Please make Camera Properties last use zoom "stick"

[Doug.S]

When I use view manager (usually one view as 2D floorplan and another as 3D named camera perspective view) I switch between views often (or have both open same time)

When I use the 3D view and set camera view, then do something in 2D, then return to 3D and wish to move the camera...of course I must select camera/named camera....

But when I do so, the camera properties window is not where I last left it but rather has now zoomed out to a wide view (extents) by itself and I have to zoom in to move the same camera in a room......because now its far away...and it does this every time.

Even "zoom to previous" does not work right...it does zoom-in some but not to the last zoom setting of that window.

It would be much much better if the camera zoom window remained as it last was (sticky zoom setting) until I change it again.

I can see where programmers may have done so because people lose the scene....but then let a user choose setting to "reset to extents" or "keep last zoom setting".

Lots of GUI things that are extra steps are just frustrating and make us work slower...besides repetitious and boring when the tools should help us, not make us do more work.

[Nik]

Agreed.

You expect a CAD view to be 'sticky'.

My TC template has five panes open-- If their view-points and scaling changed when I hopped between them, I'd go mad...

[Allan Chesney]

This is a similar situation to the post render 'Modify Viewpoint' - once you move the camera there is no way to get it back to the same place or even the same height off the floor. You can move it side ways or rotate the whole model to get the angles you want, which is excellent but it is almost impossible to keep the height and angle the same.  The Modify Viewpoint needs to have the 'camera/miniplan' window attached with the angle settings and pre-setable viewing points. (I think I may have put this suggestion earlier)

With V11 I would create images with one set of colours, then render again from the same angles in another set of colours and do 3 or 4. I could save as another file in each colour scheme but still the same problem of getting the same set of multiple views and any modifications I make later are then not in the second/third/fourth file.

Allan

[Doug.S]

I too use a set of common viewpoints that need to be repeated to check different colors, lights, materials, etc.

My solution is to "position and name" new cameras via 3D camera "add new"....and I keep an extra camera available as a "move anywhere to view" use so I don't lose the "fixed" named views.

I use camera names that are easy to remember and represent the scene such as "enter" (stand at door looking into the room) or "top" which is a 3D render with no roof or ceiling....to see the whole room....or whatever makes camera view sense.

I don't know if there is a limit to number of cameras...but usually I'd have a dozen or more named views saved in FP and expect TFP named cameras will do the same.

[Allan Chesney]

Doug,

The only problem with the multi cameras solution is that they are not available in the Modily Viewpoint. This means that to go to another camera you have to re-render the model which is all extra render time and in my case at least, I have to re-boot the program otherwise everything is over exposed.

Allan

[Doug.S]

Yes I agree with you that the ability to re-render raytrace without always re-doing a radiosity render is nice but the inability to do anything other than move viewing position is a big limitation....but still nice to have

So I use that only for "exploratory" development work as I setup everything...then resort to full renders with camera tools instead of render window camera moves....which is typical of every 3D program I use.

Some other 3D programs I have allow use of "baked" materials or "irradiance maps" to reduce multiple render times involving radiosity