Shade a Model and Use Edge Effects

Shade a Model and Use Edge Effects

Customize a Visual Style

 

AutoCAD 2008 User's Guide > Control the Drawing Views > Change Views > Shade a Model and Use Edge Effects > 

Use a Visual Style to Display Your Model

Concept

Procedure

Quick Reference

A visual style is a collection of settings that control the display of edges and shading in the viewport. Instead of using commands and setting system variables, you change the properties of the visual style. As soon as you apply a visual style or change its settings, you can see the effect in the viewport.

The Visual Styles Manager displays sample images of the visual styles available in the drawing. The selected visual style is indicated by a yellow border, and its settings are displayed in the panel below the sample images.

When the Dashboard is displayed, you can change some frequently used settings directly or open the Visual Styles Manager.

Five default visual styles are supplied with the product:

• 2D Wireframe. Displays the objects using lines and curves to represent the boundaries. Raster and OLE objects, linetypes, and lineweights are visible.
• 3D Wireframe (upper left in the illustration). Displays the objects using lines and curves to represent the boundaries.
• 3D Hidden (upper right). Displays the objects using 3D wireframe representation and hides lines representing back faces.
• Realistic (lower left). Shades the objects and smooths the edges between polygon faces. Materials that you have attached to the objects are displayed.
• Conceptual (lower right). Shades the objects and smooths the edges between polygon faces. Shading uses the Gooch face style, a transition between cool and warm colors rather than dark to light. The effect is less realistic, but it can make the details of the model easier to see.

In shaded visual styles, faces are lighted by two distant light sources that follow the viewpoint as you move around the model. This default lighting is designed to illuminate all faces in the model so that they are visually discernable. Default lighting is available only when other lights, including the sun, are off.

You can select a visual style and change its settings at any time. The changes you make are reflected in the viewports where the visual style is applied. For more information about face settings, environment settings, and edge settings, see Customize a Visual Style. Any changes you make to a visual style are saved in the drawing.