Image data, regions of interest, multi-ROIs, and meshes can be viewed in the 2D views that are part of a scene. 2D views can include text annotations, which are interactive and can be used zoom, scroll, and adjust window leveling, as well as a scalebar and legends. A 3D Cursor is also available in Track mode to link the different axis representations of volumetric data, which are color-coded for easy identification. Orientation indicators and axis colors are available in all 2D views to help orientation your images in 3D space.
You should note that the fastest, and in many cases standard, way of visualizing volumetric image data is by extracting orthogonal slices that are cut through the volume in different planes using a technique known as multi-planar reformatting (MPR). In addition to being able to extract slices orthogonal to the coordinate axes, Dragonfly also provides an opportunity to slice volumetric image data in arbitrary orientations. An oblique or double-oblique view may provide an image whose angulation matches that of the structure you need to study (see Creating Oblique Views). You can also go further by viewing structures in realistic 3D renderings (see 3D Views).
2D scene views
A. Text annotations B. 3D Cursor C. Scale bar D. Legends E. Orientation indicators and axis colors F. Active view icons G. Marked slices indicator
The options in the 2D Scene's Views Properties on the Main tab allow you to select the elements that are shown in 2D views, while the 2D settings in the Data Properties and Settings Panel provide options for modifying the appearance of image data and other objects. See Main Tab for information about zooming, panning, and other manipulations available for 2D views.
The text annotations show information about each view, such as the applied zoom factor and selected orientation, as well as information about the currently selected dataset, such as the window level values and slice number in the image stack. These annotations are interactive and can be used to adjust the view, as described in the following table. See Selecting the Fonts Preferences for information about customizing the appearance of the text annotations.
Description | |
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Zoom |
Indicates the current dimensions of the view, as calculated for the selected object.
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Window Leveling |
Indicates the current window leveling applied to the selected image data. You can choose to display the window width (W) and window center value (C), as shown below on the left, or the minimum and maximum values of the selected range, as shown below on the right. These options are available as a preference (see Miscellaneous Preferences).
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Slice |
Indicates the current slice and the total number of slices in the selected object for the displayed axis representation.
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Time Step |
Available for time-enabled image data only, the Time Step text annotation indicates the currently selected time step and lets you navigate between time steps. |
View Rotations |
Indicates the current orientation of the view, which is represented by the so-called Euler angles named Yaw, Pitch, and Roll (see Scene View Orientation for more information about view angles). Yaw… Indicates the angle of the vertical X-axis of the view in the world coordinate system. Drag the annotation left or right to change the rendering angle. Pitch… Indicates the angle of the horizontal Y-axis of the view in the world coordinate system. Drag the annotation up or down to change the rendering angle. Roll… Indicates the angle between the longitudinal Z- axis of the view in the world coordinate system. Drag the annotation up or down to change the rendering angle. |
The 3D Cursor, which appears in Track mode, can be used to synchronize the MPR views within a scene to the crosshair intersection. This can help you to quickly locate a point in 3D space (see Using the 3D Cursor for additional information about the 3D Cursor).
Legends are available for 2D views to show how values are mapped to the grayscale tones of selected image data or to the colors of selected scalar data. If required, you can re-position legends by dragging them anywhere inside a view, as well as change their orientation and size.
Legends
Do the following to change the orientation and/or size of a legend:
You can choose a default orientation for legends in the 2D Settings preferences (see Selecting the 2D Settings Preferences).
A floating scale bar is available for 2D views to show the relative size of an object. If required, you can re-position the scale bar by dragging it anywhere inside a display.
You can also set its length as follows:
To reset the scale bar, right-click and then choose Set Default Length in the pop-up menu.
Orientation Indicators and Axis Colors
2D views include markers at the top, bottom, and sides that indicate the orientation of the view. In addition, axis representations are color-coded. This color coding is also applied to the crosshair of the 3D Cursor (see Using the 3D Cursor) and in the Slice Analysis panel (see Analyzing Slices).
Two active view icons — Camera and View — are available for the current 2D view.
The Marked Slices box, which appears at the bottom right of image plane views of selected datasets, can be used to create a key image within an image stack. Functions implemented for marked slices include interpolation, replacement, and removal of unrepresentative slices in an image stack, as well as extracting new datasets from marked slices (see Marking Slices and Modifying Image Stacks).
A right-click or pop-up menu for 2D views provides easy access to the different views available for a dataset and to simple manipulations, such as flips and rotations.
Description | |
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3D |
Changes the selected view to 3D mode (see 3D Views). |
XY |
Changes the selected view to the XY axis representation. |
XZ |
Changes the selected view to the XZ axis representation. |
YZ |
Changes the selected view to the YZ axis representation. |
Image Plane |
Changes the selected view to the image plane representation. This is the plane in which the data was acquired. |
Orthogonalize Other 2D Views |
When selected for a view in Oblique mode, automatically orthogonalizes other 2D views in the current scene (see Creating Oblique Views). |
Set Slab Thickness* |
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Start Slice Analysis |
Opens the Slice Analysis panel, in which you can compute a range of measurements for each slice within a dataset and for the dataset as a whole (see Analyzing Slices). |
Flip/Rotate |
Flips and rotates the view (see Flipping and Rotating Views). |
Show Marked Slices Indicator** |
Toggles the visibility of the Marked Slices Indicator, which appears only on image plane views. Refer to Items Available for Image Plane Views for information about the menu items available for marked image slices. |
Default View |
Changes the selected display to its assigned default view. For example, if you change the view assigned to the XY axis representation to 3D and then choose Default View, the XY axis representation should re-appear. |
Maximize View |
Maximizes the view within the current scene. |
Export Screenshot of View |
Lets you export a screenshot of the view. The size of the exported screenshot is selectable in the Screenshot Size dialog. |
* Available for views in Slab mode only.
** Available for image plane views only.
The following additional menu items are available for image plane views.
Description | |
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Show/Hide Marked Slices Indicator |
Toggles the visibility of the Marked Slices Indicator (see Marking Image Slices). |
Mark All Slices |
Marks all slices in the image stack (see Marking Image Slices). |
Unmark All Slices |
Unmarks all slices in the image stack (see Marking Image Slices). |
Mark slices |
Lets you mark a range of image slices (see Marking Image Slices). |
Copy Marked Slice to Current Slice |
Lets you copy a marked slice to the current image slice (see Copying Marked Slices). |
Remove All Marked Slices |
Removes all marked slices in an image stack (see Removing Image Slices). |
Simple Marked Slices Replacement |
Interpolates marked slices in an image stack (see Interpolating Image Slices). |