Rotation Ring Gizmo — Rotate 3D Objects Interactively
When a 3D object is selected in the 3D editor, a three-ring rotation gizmo appears around it. Each colored ring controls rotation around one world axis. Drag to rotate freely, hold Shift to snap to 15° steps, or type exact values directly in the Transform HUD.
The rotation gizmo appears automatically whenever a 3D shape is selected in the 3D editor view. It consists of three rings:
- Red ring — X axis (pitch: tilting forward/backward)
- Green ring — Y axis (roll: tilting side to side)
- Blue ring — Z axis (yaw: rotating horizontally)
The gizmo can be toggled on or off from the toolbar if it obstructs the view.
Drag a ring to rotate
Click and drag on any of the three colored rings to rotate the object around that axis:
- Red ring (X) — pitch the object forward or backward
- Green ring (Y) — roll the object left or right
- Blue ring (Z) — yaw/spin the object horizontally
As you drag, the current rotation angle is shown as a tooltip near the cursor and simultaneously updated in the Transform HUD rotation fields.
Release the mouse to confirm the rotation.
For most garden objects — planters, furniture, structures — you will primarily use the blue Z ring to orient the object horizontally on the ground plane.
Hold Shift to snap to 15° increments
While dragging any ring, hold Shift to enable angle snapping. The rotation will snap to 15° increments: 0°, 15°, 30°, 45°, 60°, 90°, and so on.
This makes it easy to align objects at right angles (90°), diagonal (45°), or other common orientations without needing to type exact values.
The Transform HUD displays the snapped value as you drag.
Use Shift-snap on the Z ring to quickly orient gates, pergolas, or structures at exactly 90° or 45° to the garden boundary.
Reset rotation or enter exact values
Reset rotation to zero: Click the center sphere of the gizmo. All three rotation axes are reset to 0°, returning the object to its default upright orientation.
Enter an exact rotation value: Click any rotation field in the Transform HUD (X, Y, or Z rotation) and type the desired angle in degrees. Press Enter or Tab to apply.
Toggle gizmo visibility: Click the rotation gizmo button in the toolbar to hide the rings when they are not needed. The object can still be rotated via the Transform HUD fields when the gizmo is hidden.
The four small spheres spaced evenly around the ring are drag handles that give you a larger hit target. Grabbing one of them works exactly the same as dragging the ring itself.
Use soft snapping for clean angles
As you drag, the gizmo automatically soft-snaps to the eight common angles: 0°, 45°, 90°, 135°, 180°, 225°, 270°, and 315°. When your pointer enters the approach zone near one of these angles the object locks on, making it effortless to align a fence gate exactly at 90° or a diagonal path at 45°.
To bypass snapping and rotate freely to any intermediate angle, hold Shift while dragging. Release Shift to re-enable snapping.
Soft snapping applies automatically — you do not need to enable it. Hold Shift only when you deliberately need an angle between the snap targets, then release to snap again.
Type an exact angle in the bubble
For a precise value, click the angle bubble displayed on the ring. A text input appears; type the desired rotation in degrees and press Enter to commit, or press Escape to cancel without changing the rotation.
You can also edit rotation values numerically in the Inspector panel while the object is selected, which accepts the same degree values.
The ring scales to a constant size on screen regardless of how close or far you are zoomed. This means you can always grab it comfortably even when working with very small or very large objects.
To quickly face a structure toward a specific compass bearing, rotate it by the Y axis and type the exact bearing in degrees into the angle bubble. North = 0°, East = 90°, South = 180°, West = 270°.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is only one rotation ring showing instead of three?
By design, the gizmo shows exactly one ring at a time. A single visible ring makes the active axis unambiguous and keeps the 3D view clean. To rotate around a different axis, click Lock X, Lock Y, or Lock Z in the Transform HUD — the ring switches color and axis immediately.
Does rotating an object change its position?
No. The ring spins the object around its own center point. The object stays in the same position on the canvas. To move it, switch the Transform HUD to Move mode.
How do I rotate to an angle that is not one of the snap values?
Hold Shift while dragging to bypass soft snapping and rotate to any angle freely. Alternatively, click the angle bubble on the ring and type the exact degree value directly.
The ring is hard to grab on a large object — what can I do?
The ring always appears at a constant size on screen, so zooming in or out does not help or hurt. Try grabbing one of the four cardinal handle spheres evenly spaced around the ring — they provide a larger click target. If the ring still feels small, zoom your camera closer to the object to increase precision.
Can I rotate multiple selected objects at once?
Yes. Select multiple 3D objects using Shift-click or a selection box, then enter Rotate mode. The ring appears at the center of the selection and all selected objects rotate together around that shared pivot point.