If you have 3DHA Landscape Designer or 3DHA Design Suite you can use this tutorial to learn how to create a landscape design. Specifically, you can learn about:

Geting Started
Using the Photo Board Tool
Using the Fence Tool
Adding Plants to your Landscape Design
Adding Terrain Modeling to your Landscape Design
Adding Hardscaping Elements Such as Paths and Fills
Placing Outdoor Elements in your Landscape Design
Viewing your Landscape Project
Use the Zoom and Navigate Tools
Next Steps: Add a Deck

Getting Started

There are three main ways to start a landscape project. You can either start with a saved project, start from scratch with a pre-designed House Template, or start by using the Photo Board feature. We'll go over each of these methods.

When you first start your 3D Home Architect application the Startup Dialog screen will appear. From this screen you can choose from the following options: Learn To Use, Start a New Project, Open a Saved Project, or View Sample Plans.

Working with a Saved Project
If you've already created a house in 3DHA Home Design, you can open that plan in 3DHA Landscape Designer and create a landscape around your house. If you have 3DHA Design Suite and have already created a house, you can open that project and create a landscape design for that plan.

To open a saved project:
1. From the Start Screen click on the Open a Saved Project button.
2. Navigate to the project you want to work with and select it by clicking on it.
3. Click Open.
4. The project will appear in the workspace

Starting from Scratch
If you're using 3D Home Architect Landscape Design or have not yet designed a house, the best way to start is by inserting a House Template. These are pre-designed homes in a variety of sizes and styles that you can add to your project. Once inserted, you can create a landscape around the pre-designed home.

To add a House Template: 1. From the Start Screen click on the Start a New Project button.
2. Select the Landscape tab found near the top of the workspace screen and click on the Structures tool icon.
3. From the upper window of the Structures catalog, scroll down and select House Templates. 4. You'll see a list of House Templates in the middle window of the Catalog. 5. Select a template by clicking on it. 6. To place the template in your plan, move the cursor over the center of the workspace and click, then right-click and select Finish. Tip: If you're too zoomed in, you might not be able to see the entire outline of the house to place it. Roll back on your scroll mouse to quickly zoom out or click on the Zoom to Fit icon to zoom to the farthest extents of your project.

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Using the Photo Board Feature
The Photo Board feature allows you to import a digital or scanned photograph into the program and place it in your plan. Once placed, you can design 3D elements - such as a deck - around the inserted photo. For example, you may want to insert a photo of the back of your house, and then create a deck around it.

Tip: When taking a photograph of your house for use in the program, it is best to take the photograph from straight on, filling as much of the frame as possible. The first step is to import a photo file (.bmp or .jpg) from a digital camera or from a scanner and save it somewhere on your computer. After this has been accomplished, follow the steps below.

Importing and placing a photo with the Photo Board Wizard:
1. Select the File menu and point to Import, and then select Photo Board Wizard.
2. You should see the Photo Board Wizard appear on your screen.
3. Follow the on-screen instructions to import your photo. Make sure to select "Stationary" when setting the behavior of the Photo Board object.
4. Click Finish when done. The photo you just inserted is now ready to be inserted into your plan.
5. You'll notice that the photo is now attached to your cursor, ready for placement in your plan.
6. To place the photo in your plan, move the cursor toward the top of the workspace and click.

For more information on using this tool, see the program's User's guide.

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Using the Fence Tool

Video Tutorial

Now that a house is in place, you might want to define a boundary by adding a fence along your property line or wherever you wish.

The method for inserting fences into your project is basically the same for all elements. Start by clicking on the Landscape Insert Tab. This tab contains tools for inserting plants, edging, fences, decks, outdoor furniture and more. To work with any of these tools simply click on the icon for the desired insert tool.

When you select the Fence tool, a fence is pre-selected so you can immediately start inserting. If you want to choose a different fence, look through the catalog and click on type of fence you want to place into your plan.

For more information on how to use the catalogs, see the Working with Catalogs tutorial.

To insert a fence: 1. Select the Landscape tab. 2. Click on the fence tool and select Fences from the fly-out menu. 3. Pick the kind of fence you want from the catalog. 4. Click on a starting point and move your mouse in the direction the fence should go.
5. Click at the end of the first line of fencing, move your mouse and click again to draw each new fence line. 6. When you've clicked on the end of your last fence section, right-click and select Finish.

The fence you just added can be easily deleted or moved to a new position.

To delete or move a fence: 1. Click on the fence segment you wish to move or delete. It should become highlighted. 2. To delete, hit the Delete key on your keyboard or right-click and select Delete.
3. To move a fence segment, place your cursor over the blue grip handle in the center of the fence segment. The Move cursor appears. 4. Click and drag the fence to move it to its new position. Note: If you want, add a gate to your fence by selecting Gates from the Fence tool fly-out menu. Then, choose a gate from the catalog and insert it into your fence where appropriate.

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Adding Plants

Video Tutorial

The program contains over 7500 plants* that can be added to your landscape project. The catalog, located on the right sidebar, is populated with a collection of the most commonly used trees, shrubs, flowers, and other plants. To insert one, just make a selection from the catalog and insert it into your project. You can add plants in any view, but you might find the 2D Designer's View the most satisfying. It has all the ease of inserting in 2D, but provides a color image that will help you distinguish between different plants.

To add plants: 1. Click on the Landscape tab. 2. Click on the Plant tool icon.
3. Select a plant from the catalog and click where you want to place it in your drawing. 4. Continue to insert more plants by clicking, select another plant to insert from the catalog, or right-click and select Finish when you're done adding plants.

Plants can be deleted or repositioned like any other 3D Element.

To delete or move a plant:
1. Click on the plant to select it. It should become highlighted.
2. To delete, hit the Delete key on your keyboard or right-click and select Delete.
3. To move a plant, place your cursor over the grip handle in the center of the element. The Move cursor appears.
4. Click and drag the plant to move it to its new position.

Tip: To move multiple plants at the same time, hold down your Shift key and click on all the plants you want to move.

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Getting More Information on Plants
If you can't remember what plant you've placed in your landscape, simply hold your mouse over it. The program will display the name of any element your cursor is resting on, including plants. The program also provides critical plant data such as sun, water, and temperature requirements, plus a wealth of additional information in the extensive Plant Encyclopedia.

To find out more detailed information about a plant: 1. Double click on any plant that you've placed into your plan. 2. Look at the Plant Info tab to see the plant's properties. Here you'll find additional information on the selected plant. 3. Click the Encyclopedia button for even more information, including a care calendar for the selected plant.

Note: You may also access the Plant Encyclopedia by selecting Gardening from the Tools menu. For more information on using the Plant Encyclopedia, see the separate tutorial on that topic.

Adjusting Plant Age, Size, Growth, and Appearance
3D Home Architect allows you to adjust the age and size of your plants individually. You can accurately see what your landscape might look like in 5, 10, 20 years or more by using the Growth Over Time feature. Or, to see what your plants will look like in different months of the year, you can use the Seasonal Change feature. All of these tools are described in the Advanced tutorial titled Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Plants.

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Terrain Modeling

If your property is not on a flat plane, your next step may be to do some terrain modeling. The program has tools to add topographical features such as hills, valleys, berms, slopes, paths and plateaus. The process is a simple matter of clicking on the type of tool you want, editing the height and shape of the terrain element, and inserting it in the project.

Some terrain elements are inserted with a simple click of the mouse, and others -- such as the berm/trench and slope tools -- require that you set multiple points to define the element's area.

To add terrain modeling: 1. Select the Terrain tab and click on the tool that you want to use, such as the Hills/Valleys tool.

2. The property screen will appear. 3. Set the height of the desired hill (a negative number will produce a valley). 4. Use the Zenith slider to set the shape of the hill's peak. Note: a rounder peak will spread the hill's elevation over a larger area. 5. Click OK. A hill/valley icon will be attached to your cursor. 6. Move the cursor to the place in your plan that you want a hill or valley and click. 7. Continue to add more hills or valleys of the same height and shape or right-click and select Finish when you're done.

Note: Terrain inserted into your project is cumulative. In other words, if you place one 5 foot hill on top of an existing 5 foot hill, you will create an elevation of 10 feet at that point.

Editing Terrain Elements
Terrain elements can easily be deleted, moved or edited after they've been placed in your plan.

To delete or move terrain elements:
1. Click on the terrain element you wish to move or delete. It should become highlighted.
2. To delete, hit the Delete key on your keyboard or right-click and select Delete.
3. To move a terrain element, place your cursor over the blue grip handle. The Move cursor appears.
4. Click and drag the terrain element to move it to its new position.

To edit terrain elements:
1. Double-click on the terrain element you wish to edit.
2. The terrain element's properties screen will appear just like the one shown above.
3. Enter in a new specification for the terrain element and click OK. The terrain element will update to reflect the new specifications.

To learn more about Terrain Modeling, see the Terrain Modeling tutorial.

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Hardscaping

You'll probably want to add paths, fills, edging and other surfaces to define the different areas of your landscape. This is called "hardscaping." Hardscaping is the addition of "hard" materials to your landscape plan. We've expanded the definition in this tutorial to cover tools that you can use to add water or cover parts of your landscape with bark or stone as well. Hardscaping elements can be found under both the Landscape and Terrain Insert Tabs.

Adding Paths

Video Tutorial

To add a path: 1. Click on the Terrain tab and select the Paths tool.
2. Make a selection from the catalog. The path elements differ by thickness, width, and material. 3. Click on a starting point for the path, then click for each new section of path. 4. Right-click and select Finish, or double-click when your path is complete.

Working with Fills

Video Tutorial

To add a fill: 1. Click on the Landscape tab and select the Fills tool.
2. Choose the type of material you want from the catalog. 3. Define the perimeter of the area you want to fill by selecting points in the drawing area. 4. Right-click and select Finish or double-click when you've set your last point. There's no need to click back on the starting point, the fill area will close automatically.

To edit the shape of your finished path or fill:
1. Make sure your plain cursor is selected.
2. Click on the element to select it.
3. Click on any point you want to change, or select the center point and drag the entire segment to a new position.

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Adding Outdoor Elements and Other Accessories

There are hundreds of outdoor elements to choose from, including benches, gazebos, trellises, pools, gardening sheds, picnic tables, lights, etc. Inserting these elements into your plan is as easy as selecting from the catalog and clicking in the drawing area.

	Outdoor Furniture - includes patio chairs, tables, benches, swings, and hammocks.
	Exterior Accessories - includes items such as arbors, planters, decorative objects, and more.
	Exterior Structures - includes playground equip., sports areas, pools, gazebos, and house templates.
	Landscape Lighting - includes lights that will illuminate your landscape in 3DTrueView.
	Irrigation - includes pop-up sprinkler heads to help you plan an irrigation system in your 2D plan view.

To insert an outdoor element:
1. Click on the Landscape tab and select a tool.
2. Select an element from the catalog on the right.
3. After an element is selected, move the cursor into the drawing area and click.
4. The element will be placed in your drawing.

Note: all outdoor elements (except for Decks) are automatically placed on the terrain level, whatever its elevation may be at that point.

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Viewing Your Project

3D Home Architect applications allow you to work in both 2D and 3D views. You can easily switch between 2D and 3D views by clicking on their respective icons at the bottom of the workspace screen. You can access additional view commands from the View menu.

2D Plan View	2D Designer's View	3D View

2D Plan View
When you launch the program, the view in the drawing area is the 2D Plan view of your Ground Floor building location. This 2D Plan view displays your project in simple lines as if you were looking at it from above. This is the most common view for drawing and creating floor layouts.

2D Designer's View
2D Designer's view provides the same overhead view of your project, but with materials added. This view is especially helpful when placing plants and other landscaping elements into the drawing.

3D View
Clicking on the 3D view icon pops up a fly out menu. You have a choice of viewing your project in 3D Perspective mode, which is an eye-level view of your project, or in 3D Overview mode, which shows your project from a height of about 30 feet. You can also place a new camera to set your own angles. Each angle is represented in the Drawing Area by a camera symbol.

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Using the Zoom and Navigate Tools

You can also adjust the angle and size of your active view by using the Zoom and Navigate tools. The zoom tools magnify or shrink the current view. The navigate tools change the view by moving the camera or target position. There are so many options for viewing and navigating, the best way to get familiar is simply to explore. Not all tools work in all types of views.

	Zoom Realtime - zooms the view in as you move your mouse up and zooms the view out as you move your mouse down. In 3D, this changes the camera's field of view between wide and telephoto.
	Zoom Window - enlarges a specific area that you define by dragging a window around it.
	Zoom to Fit - brings all elements in the entire drawing into view (fills the window).
	Pan - allows you to move your 2D plan view as if it were a piece of paper on a desk.
	Walk Around - moves your camera through your project as if you were walking with it.
	Fly Around - revolves the camera around its target, allowing you to "fly" with the camera.
	Look Around - rotates your camera, allowing you to look around your project without moving.
	Slide - moves the camera up, down, left, or right without changing the camera's angle.
	Reset Camera - reverts the camera angle and position to its initial placement.

To Use the View and Navigate Tools:
1. Select the tool you want to use by clicking on it.
2. Once selected, you'll notice that your cursor changes to reflect the chosen tool.
3. Move the cursor over the workspace, hold down the left mouse button and move in the desired direction. For example, to use the Look Around tool to look to the right, click anywhere in the drawing area and drag your cursor to the right.

You'll probably use a combination of zoom and navigate tools to get just the right angle on your project. The best way to learn is to just try the different tools to get a feel for what each one will do for you.

For more information on 3D viewing, including rendering a 3DTrueView, see Visualizing Your Design in 3D.

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Next Steps: Adding a Deck

If your landscape design will include a deck, take some time to view the tutorial titled Adding a Deck.

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