Export un-textured model as an orthomosaic

[Geophotologist]

Is there a way to export the untextured (purple mesh) model as an orthomosaic? Currently I am screen grabbing the mesh which loses the scale. I would like to export it as a geoTIFF. I find that I can see details that would otherwise be hidden on a very complex coloured surface.

[Kjellis85]

Exporting as a DEM would give you pretty much the same result as exporting the model without texture. If you know how to use a GIS, like QGis or ArcMap you should have no problem recreating the same visual effects as you would get on the rendered mesh surface.

[Geophotologist]

Thanks Kjellis85. I will try that. Do you just apply hillshade to your DEM to get the desired result?

[Kjellis85]

It depends on what you are after. Using hillshade in ArcMap is quite basic, just play around with the z-factor. I also recommend Bilinear Interpolation for resampling as it creates a smoother result. You can also play around with the illumination settings in data frame properties for additional enhanched effect.

[Dave Martin]

As Kjell says, you can apply basic hillshading in ArcMap and many other packages, my personal preference is Surfer by Golden Software. In terms of interpolation/gridding, if you want a smooth looking map you can, as said, use algorithms like bilinear or minimum curvature; but if you're looking to detect features approaching the scale of your GSD, I find far better results with Kriging. If I have the resolution, even if I intend to use data in another package my workflow is to grid (Kriging) in Surfer before any visualisation, and in fact Golden Software (no connection!) have announced a beta to expose all the raster tools in Surfer directly in ArcMap, including fully-controlled Kriging (variogram control etc.).

If you're "feature hunting" from your DEM, if you haven't already done so, could I suggest you look at the free "RVT" (Relief Visualisation Toolbox) - their Sky View Factor and open pos/neg can be quite helpful.

Dave