How to create an elevation of a neighbor to examine a proposals shadow impact?

[ro]

How to create an elevation of a neighbor to examine a proposals shadow impact?

I've tried various elevation methods, sectional perspectives, transparency and other materials settings. It seems that Revit requires visible objects to cast shadows with. Is there a workaround?

[ToanDN]

Create the neighboring building using mass forms?

[ro]

I don't understand your question about my question.

Assume the neighbors/context are drawn as a mass. I wish to set up elevations of the neighboring/context masses to examine the shadows cast by the proposal on the subject site.

[Corsten.Au]

Hi

Create a Roof using Google Map or survey if available as a base..

and walls using Eave offset to the Roof Plan profile..

Cheers.

[ro]

I don't understand this response.

I know how to model. I wish to examine the shadows cast on to a model.

[Corsten.Au]

Hello

Create Elevation or 3d view for each side for shadow analysis.

set the location, date and time to examine the shadow..

sample..

[ro]

Hi Ganesh. Thanks for all your effort.

In your model, how can I capture the shadows from proposed blue object without having the blue object visible in the scene?

[Corsten.Au]

Are you looking for something like this.. you can achive this in any view i guess..

VG- model - surface all white solid and edges ( projection lines ) also white.. and switch on the shaodw.. thats it..

[ro]

Hello and thanks again Ganesh.

The shadow I need to see is behind your left hand foreground tower. How do you show the shadow beyond the tower?

[Corsten.Au]

Hello

Use Camera angle / Elevation which captures the required shadow.

else you may make the view transparent ( VG, model transparent ) 

and create a manually filled region.

You may need to add two views overlapped or bit of manual work to achieve what you are looking for.

cause the moment you hide a 3d object, the shadow will vanish..

and if you want to keep the 3d object, its gonna interfere with the shadow visibility.

best luck

[ro]

Thanks Corsten,

In summary, it can't be done?

It seems like a very simple task/ask.

Surely someone in Revit land has cracked this conundrum.

[RobDraw]

---

@ro wrote:

It seems like a very simple task/ask.

---

Then why can't you figure it out? Maybe, because invisible objects don't cast shadows?

[Anonymous]

In my view its a weakness of Revit that you can't use this to do a shadow study.  Shadows can't show from behind or above the cut plane, so you cannot see how the shadows project onto surfaces.

[ro]

Absurd.

[ro]

It's now 2024. I've installed 2025. And I'm walking down the identical path. Trying to create an elevation with shadows cast on a neighbour. I can't find a way.

In plan, the simple solution is setup a camera and turn off perspective/turn on orthogonal view. This works perfectly.

In elevation, setting the direction and cut line doesn't seem to work.

Any tips appreciated.

[PattraJump · Accepted solution]

Hope this help

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s2lNlnPHIRA

[ro]

Of course. Same as a shadow plan. Seems obvious now.

It seems like it should be a single click elevation view option, not a process.

Thanks 1 million PattraJump.