Creating Three-Dimensional Objects

Draw lets you create impressive three-dimensional, 3D , effects. You can create a new 3D object or convert a 2D object to 3D, as well as control the appearance of shading and other effects. Use the 3D icon in the toolbar on the left side of the workspace.

Note

You can get particularly interesting-looking 3D objects by converting 2D polygons, using the Effects icon. See Making Other Cool 3D Shapes By Converting Any Object to 3D on page 826 for more information.

Creating a 3D Object

1. Click on the 3D Objects icon and select an object to draw.

   

   The possible objects are cube, sphere, cylinders , cones, pyramids , toruses ( donuts ), shells , and half-spheres.

2. Draw the object in the work area.

You can show the contour lines in a 3D object by selecting Continuous in the Lines list in the object bar. Selecting Invisible shows the object without contour lines. Borders don't apply to 3D objects. Objects in this section are shown both with (in the next procedure) and without contour lines (in the previous step).

Resizing and Changing Proportions

Just grab any of the green handles and drag the handle to increase or decrease size, or change the shape. Some of the shapes have predefined proportions that you can't override while drawing, but you can change after you've released the mouse from the original drawing action.

Rotating and Changing Angles of 3D Objects

When the object is drawn or converted to 3D, it's not always terribly dramatic looking, and is often rather flat-looking. You can use the rotate handles, though, to twist the object around in 3D and jazz it up. An example is shown in Figure 30-19.

1. Select the item, then pause and click it again (not double-clicking). Red handles will appear instead of the standard green ones.

   If you want to rotate text you've converted to 3D, be careful. If you just get one letter selected, deselect it, then click outside the text and regroup it. Repeat the steps in step 1 without double-clicking; pause between selections.

2. Move the mouse over a handle; the rotation icon will appear.

3. Use the appropriate handle to rotate the object, as indicated in Figure 30-20.

   Figure 30-20. Rotating 3D objects

   

Figure 30-19. Example or rotated 3D objects

Merging 3D Objects

You can create the effect of one object intersecting with another using the merging feature.

1. Draw two 3D objects.

2. Select the object you want to appear in front and press Ctrl+X to "cut" the object.

3. Select the object you want to appear in back and press F3.

4. Press Ctrl+V; this pastes the front object onto the back object. Move either object around to position it (the pasted object might not appear at first; move the back object around and it will appear).

   

Applying 3D Attributes to 3D Objects

Draw provides an almost bewildering array of attributes that you can apply to 3D objects, shown in Figure 30-21.

Figure 30-21. Applying 3D effects

This includes lighting and shading features, rounded or straight edges, colors, and many other features. You can apply these features to 2D objects if you convert them to 3D first; this includes Bezier curves and text.

It's beyond the scope of this book to tell you how to create the best 3D objects. You'll need to experiment with each of the features to see which ones achieve the specific effects you need for your projects. However, the following procedures do tell you how to apply each type of feature, and show some examples.

1. Draw or select a 3D object.

2. Choose Format > 3D Effects, or click the 3D Controller icon in the toolbar, to open the 3D Effects window.

3. Select any of the effects, then specify which effects you want to apply by clicking the 3D Attributes Only icon (left) or the Assign All Attributes icon to apply only 3D effects: favorites, geometry, material properties, and illumination .

   

4. Click the green checkmark in the upper right corner to apply changes.

Favorites Applying a Predefined 3D Style

The Favorites icon and corresponding options is selected by default when you open the 3D Effects window. Twelve predefined combinations of effects, or favorites, are available, combining selections from all categories in the 3D Effects window. Select any one to view in the Preview window how it would affect your object.

Geometry Modifying Angle, Depth and Other Features

These allow you to change a variety of features, including the number of segments. The horizontal and vertical are typically the same; the following illustration shows a normal cone, then the same cone with the settings of 2 horizontal and 14 vertical.

Standard

2H, 14V

Figure 30-22. Geometry options for 3D objects

Shading Properties Controlling Shading and Focal Properties

This section lets you control shade mode, as well as shadow, camera distance, and focal length. The following illustration shows the different modes.

Gouraud (default)

Phong

Flat

Figure 30-23. Illumination options for 3D objects

Illumination

The Illumination section lets you set options for the light source. You can select a color for the light source, as well as a color for the ambient light.

You can modify the colors for each light source and ambient light setting by clicking the tricolored icon by each list to open the Colors window, which allows you to set color values, hue, saturation, and brightness. However, the changes are permanent and cannot be reset to the originals . You may want to leave the defaults as they are and create new settings.

As you can see in the illustration, the differences are sometimes slight .

To change or add a color listed in any color list, refer to Modifying and Creating Colors on page 801.

Figure 30-24. Illumination options for 3D objects

Textures

You can use the options available through the Textures tab only if the object has a gradient, hatch, or bitmap applied to it, using the Areas window. (Select the object and right-click, then choose Areas.) You can modify a number of attributes, including changing an object to black-and-white and back, without losing the color.

Figure 30-25. Textures options for 3D objects

Material Choosing a Finish and Color

This tab lets you specify color for a set of finish favorites such as gold or plastic: object color, illumination color, specular color, and specular intensity. As in the Illumination tab, you can modify the colors, hue, saturation, and brightness for each selection in each list, using the tricolored icon.

Figure 30-26. Materials options for 3D objects