Exporting Solar Studies

You can export solar studies to a variety of file formats that can be easily distributed and viewed by colleagues and clients.

The export file types include AVI, JPEG, TIFF, TARGA, BMP, and PNG. AVI files are standalone video files. All other export file types have a single-frame format, allowing you to save specified frames of an animation as separate image files.

Note: When you want to export to a single-frame format, first create a folder in which to save the files (especially if you are exporting several frames). The export process saves each of the specified frames as a separate image file.

To export a solar study

  1. Make sure the current active view has Shadows turned on, and that the Solar Study option on the Sun Settings dialog is set to either Single Day or Multi Day. If these options are not set, the Solar Study option is grayed out on the ExportImages and Animations menu.
  2. In the Project Browser, double-click a view for which you created a solar study.
  3. If you plan to export a solar study using rendered images (instead of shaded views or hidden line views), adjust the render settings for the 3D view as needed.
  4. Click ExportImages and AnimationsSolar Study.
  5. In the Length/Format dialog, under Output Length, select All frames to export the entire animation, or select Frame range, and specify the start and end frames in the range.
  6. If you are exporting to an AVI file, enter the number of frames per second.

    Based on the interval that you specify, the software calculates the output length, and displays it under Total time.

  7. Under Format, for Visual Style, select one of the following:
    • Hidden Line. Displays the image with all edges and lines drawn except those occluded by surfaces.
    • Shaded. Displays the image with all surfaces shaded according to their material settings and project light locations.
    • Realistic. Displays the image in a real-time rendering view (a photorealistic rendering in an editable view).
    • Rendering. Uses defined render settings to create a photorealistic image for each frame in the solar study.
  8. Enter dimensions (in pixels) or a zoom percentage to specify the size of the frame in the export file.

    If you enter a value for one dimension, the software calculates and displays the value for the other dimension to maintain the proportions of the frame, and it displays the equivalent zoom percentage. Likewise, when you change the zoom percentage, the software calculates and displays the equivalent dimensions.

  9. Click OK.
  10. In the Export Animated Solar Study dialog, under Save In, navigate to the target folder.
  11. For File name, enter a file name.
  12. For Files of type, select an export file type.
  13. Click Save.

    If you are exporting to a single-frame format, the animation plays while the files are being saved.

  14. If you are exporting to an AVI file, do the following:
    1. In the Video Compression dialog, select Full Frames (Uncompressed), or select one of the compressed video types.

      Results from various video compression formats (Codecs) vary widely.

    2. If Compression Quality is enabled, use the slider to specify the compression quality.
    3. Click OK.

      The animation plays while the AVI file is being saved.

      Note: Uncompressed AVI files can be zipped to reduce the file size. Typically, the AVI file can be played from within the ZIP file.
Parent topic: Solar Studies