Taking SketchUp Pro to the Next Level

Go beyond the basics and develop custom 3D modeling workflows to become a SketchUp ninja

Aaron Dietzen aka ‘The SketchUp Guy’

BIRMINGHAM—MUMBAI

Taking SketchUp Pro to the Next Level

Copyright © 2022 Packt Publishing

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Group Product Manager: Rohit Rajkumar

Publishing Product Manager: Kaustubh Manglurkar

Senior Editor: Hayden Edwards

Senior Content Development Editor: Rashi Dubey

Technical Editor: Shubham Sharma

Copy Editor: Safis Editing

Project Coordinator: Sonam Pandey

Proofreader: Safis Editing

Indexer: Subalakshmi Govindhan

Production Designer: Aparna Bhagat

Marketing Coordinator: Elizabeth Varghese

First published: September 2022

Production reference: 1250822

Published by Packt Publishing Ltd.

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B3 2PB, UK.

ISBN 978-1-80324-269-9

www.packt.com

To my amazing wife, Katie. There is no way I could tackle something as huge as writing a book without you there to support me. Thank you for always believing in me and sticking with me. I love you!

– Aaron Dietzen aka ‘The SketchUp Guy’

Contributors

About the author

Aaron Dietzen aka ‘The SketchUp Guy’ has been modeling in 3D since high school when he started at his father’s software company. Over the next few decades, he worked in technical support, training, and product management, learning about dozens of modeling and CAD software packages along the way.

One of the software packages Aaron learned about was SketchUp, which he taught himself how to use. He currently works for Trimble, creating video content about SketchUp. Often referred to as “The SketchUp Guy,” Aaron focuses on helping SketchUp users to develop their own workflows and become more efficient modelers and does his best to make learning enjoyable. Aaron lives in Colorado with his wife, three kids, and a couple of rescued puppies.

I want to thank everyone who has ever given me an opportunity to create, teach, and just be me. To my parents, who supported me to create, thank you! To my bosses and managers, who encouraged me to learn and teach, thank you! To my friends and family, who have stuck with me and supported my creative efforts, thank you! To the amazing team at Packt and Duane, thank you for helping me to write this book. Finally, to YOU, who are reading this book. Thank you for allowing me to be a part of your effort to grow. It is an honor to be a part of your learning journey.

About the reviewer

Duane Kemp, a 3D reconstruction specialist and family man living in Switzerland, started working with Google SketchUp 6 in 2007. He used SU8 as a project manager to reproduce an old Swiss mill and build execution plans for its 2008 Moulin de Rivendell ongoing renovation project. His company, Kemp Productions’ animations were presented at SketchUp Basecamp 2012 and have featured in books and articles: CatchUp Edition 15, Daniel Tal’s Rendering in SketchUp, Matt Donley’s SketchUp to LayOut article Mason Farm Renders, and more.

The winner of various 3D competitions, he admins Facebook’s Trimble SketchUp Group and has promoted the use of SketchUp since 2012 on social media platforms. Duane likes to test plugins/rendering software and enjoys using SketchUp.

This is a wonderful introductory, step-by-step overview of SketchUp Pro’s basic features, usage, available tools, and companion apps... important aspects of the software to get a user up and running! It will be a great accompaniment for new and old users as they explore updated and newly introduced features of SketchUp Pro and LayOut as well.

To Rashika and the Packt team, thanks for the opportunity to consult on Aaron’s recommendable contribution to the SketchUp community.