How to Create Stereoscopic Images From Google SketchUp

Google SketchUp is a simplified Computer Aided Design (CAD) application.

Google SketchUp, Google's comprehensive design tool for making everything from two-dimensional drawings and plans to three-dimensional stereoscopic objects, is available in both a free basic version and a paid suite with added features. Even the freeware version, however, offers users all the core functionality in the program, a series of intuitive, user-friendly tools for creating and transforming objects. The process of creating three-dimensional objects, for example, is greatly simplified by using one of three simple methods in SketchUp.

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Google SketchUp

1. Drawing a Stereoscopic Image from Scratch

   • 1
     Select the "Draw" tool in the main menu, identified by the pencil icon.
   • 2
     Draw a line by clicking on one location on the plain and moving your cursor to the desired end-point of the line and clicking again.
   • 3
     Add a second connected line by placing your cursor on one of the terminal points of the previous line, clicking and then moving to the desired end point of your second line. Make sure your second line is on the same axis as your first line, so that the two are located on the same plain.
   • 4
     Add as many connected lines to the design as you want to achieve the desired shape. Make sure all lines are connected. Alternatively, if you want a simple geometric shape, you can select rectangular and circular preset shapes from the menu and simply apply them to your model by dragging to determine the size.
   • 5
     Close the design by creating a line that connects the starting point of your first line with the ending point in your last design. Google SketchUp will automatically turn the design into a solid face (a closed plain) and shade the whole area so that it can be manipulated as a single object.
   • 6
     Rotate the plain by selecting the "Rotate" icon in the main menu. Click on the plain you are currently using and turn up so that you are viewing your shape from a diagonal. This rotation will also reveal the axis lines of the other dimensions in Google SketchUp.
   • 7
     Draw perpendicular lines from the edges of your shape, creating the sides of a three-dimensional object. Close each side off by drawing a line between the ends of the vertical lines, parallel to the sides of the original shape but higher on the vertical plain. Once all the sides of the shape are complete, Google SketchUp will automatically recognize a stereoscopic image and shade the whole object together.

   The Follow-Me Tool

   • 1
     Draw a two-dimensional shape using the "Draw" or "Shape" tools in SketchUp.
   • 2
     Select the "Follow-me" tool from the main menu, identified by an icon with a slanted cylinder and a diagonal arrow.
   • 3
     Place your cursor over the two-dimensional shape until the face is highlighted.
   • 4
     Drag the cursor along the path you wish to use to extrude the image, either along an axis or around the edges of another object. The tool will stretch the original shape into a three dimensional object with your shape as the face.
   • 5
     Click on a point to conclude the extrusion at that point and finish your stereoscopic object.

   Push and Pull Tool

   • 1
     Draw a shape using the draw or shape tools in SketchUp.
   • 2
     Select the "Follow-me" tool from the menu, identified by a cube with an arrow pointing upward.
   • 3
     Move your cursor up or down to stretch the base into a three-dimensional object along the vertical axis. You can also stretch the figure horizontally by applying the tool to a side of your object. Google SketchUp will create a three-dimensional image with your shape as a base. A circle, for instance, would become a cylinder, while a square would become a cube.