Navigating 3D Models and Animations

Moving the Camera

Orbit

When you activate the Camera Navigation tool in the 3D Model Viewer, Orbit is the default navigation mode. The Orbit mode lets you easily rotate the camera around the model, helping you to quickly inspect your model from any angle.

Camera Navigation can be activated as a mode by clicking the icon at the lower toolbar or in  the upper right tool group in the viewport.  It can also be activated momentarily when the brush tools are active by holding down Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac); releasing the key will return to brush mode.

While orbiting the camera in Camera Navigation mode, you can Rotate the camera (revolve it around a target), Pan the virtual camera object horizontally and vertically, or Dolly (move the virtual camera object closer to or farther from the target).  The controls available include cursor  controls used with keyboard modifiers, input device controls (mouse buttons, trackpad gestures etc.), and the onscreen "dragger" controls in the upper right of the viewport.

Orbit mode	Description	Windows controls	Mac controls	Onscreen dragger
Rotate	Revolves the camera around a target from a certain distance	Left-click+ drag in viewport
Pan	Moves the camera laterally without rotation, shifting the target point	Middle-click + drag
Dolly	Moves the camera object closer to or farther from from the target	Right-click + drag in viewport	Two fingers or scroll wheel

Setting the Orbit Target 

Orbit mode intrinsically needs a target.  This defaults to the origin of the model. There are several ways to set or move a target for the camera to orbit around:

1. Double-click an object surface. This will set the target in the center of that object's bounding box.
2. Use the Pan control. This moves the camera's target along with the virtual camera object. Since you cannot change the distance of the target by using this control, it's generally the least useful method.
3. The Object Selection Tool. This includes a function that sets the target more precisely to a specific object, and can also reframe the view.  See below for details.
4. The Default View Preset controls (X, Y, Z and ¾) will pop the view of the model back to the common orthographic views or a three-quarters view, resetting the camera target to the origin of the view.
5. The A key will center all of the model in the viewport.

Flythrough Mode

The second interactive navigation mode available in SyncSketch is Flythrough mode. In this mode, you control the camera object much as you would in a game, using WASD keyboard controls for the X and Z axes and a mouse or similar to rotate the camera. There are onscreen controls to move in the Y axis.

To access Flythrough mode, click the paper airplane icon.  The Orbit controls are replaced with Flythrough controls.  The directional diamond moves the camera left and right, forward and back; the controls to the right move it up and down. 

Speed controls

The number is a speed multiplier that can be adjusted by direct numeric entry or by dragging horizontally.  Alternatively, modifier keys can be used to momentarily speed up to slow down the movement for increased speed or increased precision.

Control	Description	Windows control	Mac control	Onscreen control
Rotate	Rotates the camera object around its own origin	Drag in the viewport
Forward	Moves the camera object forward on the Z axis	W
Left	Moves the camera object left on the X axis	A
Reverse	Moves the camera object backward on the Z axis	S
Right	Moves the camera object right on the X axis	D
Up	Moves the camera object Up on the Y axis	E
Down	Moves the camera object Up on the Y axis	Q
Accelerate	While moving, increase the speed	Hold Option, release to return to normal speed	Tap Alt. Tap Ctrl to return to normal speed	Increase speed multiplier value
Decelerate	While moving, decrease the speed	Tap Command	Tap Ctrl	Decrease speed multiplier value

Note: Flythrough mode tends to disrupt Orbit mode's targeting, so switching back to Orbit mode usually requires specifying a new target using one of the methods described above.

You can drag from the center of the four-way control out to the direction controls in the same manner as the Pie menu. 

You can double-click distinct objects in the scene to redirect camera rotation in the direction of the object.

Object Selection Mode

This tool lets you identify distinct objects, select them and focus the viewport in on them.  You can even hide them. 

Once you select this tool (using the Q key or clicking the icons appearing in the lower toolbar or in the upper right corner of the viewport), hovering over objects in a scene highlights them in pink, and clicking them selects them. 

Objects clicked while holding the Shift key will be added to the selection, or if already selected will be deselected. Control-Shift-I will invert the selection.

Pressing Shift-F will target selected objects and frame them in the viewport.  Pressing Shift-H will hide them and Alt- (or Option-) H will restore all hidden objects.

Object Selection Mode is particularly useful when reviewing textures using the UV Window.  See Using the UV Window in the 3D Model Viewer for details.