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Layers Question . . .


Brooklyn

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I want to do a drawing with an aerial photo underlay, to do the drawing 'above' it.

I've put the photo on a layer, and have created a design layer above it.

The problem is that the design layer obscures the photo below.

How do I make the the design layer transparent and have only the lines and filled areas on that layer be visible over the photo?

I know there must be a simple answer, but I can't find it.

Thanks.

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Thanks to all who answered my post (SEE BELOW) on 'seeing through' layers.

I still don't have what i need. When I make a new layer above the one with the photographic image (in this case from Google Earth, to make a site plan) the new layer is opaque white.

Is there any way to make the layers behave as they do in Photoshop, be 'transparent' until you put something on them.

Adjusting the layer transparency also makes the objects I'm drawing transparent, and that's not what I'm after.

Perhaps the answer is to do the drawing and then use Photoshop. Seems awkward.

Your help will be applauded !!!!

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ORIGINAL POST

I want to do a drawing with an aerial photo underlay, to do the drawing 'above' it.

I've put the photo on a layer, and have created a design layer above it.

The problem is that the design layer obscures the photo below.

How do I make the the design layer transparent and have only the lines and filled areas on that layer be visible over the photo?

I know there must be a simple answer, but I can't find it.

Thanks.

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  • Vectorworks, Inc Employee

Design Layers are transparent - in that you CAN see objects on layers below. You are right that changing the layer transparency will affect the objects on the transparent layer, which in this case sounds undesirable.

Check the following:

View > Layer Options?ensure that they are set to Show/Snap Others (or Show Others)

Now edit the layer and check it's layer scale. It should be the same scale as the layer on which your photograph is stored.

Tools > Organisation?make sure the layer on which you wish to draw is above the layer with the image. That means it will be higher in the list and will have a lower stacking order number.

If the layer continues to obscure the layer below, I suspect there may be a large filled object on it?

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Thanks for the reply!

All the things you suggest have been done earlier.

I can see the layer with the image on it, and then when I add a design layer above it it is opaque white.

One aspect: All the layers show they are 3D layers, I think. At least, they have small oblique cubes to the left of their names in the layers drop down menu. Should these be 2D layers and, if so, how are they created?

Also, do the choices in the 'Working Plane' drop down menu affect the visibility through the layers, or how the layers are seen?

I really can't see other variables.

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Embarc - Do all the above and here are more things to check:

1. In the layer list (Navigation Palette or Organization Palette), both the layers must be marked as visible (click in the left column, the "eye" icon).

2. 2d or 3d view does not matter if the views are aligned. Turn on (click it) Unified View in the View Menu. To start, make both layers same scale. Unified View has options to not show layers of different scales. Look in View menu>Unified View Options. Note that bitmaps kind of dim out if the view is changed from TopPlan - but they remain visible.

3. Layers are neither 2d, nor 3d. A layer can contain 2d and 3d objects and hybrid objects. But the layer pulldown lets you know whether the layer view is set to TopPlan (square icon) or any other view (cube icon). Switch to Top Plan to change a layer from a 3d view (the cube) to a 2d view (the square icon).

With Unified View enabled, all layers will change to same view as active layer.

4. Check that the items in both layers are lined up to be in the view. In Top/Plan with both layers set to visible in the layer list, if you don't see objects in both layers, zoom back until you do see them. Or move stuff from both layers to the 0,0 origin.

5. In the Nav palette or Organization Palette, make sure that the classes of all the objects you want to see are visible - Click each object and note its class designation in the OIP. And set the drawing class visibility option to Show Others or Show Snap Others (Class Visibility can also be set in View>Class Options).

Post back if it's still not showing what you want.

-B

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To all,

Converting each layer to 'Top Plan' did the trick!!!!!

With Unified view enabled, as it has been all along, all became 'Top Plan.'

Works well now.

Again, thanks to a ll who helped out and kept at the problem.

The discussion section of the Vectorworks web site is sufficient reason to use the product even if it weren't the best already.

Ed in Brooklyn (moved from Dallas)

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