings look great, and are getting better all the time, but many of my clients and building departments still want "old school" black and white, clean line elevations in the plan sets.  Saving out to a softplan drawing and then cleaning up and painting works fine, but keeping the elevation live with the model will be helpful, at least for me...

 

Thanks,

Dave

[Keith Almond]

There are HATCH patterns for everything you need already in Softplan ...

 

You do however need to save them as JPG's. The easiest way to do that is to make a box and fill it with a black hatch line pattern on a white background - if you don't normally draw on white edit a drawing specifically for the purpose - and take a screenshot of the resulting filled box and crop to suit the repeating pattern. Then save as a texture.

 

If you need lines thicker, you can put it on a planset showing actual line thicknesses (adjust pens to suit) and take the screenshot from there.

 

NOTE: As far as Softplan is concerned, 1 PIXEL = 1/16th" so you will need to crop and resize as necessary to make your texture.

[Dave Pazyniak]

Thanks, Keith.  Screen shots are faster than what I was doing.

 

Dave

[Dave Pazyniak]

This full image is getting close to the look I am going for, a live elevation with hatch patterns as textures. My last(?) question involves the appearance of the textures.  None of the options seem to change the contrast of the lines.  I would like to be able to make the metal roof (for example) a bit lighter, and the shake siding a bit darker.  I'd also like to make the brick black/gray.  Is this possible?

 

Thanks,

Dave

 

 

[Dave Pazyniak]

Sorry, My bad.  somehow the enable depth relief button got unselected.  The "Relief Depth" feature seems to be overly sensitive.  A setting of 0 is my existing texture contrast, too light in the case of the shake siding.  When I change it to 1, the texture becomes darker than the profile lines around the house.  Am I doing something wrong in the creation of my textures?  Do I need to create both a darken line and a lighter line texture if I want to have some flexibility on the display of the texture?

 

Dave