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3D Sheffield...


Guest Virus

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Was sat here thinking about all the "Lost views" of Sheffield that we'll never see again (The one I was thinking of was the view from the back St. Paul's church down Alsop fields towards where the train station/park hill now stand as it would have been in 1720). Is there some technical artistic whizzkid on here that can use some 3D software to recreate all these lost views?

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I've been thinking about this again recently, and I've come to the conclusion that, though it would be a very ambitious project, we could do it. Here's how...

For those unfamiliar with Google Earth, it is a program available for free from Google that overlays satellite photographs onto the globe. You can move around exploring these photos and even project them onto the terrain of hills and valley's to get a 3D view. Within Google Earth it is possible to overlay your own layers onto the satellite photos. I often do this with old maps if I want to see where a long gone building was in relation to what is in that area now. It is also possible to add 3D models of buildings. For an idea of what is possible with the 3D models, download Google Earth, navigate to a large US city like San Francisco or Chicago, and turn on the 3D buildings layer—Google have modeled the downtown parts of these cities in their entirety.

The 3D buildings are created using another free program called sketchup. I have been playing with sketchup on and off for a couple of weeks, and, whilst models of the complexity that Google makes would take a lot of practice, it is possible to get reasonably good representations of buildings quite quickly and easily—even for a beginner like me. Here's my first attempt at a building, Bradfield Parish Church:

You can download my model to put in Google Earth here:

http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/det...af&result=4

Like I say, modeling the entire city centre as it might have been at some date in the past would be extremely ambitious, but I think that it might be fun to try... any takers?

Jeremy

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Guest knofusion

I've been thinking about this again recently, and I've come to the conclusion that, though it would be a very ambitious project, we could do it. Here's how...

For those unfamiliar with Google Earth, it is a program available for free from Google that overlays satellite photographs onto the globe. You can move around exploring these photos and even project them onto the terrain of hills and valley's to get a 3D view. Within Google Earth it is possible to overlay your own layers onto the satellite photos. I often do this with old maps if I want to see where a long gone building was in relation to what is in that area now. It is also possible to add 3D models of buildings. For an idea of what is possible with the 3D models, download Google Earth, navigate to a large US city like San Francisco or Chicago, and turn on the 3D buildings layer—Google have modeled the downtown parts of these cities in their entirety.

The 3D buildings are created using another free program called sketchup. I have been playing with sketchup on and off for a couple of weeks, and, whilst models of the complexity that Google makes would take a lot of practice, it is possible to get reasonably good representations of buildings quite quickly and easily—even for a beginner like me. Here's my first attempt at a building, Bradfield Parish Church:

You can download my model to put in Google Earth here:

http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/det...af&result=4

Like I say, modeling the entire city centre as it might have been at some date in the past would be extremely ambitious, but I think that it might be fun to try... any takers?

Jeremy

i think you can put an old map on a plane in sketchup and then simple extrude each building it wouldnt be very detailed but would give a rough idea, and hopefully not chew up to much system resources, i would just search for a tutorial about importing 2d graphics and kind of make it up as you go along.

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Guest Virus

Excellent work Jeremy! That's pretty much what I was thinking of, right there you have a view of bradfield if just the church was there! Not sure of my 3D drawing skills but I'd be willing to give it a try... The 2D map into 3D sounds interesting too, might speed things up a bit?

Could be a Sheffield History original! :D

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Guest Jeremy

For me the biggest problem turns out to be working out how tall things are/were. Also, 3/4 view photos are really useful—not currently being resident I am finding these difficult to come by.

I've been using photos from Picture Sheffield to try to do Sheffield Parish Church c1900. Here's what it looks like so far:

Jeremy

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What about this option from our friends at Google

and the link to Google

I suspect that rather than being a Google image someone has spent ages using Google SketchUp to produce that 3D model of the Cathedral.

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What on earth is that big purple/lilac-thing ?

Another piece of sketched up Google design work.

Clearly represents a real building on that site but I am not quite sure what.

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What on earth is that big purple/lilac-thing ?

I think thats St James House, may be a little tall

It is as you say done with Google Sketch up (I assume), but its accessible direct from Google maps, choose Google Earth view from the map page. link to Google

I think the 3D views have been mentioned before on here, most are well done

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I think thats St James House, may be a little tall

It is as you say done with Google Sketch up (I assume), but its accessible direct from Google maps, choose Google Earth view from the map page. link to Google

I think the 3D views have been mentioned before on here, most are well done

Google sketch up can be downloaded (free, latest verion is sketchup 8) and used as a freestanding 3D architectural design tool. However Google intended it for people to design real buildings and landmarks and provided the facility within it to scale and place the finished designs in the correct location within Google Earth / Google maps.

Most of the 3D views used by Google are excellent, but are only ever as good as the skill of the person using sketchup tool to create them.

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A well intentioned cartoon produced by an idiot then ?

Google sketch up can be downloaded (free, latest verion is sketchup 8) and used as a freestanding 3D architectural design tool. However Google intended it for people to design real buildings and landmarks and provided the facility within it to scale and place the finished designs in the correct location within Google Earth / Google maps.

Most of the 3D views used by Google are excellent, but are only ever as good as the skill of the person using sketchup tool to create them.

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A well intentioned cartoon produced by an idiot then ?

Not really a cartoon, Google Sketchup is actually a very good piece of architectural design software in its own right.

Why not download it and give it a try?

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I think I'll leave that to the experts, I count myself firmly as one of "the idiots" when it comes to this stuff.

I just couldn't place the building ...

Not really a cartoon, Google Sketchup is actually a very good piece of architectural design software in its own right.

Why not download it and give it a try?

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If you look around Sheffield on the 3D version there are some excellent renditions, but also a lot missing.

Its a bit post apocalyptic, with vast areas of no 3D buildings

https://maps.google....123.34,51.722,0

Just to be expected really.

When you think how much time and effort goes into producing a detailed 3D model image of just one iconic building how much longer would it take model all the thousands of other buildings there are in Sheffield.

Is someone going to sit and model every last house and garden shed down every street?

I suppose we should be thankful that someone has the skill and time to produce the 3D images that are currently on the Google map.

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