It’s a little weird. It’s like there is cut through the 3d space - but only from certain angles. Here is an example from various angles to illustrate the problem. Is that a bug? or something that I did?
View is cut off from certain angles. a bug?
Too small and too far away being a problem is a bit unsettling.
Makes you wonder why it’s not being scaled up internally.
Anyway!
Thanks, folks!
Your problem is probably the use of Parallel Projection. Switching to Perspective and zooming to extents might help. When you zoom and orbit in Parallel Projection the camera image plane can get moved inside your model.
Anssi
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No, see…
Clipping & Missing Faces — SketchUp Help
The latter.
Obvious in the screenshots is you have the camera set in Parallel Projection mode instead of Perspective.
Parallel Projection is for producing 2D-like orthogonal views.
It’s prone to clipping issues if one attempts to use it while orbiting.
Click … Camera > Perspective
Camera Clipping is an integral (and essential) part of computer graphics.
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Indeed switching perspectives did help.
Full aware of what clipping is, Geo.
Just not sure why it would happen in this case.
Especially they way it’s clipping as shown on screenshots.
There are two aspects to “why”. On one level, it is happening because SketchUp sometimes doesn’t update the OpenGL clipping volume to track camera movement in parallel projection. Some combinations of zoom, pan, and orbit can therefore cause the near clipping surface to be inside the model even when the model doesn’t completely fill the view. On the other level, the reason why SketchUp was programmed this way is probably lost in the mists of time as it has always behaved that way. An explanation on this level would be highly technical and not really useful since there is nothing an end-user can do about it except for the often-repeated workarounds such as switch to perspective and zoom extents (the projection transformation and clipping volume are not exposed in the API). So, frustrating yes, but not likely to be changed at this point.
Who could ascertain exactly why, when the only evidence is a screenshot?
Share a model saved in that exact state and we’ll have a look.
Perspective view is not a “workaround”
A 35° FOV perspective view is the default working mode designed to replicate the way humans perceive the real world.
Perhaps “workaround” is not the best word. The point isn’t whether perspective or parallel is “better” or more “real world”, it is what can a user do to regain a non-clipped view when this happens. In perspective mode you just move the camera away by zooming. The front clipping plane moves with the camera. In parallel mode, simple zooming just makes the clipped model look larger or smaller.
HI there
I have been experiencing a lot of clipping with my model and thought I was going crazy.thank you for the tip i switched back to perspective and things look good now!
Kahina
Digging up an old topic…
This is true, but there is a way to work with this bugfeature.
You can actually even use this property to create a section without actually creating a section.
Here is what you can do:
Orbit the model in parallel mode. You will see the clipping plane orbit together with you, allowing you to see more of your model. Now use the position camera tool 
(large toolset), and drag it from the point where you want to be towards the point you want to look at. In parallel mode, your model will be clipped at the exact point you started to drag the tool.
Hello all, I know this is an old topic, but hopefully it can still get some views.
I have been working on a model for a few weeks here and there and starting a couple days ago it started having the clipping problem. The camera is set to perspective, just as people say to do. I watched the Youtube video on fixing it (the 4 problems) and none fixed it.
If I click to where everything is one component in the model, the clipping doesn’t occur - it’s only when I have every object separate from each other (it’s like a double or triple click on the objects that selects everything).
I have uploaded my model if anyone would be so kind as to look at it and give me some input as to what to do.
Thanks (2.5 MB)
I don’t get clipping when I load your model, but I can see two things that might cause clipping. First, you have some guidelines located quite far from the model contents and they are stretching the bounding boxes much larger than the envelope of the actual building. Second, you have the camera FOV volume, which is also quite large compared to the building.
On another note, you have a tremendous number of edges and faces associated with the SunsquareA1 layer. Primitive edges and faces should always be associated with Layer0 and only their containing groups or components associated with other layers.
Thank you for the reply. Within the model, have you done what I was halfway describing where you triple click a wall so that each wall or line is separate, then zoomed in to see the clipping?
I noticed that thing about the guidelines being way out, but I don’t know how to correct that - same goes for the FOV volume.
Is there a way to change the edge/face association on the model? I think I remember seeing something about that on a YouTube tutorial, but you were supposed to do it at the beginning, and perhaps I did, but then did something to change it.
This animation likely shows what you are seeing.
If so, that is clipping functioning as intended. As the camera moves closer to the model (to zoom in), eventually some parts of the model come to be “behind” the camera’s image plane and must be clipped. When you move inside the model, it is a desired effect (e.g. the walls “behind” you don’t block your view). But when it affects something that is still partially visible it is annoying. One way to reduce it is to narrow the camera’s field of view. Like a telephoto lens, that has the effect of causing a smaller part of the model to fill the view, but also to flatten the perspective somewhat.
The guidelines are inside the groups. You have to open the group for edit, then select the guidelines and delete them. You can also delete all guides via the Edit menu, but that may be more severe than you wanted.
The basic rule for keeping edges and faces where they belong is to keep Layer0 the active layer while drawing new geometry. Only associate groups or component instances with other layers. There are several extensions/plugins available that will reassociate all edges and faces to Layer0, including one of mine. TIG’s Layer Watcher does this and also raises alerts if you start to draw new geometry associated with another layer.
That’s exactly what I am seeing. Thanks for this. Is your plugin TIG Watch Layer or is that someone elses? If the latter, what is yours?
Mine is “Layer Zero Fixup Tools” available free on sketchUcation’s plugin store. TIG is another author. His many plugins and extensions are also available on sketchUcation.
Thanks Anssi, I had the same issue and your suggestion fixed it!
Ok, so this is happening to my file, but when I’m 20-30 feet away! Help!
I’ve tried to adjust the field of view but that just flattens it and when I try to get close to an object it disapears!