Millions of users create 3D models and share them through the Google 3D Warehouse. To view these 3D models in Google Earth, download the 3D Warehouse network link. When you open this file, you’ll see house-shaped icons that indicate where 3D models are located; watch the video above to learn how to use these icons to view models.
Photo-realistic Buildings
With Google Earth 4.3, see 3D buildings faster and in more cities than ever before. Now you can access hundreds of new buildings from the world’s cities, including San Francisco, Boston, Orlando, Munich, Zurich, and dozens more.
Swoop Navigation
Fly seamlessly through the landscape with new navigation controls. Swoop from outer space to street level and leap from one building top to another. Use the look joystick to view buildings as if you were standing right in front of them.
Light and Shadow
With the new Sunlight feature, you can watch the sunrise and sunset from anywhere. Move the time slider to watch dusk, dawn and shadows move across the Earth.
Using the Navigation Controls New!
To view and use the navigation controls, move the cursor over right corner of the 3D viewer. After you start Google Earth and move the cursor over this area, the navigation controls fade from sight when you move the cursor elsewhere. To view these controls again, simply move the cursor over the right corner of the 3D viewer.
*Note – If the navigation controls do not appear when you move the cursor over the right corner of the 3D viewer, click View > Show Navigation > Automatically and try again.
To hide or show the compass icon in the 3D viewer, click View > Compass.
The Google Earth navigation controls offer the same type of navigation action that you can achieve with mouse navigation. In addition, you can use the controls to zoom and swoop (perhaps for a perspective on terrain) or to rotate your view. The following diagram shows the controls and explains their functions.
- Click the north up button to reset the view so that north is at the top of the screen. Click and drag the ring to rotate your view.
- Use the Look joystick to look around from a single vantage point, as if you were turning your head. Click an arrow to look in that direction or continue to press down on the mouse button to change your view. After clicking an arrow, move the mouse around on the joystick to change the direction of motion.
- Use the Move joystick to move your position from one place to another. Click an arrow to look in that direction or continue to press down on the mouse button to change your view. After clicking an arrow, move the mouse around on the joystick to change the direction of motion.
- Use the zoom slider to zoom in or out (+ to zoom in, – to zoom out) or click the icons at the end of the slider. As you move closer to the ground, Google Earth swoops (tilts) to change your viewing angle to be parallel to the Earth’s surface. You can turn off this automatic tilt (Tools > Options > Navigation > Navigation controls; Mac: Google Earth > Preferences > Navigation > Navigation controls).
Tilting and Viewing Hilly Terrain
When you first start Google Earth, the default view of the earth is a “top-down” view, which is straight down.
- Tilt the terrain from 0 – 90 degrees – You can use the mouse to tilt the view in order to see a different perspective of the area you’re exploring. You can tilt to a maximum of 90 degrees, which provides a view of the object as well as the horizon, in some cases.
- Turn on terrain – Using the tilt feature is particularly interesting when you are looking at a part of the earth where the terrain is hilly. Be sure to check Terrain in the Layers panel.
- Rotate the view for a new perspective – Once you have tilted the view so that you are looking at a particular object, such as a hill, you can also rotate around that object. When you do this, the object remains in the center of the view, but you look at it from different perspectives (i.e., north, south, east, west) as you rotate around it.
- Use the middle mouse button (if available) for seamless movement – If your mouse has a middle button or a depressible scroll wheel, you can depress the button to both tilt and rotate the view. Movements up or down tilt the view, and movements left or right rotate the view.
You can adjust the appearance of the terrain if you would like the elevation to appear more pronounced. To do this, click Tools > Options > 3D View from the Tools menu (for the Mac, choose Google Earth > Preferences > 3D View) and change the Elevation Exaggeration figure. You can set it to any value from 1 to 3, including decimal points. A common setting is 1.5, which achieves an obvious yet natural elevation appearance.
Resetting the Default View
After tilting and rotating the 3D view in Google Earth, you can always quickly reset to the default north-up and top-down view. To do this:
- Click the North-up button to reset the view so that north is at the top of the viewer.
- (Windows and Linux only) Click in the 3D viewer and type r on the keyboard to reset the view
*Note – To quickly return to a known, familiar spot if you get lost, click on the Starting location placemark in the My Places folder. This returns you to the center of your country (or a country that speaks your language). You can also edit the location for the Starting location placemark if you want to.
Consider also using the Overview Map Window as a way to provide an additional perspective on your location, especially when you are zoomed in to unfamiliar places.
Setting the Start Location
You can set the starting (default) location that appears each time you launch Google Earth. To do this, navigate to the appropriate location and perspective and click View > Make this my start location.
Displaying the Sun New!
You can display the sun and sunlight across the landscape, To do this:
- Click View > Sun or the Sun button. Google Earth displays the current level of daylight at the location you are viewing. Note that the time slider appears.
- To change the time of day, drag the time slider right or left. Depending on your location and time of year, you can view the sunrise or sunset while looking east or west.
- To display an animation of sunlight across the landscape, click the time slider play button.
- To hide the sun, click View > Sun or the Sun button.
*Tip – This feature produces dramatic effects when you are viewing hilly or mountainous terrain.
Thank you for Youtube.com & Earth.Google.com