Axes: Viewpoint

Projection

• Orthographic - Parallel lines are drawn parallel on the screen. (Projection)
• Perspective - Distance causes foreshortening; objects further from the camera appear smaller. Useful for making 3-D scenes appear more realistic.

See View Project Types for an illustrated discussion of projection types.

View

Specify view using polar angles:

• Azimuth (degrees) - Azimuth is a polar angle in the x-y plane, with positive angles indicating counter-clockwise rotation of the viewpoint.
• Elevation (degrees) - Elevation is the angle above (positive angle) or below (negative angle) the x-y plane.

See Setting the Viewpoint with Azimuth and Elevation for illustrations and examples.

Camera Properties

Specify view in axes units:

• Position - Location of the viewpoint in axes units. In Auto mode, MATLAB chooses the viewpoint.
• Target - Location in the scene pointed to by the camera. In Auto mode, MATLAB specifies the Target as the center of the axes plot box.
• Up vector - Vector defining the direction that is oriented upward in the scene. In Auto mode, MATLAB orients the up vector along the positive y-axis for 2-D views and along the positive z-axis for 3-D views.
• View angle - The field of view of the "camera lens." In Auto mode, MATLAB adjusts the view angle to the smallest angle that captures the entire scene.

See Displaying Scenes with Camera Graphics to see how each property is defined.

Default 2-D and 3-D View

• Set default 2-D view - Sets azimuth = 0, elevation = 90
• Set default 3-D view - azimuth = -37.5, elevation = 30