All shadows wrong in the perspective views in Revit 2021

[f.annoscia1XRNMD]

All the shadows are wrong in the perspective views. I'm desperate! In the plans the windows are ok, they aren't on different planes. I use a Surface 6 Pro 16 GB RAM with integrated graphic card.

[hmunsell]

Interesting.... haven't seen that happen before. is there any way you can upload the mode for us to look at? maybe just the 2 facades in the view?

[JoshEKing]

Maybe I'm not seeing specifically what you are referring to...

There seems to be a lot of glass transparency that probably should not be there in a simple "Hidden Line" view.  Or, possibly glass that's completely missing?

[hmunsell]

I figured they were referring to the inconsistent shadows from the mullions in the windows :-). if the window is the same, the shadows should not be all over the place like that. 

[syman2000]

I assume this is what you are referring to. Have you print out to PDF and see if the shadow behave strangely?

[JoshEKing]

Ah. That wasn't how that read to me, but I see it now.

In the snippet of plan that was provided, what are the 2 planes to the right of the window? (I can't tell which direction is interior/exterior from the snippet.) Is it possible those are some sort of surfaces that are projecting extraneous shadows?

[f.annoscia1XRNMD]

It seems to me that the shadows are wrong even where the frame of the building is. I replaced the glass with a wooden panel in the windows, because the glass was "transparent" in the "hidden lines" mode.

Shadows are correct in orthogonal view.

@syman2000yes, shadows are wrong in PDF printing.

[hmunsell]

Is there any way you can upload the mode for us to look at? you could duplicate the model and delete everything but he the 2 facades in the view if the model is too big.?

[f.annoscia1XRNMD]

When I select a view with lots of windows, the shadows are wrong. When I create a view, in the same worksheet as the project, but with fewer front windows, the program generates correct shadows. Now I tried: in one view the shadows came well! In the other view, like that, they're wrong... But I have to deliver the views they asked for. What do you recommend to get around this issue? I have to prepare and deliver the views I have been asked for.

[hmunsell · Accepted solution]

here is the model OP sent me via private message. I verified with OP that it is ok to post it :-). Changes may have been made by the OP since this model was sent to me (removal of DWG links, consolidation of Design Options, removal of excess levels). 

The file is in 2021 format....

[RDAOU]

@f.annoscia1XRNMD 

Your generic reply various solution "quote: Thanks. I will have to do some testing" got me curious enough to check profile and this 3 months old post got my attention...wasn't around back then

Judging from @hmunsell reply and report of the model, I figured I should check if you managed with those views you were trying to create or if you are still doing some testing 😉

ciao

Fix 1Fix 2

[truevis.com]

Try making the glass material in those windows opaque. See if anything changes.

[f.annoscia1XRNMD]

@RDAOU I haven't solved the problem yet.

I see the views you have posted are perfect. How did you do?

I discovered, in February, that by copying the 3d model into a new Revit file the problem of the wrong shadows disappeared. In this way I was able to do the job and deliver it. However, I still don't understand what caused the problem, to prevent it from happening in the new files. Could shadows be disturbed by the new levels, which I create in the file? Copying the 3d model to the new file does not export the levels. Now in new jobs I'm trying to work without creating levels, I use the two predefined levels, but it's very difficult to work like this. I noticed that levels and shadows and perspective views are linked. Deleting a layer also erases the views. I currently use Revit with little freedom. I am not sure, however, that this is the solution.

[f.annoscia1XRNMD]

Thank you. I tried to change the window material, but I didn't solve the problem.

[ToanDN · Accepted solution]

Turn off imported/linked CAD drawings. They may have geometry too far from the origin.

[RDAOU · Accepted solution]

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@f.annoscia1XRNMD wrote:

@RDAOU I haven't solved the problem yet.

I see the views you have posted are perfect. How did you do?

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Well...in short, Cleaned some of the mess that little bit of freedom left behind...Freedom in Revit does not exist if you want freedom, use sketchup . Old users have a slogan "do what Revit Wants"

Copying to a clean model should tell you something!! "Clean"

The levels and elements hosted on those levels are indeed a mess but check again what didn't carry over besides the levels, you will know what caused it...It is the third messy thing after Levels and the double/triple nested groups of arrayed curtain walls which barely function stand alone

[f.annoscia1XRNMD]

@RDAOU

Can you explain the problem of windows better? I don't know if I interpreted what you wrote right.

I tried to make the openings in other cleaner files, but I still had problems with shadows.

[RDAOU]

@f.annoscia1XRNMD 

I am not sure if this simplifies it...

1. When you group two curtain walls and a handrail ... it becomes Group 1
2. When you arrayed Group 1, you are created a set of grouped instances ... these are Group 2 (with a nested Group 1)
3. Then you grouped the array to copy to various floors ... this became Group 3 (a group with 2 layers of nested Groups 2 and 1)

A curtain wall raw as it is, is a group of element. Nesting it over and over is over-exhaustive, does not function well in all aspects and affects your model performance (including graphics). Add to that, you have used them in multiple design options (which is the 3rd messy element that did not carry over when you copied to a new file. On your next project simply use a normal window family (and if for one reason or the other you want to package/combine multiple curtain walls into one complex element, use Assemblies instead of Groups. )

I believe that the root cause of the problem is the bits and pieces of tips and advice you have been taking from here and there which accumulated and led to this. And most probably with an average - to below average - GPU it made the graphic outcome look even worse.