In this Vectorworks tutorial, Brandon PT Davis—Theatrical Scenic Designer—guides you through the fundamentals of Sheet Layers, which are essential for creating printable drafting plates from your design layers. If Design Layers are where you draw, Sheet Layers are where you present.

Brandon begins by introducing the Sheet Layer tab in the Navigation Palette, explaining how each sheet corresponds to a printed page. You’ll learn how to:

• Navigate to and rename sheet layers

• Modify sheet numbers, titles, DPI, and stacking order

• Insert preloaded title blocks and borders using the Title Block Border Tool

• Align title block fields with sheet data via the Title Block Manager

Once the sheet layout is ready, the tutorial covers how to create Viewports—the core method for placing drawings onto a sheet. Brandon demonstrates how to:

• Create a crop rectangle around the desired 2D drawing

• Use View > Create Viewport to generate a viewport linked to your Sheet Layer

• Name and label viewports with drawing numbers and titles

• Adjust viewport scale (e.g., from 1/4" = 1'-0" to 1/2" = 1'-0")

• Modify drawing titles directly in the Object Info Palette

• Rename viewports in the Navigation Palette to keep large drawing sets organized

Hotkeys & Tips:

• Ctrl/Cmd + Apostrophe (’): Quick-create a viewport from a selection

• Always name viewports descriptively for clarity in complex drawing sets

• Title blocks auto-populate from Sheet Layer and Viewport info

This tutorial is ideal for anyone preparing draft plates for scenic designs, elevations, or light plots, and builds directly on your understanding of design layers.