Shadow Images not displaying properly after GeoLocation

I was hoping someone would be able to help me out. I am creating a shadow analysis for a small project and after i geolocate the model the shadows at certain times look like they are displaying under the adjacent buildings. Has anyone experienced this problem before? I’ve done lots of shadow studies and have never come across this problem.

Any help/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Can you post a file, or an image of what you are seeing?

Sounds like you have shadows appearing on the ground plane while the terrain goes below it, try in the shadows dialog, Untick ‘On Ground’

<img src="//cdck-file-uploads-global.s3.dualstack.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/sketchup/original/2X/9/9da9b2a3fe025f091d7bbf2a705775e54911afa0.jpg" width="690" height="362">

Thanks for the response. I have tried that, as well as ticking and unticking a number of options

Judging from your image, you might have turned shadow casting off for the surrounding buildings, and the sun is shining at a very low angle. Is your building correctly geolocated, and have you set the correct time zone for that location? Is your model very large or very far from the Sketchup model origin?

Can you post a SketchUp file, preferably small, that displays this problem?

Anssi

I do not have permission to share the file.

I do have shadow casting off for the surrounding buildings, as we only need the shadows for the proposed.

This problem only occurs when it is correctly geolocated (i have tried both by clipping the image and manual geolocation). The time zone is also correct. The model is large, but a lot smaller than other studies i have completed. The origin is centered on the site.

What time and date are the shadows set to? The time seems to be close to sunrise or sunset. Have you geolocated with the Maps interface or “manually”? When manually geolocating, I have messed around with coordinates more than once (switching latitude and longitude, switching north and south or switching east and west-you get taken to interesting places).

Anssi

Set for September 21, at 6:18pm. This is a standard time and I cannot alter it to produce different results.

I have geolocated both ways. I am sure I did not switch the latitude and longitude as the problem was identical.

Is it only this file or does another new one with the same geo location (which you can share) shows the same problem?

On your figure, could you point out where you are seeing what you call “under the adjacent buildings”? I see long, shallow-angle shadows cast onto the faces of the adjacent buildings and onto the ground, but I don’t understand where I can see under anything?

please see the above image. i am working on a file i can send out as well. The second building to the right is taller than the proposed - how is the shadow continuing after that building - especially when it is not appearing on top of the building. That is what i mean by it seems to be going under the buildings

i tried just a simple box and it appears to have the same problem. 15-10-29 - shadow study fail.skp (2.5 MB)

Ah, yes, clearer in that view. I would have said it is going “through” the buildings, but now I get the idea.

I think this is a known issue with SketchUp’s handling of shadows. When a shadow is cast onto an object and that object is set not to cast its own shadows, the first shadow “shows through” as if the obstructing object was not there. When the second object does cast shadows, you don’t notice because the extra from the first one is hidden inside the shadow from the second one!

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i see what you are saying, but this is the only time of day that the model has this problem. All other images work out fine.

I don’t think so, another example in the morning…

are you expecting this type of behaviour?


john

yes! the adjacent buildings should ‘block’ the shadows path.

thanks. you are correct.