Visual Nature Studio 3 Tools and Applications January 2014 Scott Cherba and Chris Hanson with contributions by Mindy Bieging, Adam Hauldren, and Gary Huber Table of Contents Introduction.............................................................................................................................................1 Land Cover: Ground................................................................................................................................3 Land Cover: Ecosystems ....................................................................................................................... 11 Land Cover: Environments.................................................................................................................... 17 Land Cover: Snow................................................................................................................................. 19 Land Cover: Foliage.............................................................................................................................. 21 Land Cover: Forestry............................................................................................................................. 23 Sky, Celestial Objects, and Starfields..................................................................................................... 25 Atmosphere........................................................................................................................................... 27 Lighting ................................................................................................................................................29 Earth Moving with Terraffectors ™ ........................................................................................................ 31 Area Terraffectors ™ .............................................................................................................................. 31 Linear Terraffectors ™............................................................................................................................ 32 Cameras ................................................................................................................................................35 Views.................................................................................................................................................... 37 Render Options ..................................................................................................................................... 39 Animation ............................................................................................................................................. 41 Animation Applications......................................................................................................................... 43 Scene Express and NatureView Express ................................................................................................ 45 Database Editor..................................................................................................................................... 47 Data Import........................................................................................................................................... 49 Basic Search Queries............................................................................................................................. 51 3D Objects ............................................................................................................................................ 53 Foliage Effect........................................................................................................................................ 65 Textures: Terminology and Concepts..................................................................................................... 67 Textures: Remap Functions ................................................................................................................... 70 Textures within Textures ....................................................................................................................... 71 Texture Applications ............................................................................................................................. 74 Water: Lakes & Streams........................................................................................................................ 75 Advanced Coordinate Systems and Projections...................................................................................... 79 Render Scenarios................................................................................................................................... 83 Labels ................................................................................................................................................... 85 Material Gradients................................................................................................................................. 87 Thematic Maps...................................................................................................................................... 89 Color Maps ........................................................................................................................................... 91 Walls..................................................................................................................................................... 93 Forestry Wizard..................................................................................................................................... 97 Clouds................................................................................................................................................... 99 Shadows.............................................................................................................................................. 101 Gridding.............................................................................................................................................. 103 DEM Merge ........................................................................................................................................ 105 DEM Painter ....................................................................................................................................... 109 Additional Resources........................................................................................................................... 113 Other Handy Tools......................................................................................................................... 115 Useful Data Resources.................................................................................................................... 116 Importing Data Tips ....................................................................................................................... 117 Feathering Vector Ecosystems........................................................................................................ 121 Post Processing .............................................................................................................................. 127 SuperConductor ............................................................................................................................. 129 Synthetic Object Bitmap Texturing................................................................................................. 133 VNS 3 i Panoramic Images .......................................................................................................................... 135 Cubic Panoramic Images ................................................................................................................ 136 External 3D Integration .................................................................................................................. 139 Tips to Successful Foliage Object Creation..................................................................................... 141 Walls for Fences............................................................................................................................. 143 Modeling and Matching 3D Objects to Terrain ............................................................................... 145 Suspended Wires & Cables............................................................................................................. 147 The Animation Process................................................................................................................... 151 Appendix ............................................................................................................................................ 153 Land Cover: Environments: Key..................................................................................................... 155 3D Object, Wall and Terrain Axes.................................................................................................. 156 ii VNS 3 Introduction Summary • Basics about WCS and VNS, a guided tour of the User Interface, and how to do a basic project from scratch Why 3DN? • Why use WCS/VNS instead of conventional 3D or GIS applications you might already know well? • Advantages, Disadvantages, Use the right tool for the job. Interface • Three Key Interface Concepts: Scene-at-a-Glance (S@G), Task Modes, Active Item Overview • Icon Toolbar: Task Mode Buttons,