Get Current View Button

Use the Get Current View button to capture 2D and 3D snapshot images of the current view in Google Earth. These images are used as the context for your 3D SketchUp models.

Getting the Current View From Google Earth

To get the current view:

1. (Google Earth) Find the location where you want your 3D model to appear. For example, type street and city where a new building will be built.
2. (Google Earth) Zoom in on this location until you have a fairly detailed view of a building that you want to model.

Note - Ensure terrain is turned on in Google Earth. Click on the Terrain check box toward the bottom middle of Google Earth to turn on terrain.

3. (SketchUp) Click on the Get Current View button to capture an image of the current Google Earth view. A 2D image of the current view in Google Earth is placed in SketchUp. This image is locked so that you cannot delete it.
4. (optional) Click on Undo if the image is not satisfactory and you need to reposition the view in Google Earth and repeat this process.

Note - If your snapshot appears solid black in SketchUp, adjust your graphics mode option in Google Earth. Go to Tools > Options > View and change your graphics mode setting from Open GL to Direct X. Exit and restart Google Earth for this setting to take effect.

Note - The snapshot of the Google Earth view is locked in SketchUp so that it is not mistakenly deleted. You cannot delete this snapshot, but you can use the Materials Browser to change the opacity of the image to 0, making the image 100% transparent.