Hi there,
I noticed a few older posts requesting similar functionality, but coming from 3ds Max and its Daylight System, I think there is still room for improvement in D5’s Geo Sky workflow.
It’s great that we can define latitude, longitude, and a North Offset, but there is very little visual feedback when setting these values.
Many projects originate from Revit, where North is not always oriented straight up in the model. In my current project, North is actually facing west. As a result, determining the correct North Offset in D5 becomes a trial-and-error process.
It would be helpful to have:
- A visible compass or North indicator in the viewport.
- A map-based project location picker.
- A way to visually align the model orientation with real-world North when setting up Geo Sky.
Even a simple map overlay could greatly improve the workflow. Rather than requiring users to rotate their model, D5 could allow users to position and orient the project relative to a map reference, with Geo Sky automatically calculating the appropriate North Offset and geographic settings from that alignment.
This would preserve the model’s original coordinates and orientation while providing a much more intuitive and accurate way to establish real-world sun positioning.
Another limitation is the lack of clarity around Daylight Saving Time versus Standard Time.
Many regions, including much of Canada, observe DST. Currently, it’s difficult to know whether D5 is accounting for this one-hour shift when calculating sun position for a given date and time.
Ideally, Geo Sky would either:
- Automatically account for DST based on project location and date, or
- Provide a user option to enable/disable DST.
Overall, D5 already has the core pieces needed for accurate sun studies, but a few additional tools and visual cues would make the system much easier to trust and use.