Improved snapshot overlay

  • Improved snapshot overlay

    Posted by Isaac Harned on June 23, 2023 at 10:41 am

    This has been a little frustrating in the past, as the overlay and compare tools built in to bluebeam do not really accomplish what we need it to do. I.E. I do not need another copy of the file.

    I know a few out there use the snapshot function, paste in place, then modify the properties of the snapshot to see the differences.

    Here is the best overall process I have found. If you have one that works better for you, definitely share it in the comments. Curious to see any alternatives that I have not thought of!

    So our file structure is built with a consolidated set, and each revision is maintained in a separate dated folder. We like to keep our bid notes on the revisions so that tracking can be maintained throughout, so we Markup / Count on the new print, then slip sheet into our “Takeoff Set” so that all markups stay where they are supposed to.

    1. Open new print, copy full page to snapshot (can be done by right clicking thumbnail, but works with a targeted snapshot too. I just find this a bit faster)

    2. Paste in place (Ctrl+Shift+V). Yes we are pasting the snapshot of the new print on top of itself.

    3. Color process black to bright green. I don’t know if this is the case on all trades, but for mechanical, dark black typically indicates new work. This should catch anything in our scope that could change. Existing stuff is usually greyed, which should not change.

    4. Don’t change your blend mode, this is gonna look a little funky until you get the second snapshot there.

    5. Open OLD print, copy full page to snapshot

    6. Paste in place (Ctrl+Shift+V) on NEW print.

    7. This one you will color process from Black to Red. Set Blend mode to multiply

    8. Optional to put on layers, but with the way it turns out, Red is old, Green is new, and black is on both. Should not need to do a whole lot of layer toggling with this setup.

    Let me know what you guys think!

    Troy DeGroot replied 1 year, 6 months ago 2 Members · 4 Replies
  • 4 Replies
  • Isaac Harned

    Member
    June 23, 2023 at 12:51 pm
    Points: 8,113
    Rank: UC2 Brainery Purple Belt III UC2 Brainery Purple Belt III

    Also, just found out, Ctrl+Alt+C is copy full page to snapshot, and can be customized.

  • Troy DeGroot

    Organizer
    June 26, 2023 at 10:30 am
    Points: 23,739
    Rank: UC2 Brainery Brown Belt III UC2 Brainery Brown Belt III

    Your image looks great, I would just have to better understand the difference in the results from the regular overlay function. Lots of cool stuff you can do with the color modifications. Great value in this post @isaac-harned

    • Isaac Harned

      Member
      June 26, 2023 at 10:48 am
      Points: 8,113
      Rank: UC2 Brainery Purple Belt III UC2 Brainery Purple Belt III

      In essence: This is duplicating the results of the overlay without creating a separate file. Might not be of use to everyone, but this has been one of my pet peeves due to our file structure.

      • Troy DeGroot

        Organizer
        June 26, 2023 at 12:31 pm
        Points: 23,739
        Rank: UC2 Brainery Brown Belt III UC2 Brainery Brown Belt III

        That makes sense. I typically teach to import the Compare Clouds onto the Overlay document and save that file into the revision folder. This way everything is together. I can see where different folder structures and workflows don’t always work the same. Thanks for the tip @isaac-harned always appreciated!

Log in to reply.