2D View from Picked Face

2D View from Picked Face streamlines creating views aligned to element faces. Simply pick a face on any element, and the add-in automatically determines whether to create a section or plan view based on the face orientation. It handles linked models, curtain walls, and manages view cleanup so your project stays organized.

Getting Started

Find View from Face on the Amorphous ribbon tab in the View Tools panel.

The button is enabled when:

• A document is open
• The document has an active view

Features

• Automatic view type selection - Creates section views for vertical faces, plan views for horizontal faces
• Automatic work plane - Sets the work plane to the picked face, ready for sketching or placement
• Linked model support - Pick faces from linked Revit models with automatic coordinate transformation
• Curtain wall handling - Special options for curtain wall panels and mullions
• Auto-cropping - View crop box automatically sized to the element’s bounding box
• View cleanup - Maintains only the 3 most recent auto-generated views per user
• Smart naming - Views named with username, source info, and timestamp
• Configurable section depth - Adjustable near/far depth settings via Preferences

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How to Use

Basic Workflow

1. Click “View from Face” on the ribbon
2. An instruction bar appears: “Select a planar face to create a view”
3. Pick a face on any model element
4. The add-in automatically:
   • Determines the appropriate view type (section or plan)
   • Creates the view with proper cropping
   • Opens the new view

Linked Model Workflow

To create views from linked model elements:

1. Select the Revit Link instance first (click on the link in your view)
2. Click “View from Face”
3. The instruction bar indicates “Select a planar face from the linked model”
4. Pick a face within the linked model
5. A view is created in your host model with coordinates properly transformed

Note

The linked model must be loaded. If the link is unloaded, the command will display an error.

Curtain Wall Workflow

The add-in includes special handling for curtain walls:

When you pick a mullion:

• Automatically uses the entire parent curtain wall

When you pick a panel: A dialog appears with two options:

Option	Shortcut	Description
Panel Only	P	Creates view from just the selected panel face
Entire Wall	E	Creates view aligned to the full curtain wall location line

Nearly Horizontal Face Workflow

When the selected face is tilted between 0-5 degrees from horizontal, a dialog appears asking you to choose:

Option	Shortcut	Description
Plan View	P	Creates a floor plan at the face elevation
Section View	S	Creates a section aligned to the face

The dialog displays the exact tilt angle to help you decide.

Tip

Press Enter to confirm your selection, or Escape to cancel.

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User Interface

Instruction Bar

When the command starts, an instruction bar appears at the top of the Revit window guiding you through the selection:

• Host model: “Select a planar face to create a view”
• Linked model: “Select a planar face from the linked model”

Press ESC at any time to cancel the operation.

View Type Dialog

Appears when you pick a nearly horizontal face (within 5 degrees of horizontal).

Element	Description
Info panel	Displays the exact tilt angle of the selected face
Plan View chip	Select to create a floor plan (P key)
Section View chip	Select to create a section view (S key)
Create View button	Confirms selection and creates the view
Close button	Cancels the operation

Curtain Wall Dialog

Appears when you pick a curtain wall panel.

Element	Description
Info panel	Explains the curtain wall was detected
Panel Only chip	Use only the panel face (P key)
Entire Wall chip	Use the full curtain wall (E key)
Continue button	Proceeds with the selected option

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Options & Settings

Preferences

Access preferences via Settings dropdown > Preferences > View From Face.

Setting	Description	Default	Range
Depth Behind Face	Distance behind the picked face toward the viewer	1.0 ft	0 - 50 ft
Depth Into Element	Distance in front of the picked face into the element	5.0 ft	0.1 - 100 ft

The preferences page includes a visual diagram showing how these settings affect section view depth.

Automatic View Settings

The following settings are applied automatically to created views:

Property	Value
View Scale	1/8” = 1’-0” (Scale 96)
Detail Level	Fine
Crop Box	Active and visible

Caution

View templates may override the Detail Level setting. The add-in removes any applied template to ensure settings are applied correctly. Support for view template assignment is coming soon.

View Naming Convention

Views are named automatically using this pattern:

View Type	Pattern
Section (host model)	{username}_AutoFaceView_{YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS}
Section (linked model)	{username}_AutoFaceView_{linkname}_{YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS}
Plan (host model)	{username}_AutoFacePlan_{YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS}
Plan (linked model)	{username}_AutoFacePlan_{linkname}_{YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS}

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Tips & Best Practices

• Keyboard shortcuts: Use P and S keys in dialogs for quick selection without clicking
• Linked model selection: Always select the link instance first before clicking the button
• Protect important views: Rename views you want to keep - only views matching the auto-generated naming pattern are cleaned up
• Facade studies: Pick wall faces to quickly create elevation-style views of building facades
• Coordination views: Create views from linked model elements for clash resolution
• Slab analysis: Pick floor slab faces to create plan views at exact slab elevations

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Limitations

Limitation	Details
Planar faces only	Curved surfaces are not supported
Single face selection	Only one face can be selected per command
Template Assigment	View template assigment is not currenly supported.
Project must have levels	Plan views require at least one level in the project
ViewFamilyTypes required	Both Section and Floor Plan ViewFamilyTypes must exist

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Troubleshooting

”The selected face is not planar”

This error appears when you click on a curved surface (like a cylindrical column or curved wall). The add-in only supports flat, planar faces. Try picking a different face on the element that is flat.

”Could not retrieve the selected element from the link”

The linked model may not be fully loaded, or the link file may have been modified since it was loaded. Try reloading the link and attempting the selection again.

”No valid Floor Plan/Section ViewFamilyType found”

Your project is missing the required view family types. This can happen with heavily customized templates. Create at least one floor plan and one section view manually to establish the view family types.

View doesn’t show expected detail

If the view appears with less detail than expected:

1. Verify the Detail Level is set to Fine in the view properties
2. Increase the “Depth Into Element” setting in Preferences

Plan view range doesn’t capture the element

The view range is set relative to the nearest level. If your element is far from any level, you may need to manually adjust the view range after creation:

1. Open View Properties
2. Click “Edit…” next to View Range
3. Adjust Top, Cut Plane, and Bottom offsets as needed

Or use Interactive View Range to visually adjust the range with real-time feedback.

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Related Tools

• Smart Section Box - Create section boxes around selected elements
• Section Box by Edge - Create section boxes aligned to a picked edge
• View from Section Box - Create 2D views from section box extents
• Align View to Edge - Align any view to a picked edge