View Tab Overview
The View tab provides tools for customizing the visualization environment. Use it to arrange workspace layouts, configure slice view behavior, adjust 3D rendering options, apply clipping regions, and control camera positioning.
Changes made in the View tab affect how data is displayed but do not modify the underlying project data.
Ribbon Sections
The View tab is organized into six sections:
| Section | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Layout | Switch between predefined workspace arrangements |
| Scene | Set view orientations and enable cine loop playback |
| Slice Views | Configure 2D slice display options and interactions |
| 3D View | Control 3D rendering, representations, and shading |
| 3D Clipping | Define visible regions using a clipping box |
| Camera | Adjust lighting, camera settings, and view angles |
Layout
The Layout section provides predefined workspace arrangements for different tasks. Select a layout to change how the 3D view and slice views are positioned.
Available Layouts
| Layout | Description |
|---|---|
| Conventional | Standard four-panel layout with 3D view and three orthogonal slices |
| 3D Only | Maximizes the 3D view, hiding all slice views |
| Four Up | 3D view in the upper-right with slice views in remaining quadrants |
| Four Down | 3D view in the lower-right with slice views in remaining quadrants |
More Layouts
Click More to access additional layout options:
- Four Up Left / Four Down Left – 3D view on the left side
- Slice Views Right / Slice Views Left – All three slice views stacked vertically on one side
- Horizontal Slice Views Only / Vertical Slice Views Only – Slice views without the 3D view
- Single Slice Layouts – Display only the Plane 1 (YZ), Plane 2 (XZ), or Plane 3 (XY) view
- Two-Panel Layouts – Combinations of a single slice view with the 3D view (e.g., Plane 3 (XY) Left | 3D Right)
Use single-slice layouts when focusing on detailed 2D inspection. Switch to Conventional or Four Up layouts for multi-planar analysis.
Scene
The Scene section controls view orientation presets and cine loop playback.
Orientations
Select a predefined orientation preset to configure how the coordinate system is displayed:
| Preset | Description |
|---|---|
| Standard | Engineering-style orientation |
| Classic | Traditional 3D coordinate system |
| Medical 1 | Radiologist convention |
| Medical 2 | Neurologist convention |
| Orientation 1–4 | Additional custom orientations |
Orientation affects how axis labels, view directions, and slice names are displayed throughout the application.
Cine Loop
Cine Loop opens a playback panel for the stored 4D frames of the active volume object:
- Use Play/Pause to start or stop automatic playback
- Navigate with First, Previous, Next, and Last buttons
- Adjust playback speed using the FPS control
- Drag the frame slider to jump to a specific position
Cine Loop is useful for reviewing imported 4D DICOM datasets and presenting time-resolved volumetric data.
In the current release, 4D playback is limited to volume objects. Masks, surfaces, and volume meshes do not provide synchronized 4D playback.
For full workflow details and current limitations, see Cine Loop.
Slice Views
The Slice Views section configures display options for 2D orthogonal views (Plane 1 (YZ), Plane 2 (XZ), Plane 3 (XY)).
3D Contours
Toggle the visibility of object intersection contours in slice views:
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
| Mask(s) Preview | Show contours where mask 3D previews intersect slices |
| Surface(s) | Show contours where surface models intersect slices |
| Volume Mesh(es) | Show contours where volume meshes intersect slices |
3D contours help visualize spatial relationships between 3D objects and the current slice plane.
Crosshair
Enable the crosshair to display intersection lines across all views:
- Press the middle mouse button in any view to set the crosshair center
- Hold Alt and move the mouse in a slice view to dynamically update the crosshair position
The crosshair synchronizes navigation across all views, indicating the current position in each orthogonal plane.
Window/Level
Opens the Window/Level Controls panel to adjust image contrast and brightness:
- Select from predefined presets or adjust window and level values manually
- Use Auto to calculate optimal values based on image content
- Use Full Range to display the complete intensity range
- Choose from multiple lookup tables (color maps) for different visualization needs
Window defines the intensity range width; Level defines the center intensity. Together they control which values map to visible grayscale or color.
Voxel Information
Lets you choose how real-time voxel data is shown while you move the mouse over slice views:
- None hides the information completely
- Status Bar shows it in the status bar
- Mouse Hover shows it next to the cursor
- Both shows it in both places
When the cursor is over a visible mask, the voxel readout also includes the mask name; multi-label masks add the active label number and any annotation attached to that label.
Link Slice Views
Synchronizes camera movements across all slice views. When enabled, panning or zooming in one slice view applies the same transformation to the others.
3D View
The 3D View section controls rendering options for the three-dimensional display.
Mask 3D Preview (Mesh)
Generate surface previews for visible masks in the 3D view:
- Click Mask 3D Preview (Mesh) to generate previews at the current quality setting
- Use the Mask 3D Preview (Mesh) dropdown to select quality: Optimal, High, Medium, or Low
- Select Remove All Previews to clear generated previews
- If Mask 3D Preview (Direct) is active, generating a mesh preview turns it off first
High, Medium, and Low quality modes use downsampled data and may show slight geometric shifts. Use Optimal quality for accurate measurements.
Mask 3D Preview (Direct)
Enable Mask 3D Preview (Direct) to render visible masks directly as GPU volumes in the 3D view:
- No surface mesh generation is required
- Mask edits appear in 3D immediately
- Works for both binary and multi-label masks
- The selected state is stored with the project and becomes the default mode for newly created masks in that project
Direct mode is mutually exclusive with mesh preview generation. Using any Mask 3D Preview (Mesh) quality option turns direct mode off.
Automatic regeneration in Preferences only applies to mesh previews. Direct mode shows mask edits immediately without rebuilding a mesh preview.
Object Widgets
Toggle visual helpers for different object types:
| Widget | Description |
|---|---|
| Toggle Outline | Show/hide the bounding box around visible objects |
| Toggle Corner Outline | Show/hide corner-only bounding box indicators |
Widgets are available separately for Volumes, Surfaces, and Volume Meshes via the dropdown menu.
Slice Planes
Display slice plane representations in the 3D view, showing where the 2D slice views intersect the volume.
Axes Planes
Display semi-transparent reference planes along the principal axes in the 3D view.
Volume Shading
Toggle shading on volume rendering. When enabled, lighting calculations create depth perception and surface definition for volume-rendered data.
Surface Representation
Set the display mode for surface models, mask previews, and volume meshes:
| Mode | Description |
|---|---|
| Solid | Render filled surfaces |
| Solid Edges | Render filled surfaces with visible edge lines |
| Wireframe | Display only edge lines |
| Points | Render vertices as points |
Vertex Colors
Toggle display of per-vertex color data on surfaces. Useful for visualizing scalar fields or imported color attributes.
Surface Shading
Select the shading algorithm for surface rendering:
| Algorithm | Description |
|---|---|
| None | No lighting calculations; flat appearance |
| Flat | Uniform shading per face |
| Gouraud | Smooth shading interpolated across vertices |
| Phong | Per-pixel lighting for smoother highlights |
| Physically Based Rendering | Realistic material appearance |
3D Clipping
The 3D Clipping section defines a region of interest to limit what is displayed in the 3D view.
Enable
Activates the clipping box. Only geometry inside (or outside, if inverted) the box is rendered.
Show Box
Toggles visibility of the clipping box outline and handles. When visible, you can drag the handles to resize the clipping region.
Invert
Reverses the clipped region. By default, content inside the box is shown; when inverted, content outside the box is shown.
Reset
Resets the clipping box to the bounding box of all visible objects.
Use 3D clipping to isolate structures, remove occluding geometry, or focus on specific anatomical regions.
Camera
The Camera section provides controls for lighting, camera configuration, and view positioning.
Light Studio
Opens Light Studio, the unified lighting workspace for the 3D view. It manages the default headlight and up to eight total lights:
- Add, duplicate, and remove lights with full control over type, colors, position, and spotlight parameters
- Position lights interactively with manipulators in the 3D view
- Apply multi-light studio presets with one deliberate shadow-casting light
- Export and import complete light setups as JSON files
If the list would otherwise become empty, Volvicon restores the default headlight automatically.
Camera Settings
Opens camera configuration panels for individual views:
- 3D View – Adjust projection type (perspective/parallel), view angle, clipping range
- Plane 1 (YZ)/Plane 2 (XZ)/Plane 3 (XY) Views – Configure 2D view camera parameters
Standard Views
Quickly orient the 3D camera to predefined directions:
| Direction | View |
|---|---|
| -X / +X | Left / Right side views |
| -Y / +Y | Back / Front views |
| -Z / +Z | Bottom / Top views |
| Isometric | Diagonal corner view |
Keyboard shortcuts in 3D view:
- Press X, Y, or Z for positive axis views
- Press Shift+X, Shift+Y, or Shift+Z for negative axis views
- Press V to toggle between perspective and parallel projection
- Press R to reset the 3D view
- Press C to set the center of rotation under the mouse cursor and center it on screen
- Press S, E, W, Q to change surface representation modes
View Controls
| Button | Action |
|---|---|
| Center 3D View | Reset the focal point to the scene center |
| Reset 3D View | Fit all visible objects in the 3D view |
| Reset Slice Views | Set slice index to the image middle and reset all slice view cameras |
In slice views, press R to reset the current slice view and Shift+R to reset all slice views.
Quick Start Workflows
Setting Up a Multi-Planar Review Session
- Open View → Layout → Conventional for the standard four-panel arrangement
- Click Window/Level in the Slice Views section to open contrast controls
- Select a preset or adjust the window/level sliders for optimal visibility
- Enable Crosshair to synchronize navigation across all views
- Use the middle mouse button to set the crosshair position on a point of interest
Generating 3D Mask Previews
- Ensure at least one mask is visible in the project
- In the 3D View section, select a quality level from the Mask 3D Preview (Mesh) dropdown
- Click Mask 3D Preview (Mesh) to generate the surface representation
- Use Surface Representation buttons to switch between Solid, Wireframe, or Points display
Creating a Focused Clipping View
- Navigate to the region of interest using slice views
- In 3D Clipping, click Enable to activate the clipping box
- Click Show Box to display the interactive handles
- Drag the face handles to isolate the desired region
- Click Show Box again to hide the box while keeping clipping active
Configuring Standard Camera Orientations
- In the Camera section, click Standard Views to access the view menu
- Select an axis-aligned view (e.g., +Z for top view) or Isometric for an overview
- Click Reset 3D View to fit all objects in the view
- Use Light Studio to adjust scene illumination for better depth perception
Related Topics
- Layouts – Detailed layout options and use cases
- Slice Views – In-depth slice view configuration
- 3D View – Advanced 3D rendering controls
- 3D Clipping – Clipping box usage and workflows
- Light Studio – Complete 3D lighting and floor-shadow guide
- Camera – Camera and lighting configuration