diff --git a/apps/studio/config/sensors/finger/scene/finger-display-1.0.0.oryscene b/apps/studio/config/sensors/finger/scene/finger-display-1.0.0.oryscene
index e9816b3..3efa300 100644
Binary files a/apps/studio/config/sensors/finger/scene/finger-display-1.0.0.oryscene and b/apps/studio/config/sensors/finger/scene/finger-display-1.0.0.oryscene differ
diff --git a/apps/studio/src/orisys_studio/scene3d/camera.py b/apps/studio/src/orisys_studio/scene3d/camera.py
index babc5bc..657bc33 100644
--- a/apps/studio/src/orisys_studio/scene3d/camera.py
+++ b/apps/studio/src/orisys_studio/scene3d/camera.py
@@ -9,6 +9,15 @@ Conventions (design document §3.1): sensor frame, right-handed, metres; column
 vectors, so ``p_camera = view @ p_sensor`` and ``p_clip = projection @ p_camera``.
 The view matrix is built from a target, a distance and two angles, which is what
 makes orbit/pan/zoom trivial and keeps "reset" exact rather than approximate.
+
+The two angles are measured in a **turntable frame**: a pole (the axis the current
+view calls up) and two axes spanning the plane perpendicular to it. The pole is the
+applied preset's own ``up``, so the design export's +Z is the pole for every view
+that has it as its up — a drag then spins the part about the axis the picture calls
+vertical, instead of about the sensor's own Z, which is *not* vertical for this
+export. Keeping the pole out of the sensor's axes is also what lets a preset looking
+straight down the frame's up (``top``) be reproduced exactly: with the sensor's Z as
+the pole it would land on the pole and a drag would have nowhere to go.
 """
 
 from __future__ import annotations
@@ -23,13 +32,16 @@ from orisys_app_shared.scene3d.contracts import (
     CameraPreset,
     freeze,
 )
+from orisys_app_shared.scene3d.framing import fit_distance_m, screen_basis
 
 #: Distance limits, in metres: close enough to inspect a 20 mm part, far enough
 #: not to lose a 10 cm one. The far plane follows the distance, so precision stays
 #: usable at both ends instead of being decided once.
 MIN_DISTANCE_M = 0.005
 MAX_DISTANCE_M = 5.0
-#: Radians per pixel of drag, and the pitch limit that keeps the up vector sane.
+#: Radians per pixel of drag, and the limit that keeps the pole out of the picture
+#: plane: at exactly 90° off the turntable's equator the reference up is parallel to
+#: the view direction, so the up vector would have to be invented.
 ORBIT_RAD_PER_PX = 0.008
 MAX_PITCH_RAD = math.radians(89.0)
 #: Zoom per wheel step.
@@ -53,30 +65,50 @@ class OrbitCamera:
     aspect: float = 1.0
     _fitted_radius_m: float = 0.05
     _preset_name: str | None = None
+    #: The turntable frame: ``_pole_sensor`` is the axis the angles are measured
+    #: against (the current view's up) and the other two span the plane across it.
+    #: They are aimed by :meth:`set_preset`; a camera nobody has given a preset keeps
+    #: the sensor's own basis, which is what ``reset`` returns to.
+    _pole_sensor: np.ndarray | None = None
+    _e1_sensor: np.ndarray | None = None
+    _e2_sensor: np.ndarray | None = None
+
+    def __post_init__(self) -> None:
+        self.up_sensor = _unit(self.up_sensor, np.array([0.0, 0.0, 1.0]))
+        if self._pole_sensor is None:
+            # The sensor basis, with yaw = pitch = 0 looking along -Y: the direction a
+            # camera starts in when no asset has said otherwise.
+            self._aim_turntable(
+                np.array([0.0, 0.0, 1.0], dtype=np.float64),
+                np.array([0.0, -1.0, 0.0], dtype=np.float64),
+            )
 
     # ------------------------------------------------------------------- setup
     def fit(self, bounds_sensor_m: F32, aspect: float) -> None:
         """Frame the whole scene from the bounds, without changing the angles.
 
-        The distance is derived from the bounding sphere and the *narrower* of the
-        two field-of-view axes, so a wide window does not clip the model
-        vertically while a tall one does not clip it horizontally.
+        The distance is the one ``framing.fit_distance_m`` solves for: the box's own
+        corners projected into this camera's frame, so the binding axis lands on
+        ``FILL_FRACTION`` of the viewport and nothing is clipped. A bounding *sphere*
+        would leave a square-ish part filling barely half of a wide window, which is
+        not what "zoom to extent" means.
         """
         bounds = np.asarray(bounds_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64)
         if bounds.shape != (2, 3):
             raise ValueError(f"bounds must be [2,3], got {bounds.shape}")
         low, high = bounds[0], bounds[1]
         self.target_sensor_m = (low + high) * 0.5
-        radius = float(np.linalg.norm(high - low) * 0.5)
-        self._fitted_radius_m = max(radius, 1e-6)
+        self._fitted_radius_m = max(float(np.linalg.norm(high - low) * 0.5), 1e-6)
         self.aspect = max(float(aspect), 1e-6)
         self.vertical_fov_rad = _clamp(self.vertical_fov_rad, 0.1, 2.6)
-        vertical_half = 0.5 * self.vertical_fov_rad
-        horizontal_half = math.atan(math.tan(vertical_half) * self.aspect)
-        half = min(vertical_half, horizontal_half)
-        # A little margin, so the silhouette is not flush with the edge.
         self.distance_m = _clamp(
-            self._fitted_radius_m / max(math.sin(half), 1e-6) * 1.15,
+            fit_distance_m(
+                bounds,
+                self._direction(),
+                self.up_sensor,
+                self.aspect,
+                self.vertical_fov_rad,
+            ),
             MIN_DISTANCE_M,
             MAX_DISTANCE_M,
         )
@@ -84,8 +116,11 @@ class OrbitCamera:
     def set_preset(self, preset: CameraPreset) -> None:
         """Point the camera where the asset says its default view is.
 
-        The preset's ``eye`` is turned into yaw/pitch/distance around its target,
-        so a later drag continues from the preset instead of jumping.
+        The preset's ``eye`` is turned into yaw/pitch/distance in the preset's own
+        frame, so a later drag continues from the preset instead of jumping. The
+        preset's ``up`` becomes the turntable's pole *and* the camera's up, which is
+        why the view is reproduced exactly rather than to within the pole's reach:
+        every preset here has its up perpendicular to its view direction.
         """
         eye = np.asarray(preset.eye_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64)
         target = np.asarray(preset.target_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64)
@@ -94,13 +129,19 @@ class OrbitCamera:
         distance = float(np.linalg.norm(offset))
         if distance <= 0.0:
             raise ValueError(f"preset {preset.name!r} puts the eye on the target")
+        pole = _unit(up, np.array([0.0, 0.0, 1.0]))
+        direction = offset / distance
+        self._aim_turntable(pole, direction)
+        pole, e1, e2 = self._turntable()
         self.target_sensor_m = target
         self.distance_m = _clamp(distance, MIN_DISTANCE_M, MAX_DISTANCE_M)
-        self.up_sensor = up / max(float(np.linalg.norm(up)), 1e-9)
-        direction = offset / distance
-        self.pitch_rad = _clamp(math.asin(_clamp(direction[2], -1.0, 1.0)),
-                                -MAX_PITCH_RAD, MAX_PITCH_RAD)
-        self.yaw_rad = math.atan2(direction[0], -direction[1])
+        self.up_sensor = pole
+        self.pitch_rad = _clamp(
+            math.asin(_clamp(float(direction @ pole), -1.0, 1.0)),
+            -MAX_PITCH_RAD,
+            MAX_PITCH_RAD,
+        )
+        self.yaw_rad = math.atan2(float(direction @ e1), -float(direction @ e2))
         self.vertical_fov_rad = _clamp(float(preset.vertical_fov_rad), 0.1, 2.6)
         self._preset_name = preset.name
 
@@ -115,7 +156,6 @@ class OrbitCamera:
 
     def pan(self, delta_px: tuple[float, float], viewport: tuple[int, int]) -> None:
         """Slide the target in the view plane, scaled so it tracks the cursor."""
-        width = max(int(viewport[0]), 1)
         height = max(int(viewport[1]), 1)
         dx, dy = float(delta_px[0]), float(delta_px[1])
         world_per_px = (
@@ -156,15 +196,7 @@ class OrbitCamera:
         # ``cross(backward, up)`` yields a left-handed basis (det = -1), which
         # mirrors the whole model.
         backward = self._direction()
-        up = np.asarray(self.up_sensor, dtype=np.float64)
-        right = np.cross(up, backward)
-        norm = float(np.linalg.norm(right))
-        if norm < 1e-8:
-            # Looking straight down the up axis: pick any stable right vector.
-            right = np.array([1.0, 0.0, 0.0])
-            norm = 1.0
-        right = right / norm
-        true_up = np.cross(backward, right)
+        right, true_up = screen_basis(backward, self.up_sensor)
         view = np.eye(4, dtype=np.float64)
         view[0, :3], view[1, :3], view[2, :3] = right, true_up, backward
         view[0, 3] = -float(np.dot(right, eye))
@@ -194,30 +226,67 @@ class OrbitCamera:
         return (near, far)
 
     # ------------------------------------------------------------------- helpers
+    def _aim_turntable(self, pole: np.ndarray, backward: np.ndarray) -> None:
+        """Aim the turntable frame: ``pole`` is its axis, ``backward`` fixes the yaw.
+
+        ``e2`` is the in-plane direction opposite the given view direction, so
+        ``yaw = pitch = 0`` reproduces it; ``e1`` completes a right-handed basis.
+        """
+        pole = _unit(pole, np.array([0.0, 0.0, 1.0], dtype=np.float64))
+        candidate = np.asarray(backward, dtype=np.float64)
+        candidate = candidate - pole * float(candidate @ pole)
+        if float(np.linalg.norm(candidate)) < 1e-9:
+            # The view direction is along the pole: no view is rolled by the choice, so
+            # keep the turntable's current in-plane axis if there is one.
+            if self._e2_sensor is not None:
+                candidate = np.asarray(self._e2_sensor, dtype=np.float64)
+                candidate = candidate - pole * float(candidate @ pole)
+            if float(np.linalg.norm(candidate)) < 1e-9:
+                fallback = (
+                    np.array([0.0, 0.0, 1.0])
+                    if abs(float(pole[2])) < 0.9
+                    else np.array([0.0, 1.0, 0.0])
+                )
+                candidate = np.cross(pole, fallback)
+        e2 = -candidate / float(np.linalg.norm(candidate))
+        e1 = np.cross(e2, pole)
+        e1 = e1 / max(float(np.linalg.norm(e1)), 1e-15)
+        self._pole_sensor = pole
+        self._e1_sensor = e1
+        self._e2_sensor = e2
+
+    def _turntable(self) -> tuple[np.ndarray, np.ndarray, np.ndarray]:
+        """The aimed ``(pole, e1, e2)``; ``__post_init__`` guarantees they exist."""
+        if (
+            self._pole_sensor is None
+            or self._e1_sensor is None
+            or self._e2_sensor is None
+        ):
+            raise RuntimeError("the camera's turntable frame was never aimed")
+        return self._pole_sensor, self._e1_sensor, self._e2_sensor
+
     def _direction(self) -> np.ndarray:
-        """Unit vector from the target towards the eye."""
+        """Unit vector from the target towards the eye, in the turntable frame."""
+        pole, e1, e2 = self._turntable()
         cos_pitch = math.cos(self.pitch_rad)
-        return np.array(
-            [
-                cos_pitch * math.sin(self.yaw_rad),
-                -cos_pitch * math.cos(self.yaw_rad),
-                math.sin(self.pitch_rad),
-            ],
-            dtype=np.float64,
+        direction = (
+            cos_pitch * (math.sin(self.yaw_rad) * e1 - math.cos(self.yaw_rad) * e2)
+            + math.sin(self.pitch_rad) * pole
         )
+        return direction / max(float(np.linalg.norm(direction)), 1e-15)
 
     def _basis(self) -> tuple[np.ndarray, np.ndarray]:
         """``(right, up)`` of the camera, in the same handedness as ``matrices``."""
-        backward = self._direction()
-        up = np.asarray(self.up_sensor, dtype=np.float64)
-        right = np.cross(up, backward)
-        norm = float(np.linalg.norm(right))
-        if norm < 1e-8:
-            right = np.array([1.0, 0.0, 0.0])
-            norm = 1.0
-        right = right / norm
-        true_up = np.cross(backward, right)
-        return right, true_up / max(float(np.linalg.norm(true_up)), 1e-9)
+        return screen_basis(self._direction(), self.up_sensor)
+
+
+def _unit(value: np.ndarray, fallback: np.ndarray) -> np.ndarray:
+    """``value`` as a unit vector, or ``fallback`` when it has no direction."""
+    array = np.asarray(value, dtype=np.float64)
+    norm = float(np.linalg.norm(array))
+    if norm < 1e-12:
+        return np.array(fallback, dtype=np.float64)
+    return array / norm
 
 
 def _clamp(value: float, low: float, high: float) -> float:
diff --git a/apps/studio/src/orisys_studio/scene3d/view.py b/apps/studio/src/orisys_studio/scene3d/view.py
index ba759d2..a981d7c 100644
--- a/apps/studio/src/orisys_studio/scene3d/view.py
+++ b/apps/studio/src/orisys_studio/scene3d/view.py
@@ -422,10 +422,34 @@ class Scene3DView(QWidget):
                 except ValueError as exc:
                     logger.warning("ignoring preset %s: %s", name, exc)
                     return
+                # Every preset is framed, not only the first picture. A preset carries
+                # the distance the compiler could state without knowing this pane's
+                # shape, and adopting it blindly is what used to zoom the part until it
+                # overflowed the viewport the moment an operator picked a view.
+                self.fit_view()
                 if self._widget is not None:
                     self._widget.update()
                 return
 
+    def fit_view(self) -> None:
+        """Zoom to extent: frame what the pane draws, at this pane's own aspect.
+
+        The same call the first paint makes, so "the default view" and "reset" and
+        "pick a preset" all mean one thing. ``OrbitCamera.fit`` keeps the angles, so
+        this changes the distance and the target only.
+        """
+        if self._assets is None:
+            return
+        aspect = float(self._camera.aspect)
+        bounds = None
+        if self._widget is not None:
+            width, height = self._widget.viewport_pixels()
+            aspect = width / max(height, 1)
+            bounds = self._widget.fit_bounds()
+        self._camera.fit(
+            self._assets.bounds_sensor_m if bounds is None else bounds, aspect
+        )
+
     def reset_view(self) -> None:
         """Go back to the view the asset itself calls its own.
 
diff --git a/apps/studio/src/orisys_studio/scene3d/widget.py b/apps/studio/src/orisys_studio/scene3d/widget.py
index 258e8b2..1ed7a30 100644
--- a/apps/studio/src/orisys_studio/scene3d/widget.py
+++ b/apps/studio/src/orisys_studio/scene3d/widget.py
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@ from __future__ import annotations
 
 import time
 
+import numpy as np
 from orisys_app_shared.scene3d.contracts import (
     Diagnostic,
     DisplaySettings,
@@ -28,6 +29,7 @@ from orisys_app_shared.scene3d.contracts import (
     SceneAssets,
     diagnostic,
 )
+from orisys_app_shared.scene3d.framing import drawn_bounds
 from PySide6.QtCore import QEvent, Qt, Signal
 from PySide6.QtGui import QMouseEvent, QWheelEvent
 
@@ -146,6 +148,23 @@ class Sensor3DWidget(QOpenGLWidget):
             max(int(round(self.height() * ratio)), 1),
         )
 
+    def fit_bounds(self) -> np.ndarray:
+        """The bounds the camera should frame: what this pane will actually draw.
+
+        The sensing surface always; the housing only while it is shown, because
+        framing a 15.8 mm surface while a 21 mm frame is on screen crops the part the
+        operator just asked to inspect. Falls back to the asset's own statement when
+        there are no parts to measure.
+        """
+        if self._assets is None:
+            return np.zeros((2, 3), dtype=np.float32)
+        bounds = drawn_bounds(
+            self._assets.parts, housing_visible=bool(self._settings.housing_visible)
+        )
+        if bounds is None:
+            return np.asarray(self._assets.bounds_sensor_m, dtype=np.float32)
+        return bounds.astype(np.float32)
+
     # ------------------------------------------------------------ Qt overrides
     def initializeGL(self) -> None:  # pragma: no cover - needs a real context
         try:
@@ -200,7 +219,7 @@ class Sensor3DWidget(QOpenGLWidget):
                         self._camera.set_preset(presets[0])
                     except ValueError:
                         pass
-                self._camera.fit(self._assets.bounds_sensor_m, self._aspect())
+                self._camera.fit(self.fit_bounds(), self._aspect())
             if self._needs_surface_upload and self._frame is not None:
                 frame, self._frame = self._frame, None
                 self._needs_surface_upload = False
@@ -293,12 +312,12 @@ class Sensor3DWidget(QOpenGLWidget):
         try:
             self.makeCurrent()
             self._renderer.release()
-        except Exception:  # noqa: BLE001 - teardown must not raise on the way out
+        except Exception:  # noqa: BLE001, S110 - teardown must not raise on the way out
             pass
         finally:
             try:
                 self.doneCurrent()
-            except Exception:  # noqa: BLE001
+            except Exception:  # noqa: BLE001, S110 - as above: nothing left to report to
                 pass
 
     def hideEvent(self, event: QEvent) -> None:  # pragma: no cover - Qt event
diff --git a/apps/studio/tests/test_scene3d_frame_views.py b/apps/studio/tests/test_scene3d_frame_views.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..dc6f08a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/studio/tests/test_scene3d_frame_views.py
@@ -0,0 +1,394 @@
+"""The camera presets, stated in the design export's own frame.
+
+The frame the finger is drawn in is not the sensor's: the Blender export writes the mesh
+into the ``origin_sensor`` empty's frame, and the compile bridges the two with a fitted
+rigid transform. The columns of that transform's rotation block *are* the empty's X, Y and
+Z expressed in the sensor frame, so those three vectors are the whole definition of "which
+way is up" for this asset — and every preset here is stated in them rather than in the
+sensing surface's own face normal, which is tilted 24.6° off the frame's +Y.
+
+The assertions are numeric on purpose. "The picture looks right" is what let a preset sit
+122.7° from the surface it was pointing at; what is checked here is that the frame's +Z
+lands on the screen's up axis, that +X lands on the left, and that the model's own bounds
+occupy a stated fraction of the viewport — through the same matrices the GPU is handed.
+"""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+from pathlib import Path
+
+import numpy as np
+import pytest
+from orisys_app_shared.scene3d.legacy import (
+    default_finger_presets,
+    sensing_surface_normal,
+)
+from orisys_app_shared.scene3d.package import read_package, scene_from_contents
+from orisys_studio.scene3d.camera import MAX_DISTANCE_M, MIN_DISTANCE_M, OrbitCamera
+
+REPO = Path(__file__).resolve().parents[3]
+PACKAGE = REPO / "apps/studio/config/sensors/finger/scene/finger-display-1.0.0.oryscene"
+RIGID = REPO / "tools/scene_assets/housing/finger_r01_design_to_sensor_rigid_m.npy"
+
+#: The frame's axes are recovered to float noise, and the matrices the camera hands out
+#: are float32, so 1e-6 is the honest tolerance for a direction that must be exact.
+EXACT = 1e-6
+#: A step of a millimetre across a ~32 mm view is about 0.1 in NDC; 0.02 is a 5x margin.
+VISIBLE_STEP = 0.02
+#: How much of the viewport the model's bounds must occupy on the axis that binds.
+FILL_MIN = 0.60
+FILL_MAX = 0.95
+
+
+def _scene():
+    if not PACKAGE.is_file():
+        pytest.skip(f"the shipped finger package is missing: {PACKAGE}")
+    return scene_from_contents(read_package(PACKAGE), None)
+
+
+def _transform() -> np.ndarray:
+    if not RIGID.is_file():
+        pytest.skip(f"the fitted design frame is missing: {RIGID}")
+    return np.load(RIGID, allow_pickle=False)
+
+
+def _frame() -> tuple[np.ndarray, np.ndarray, np.ndarray]:
+    """The empty's X, Y and Z in the sensor frame: the transform's columns."""
+    rotation = _transform()[:3, :3]
+    return rotation[:, 0], rotation[:, 1], rotation[:, 2]
+
+
+def _presets():
+    """What the compiler derives for the shipped package, from the stated frame."""
+    assets = _scene()
+    sensing = assets.sensing_part()
+    return assets, default_finger_presets(
+        assets.bounds_sensor_m,
+        positions_sensor_m=np.asarray(sensing.positions_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64),
+        triangles=np.asarray(sensing.triangles, dtype=np.int64),
+        source_frame_sensor=_transform()[:3, :3],
+    )
+
+
+def _project(
+    camera: OrbitCamera, points: np.ndarray, viewport=(640, 480)
+) -> np.ndarray:
+    """NDC coordinates of sensor-space points, through the real matrices."""
+    matrices = camera.matrices(viewport)
+    view = np.asarray(matrices.view, dtype=np.float64)
+    projection = np.asarray(matrices.projection, dtype=np.float64)
+    homogeneous = np.concatenate(
+        [np.asarray(points, dtype=np.float64), np.ones((len(points), 1))], axis=1
+    )
+    clip = (projection @ (view @ homogeneous.T)).T
+    return clip[:, :3] / clip[:, 3:4]
+
+
+def _camera_for(preset, assets, aspect=4 / 3, viewport=(640, 480)) -> OrbitCamera:
+    camera = OrbitCamera()
+    camera.set_preset(preset)
+    camera.fit(assets.bounds_sensor_m, aspect)
+    return camera
+
+
+def _screen_axes(camera: OrbitCamera, viewport=(640, 480)) -> tuple[np.ndarray, ...]:
+    """``(right, up, backward)`` of the camera, taken from the view matrix it hands out."""
+    view = np.asarray(camera.matrices(viewport).view, dtype=np.float64)
+    return view[0, :3], view[1, :3], view[2, :3]
+
+
+def _bounds_fractions(
+    assets, camera: OrbitCamera, viewport
+) -> tuple[float, float, float, float]:
+    """``(span_x, span_y, reach_x, reach_y)`` of the model's bounds, in NDC.
+
+    ``span`` is how much of the axis the bounds cover; ``reach`` is how near the edge
+    they come. They differ under perspective — the corner towards the eye projects wider
+    than the one behind it — so a fit is stated as a ``reach`` and "it fills the
+    viewport" is the weaker ``span``.
+    """
+    bounds = np.asarray(assets.bounds_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64)
+    corners = np.array(
+        [[i, j, k] for i in (0.0, 1.0) for j in (0.0, 1.0) for k in (0.0, 1.0)],
+        dtype=np.float64,
+    )
+    ndc = _project(camera, bounds[0] + corners * (bounds[1] - bounds[0]), viewport)
+    span = np.ptp(ndc[:, :2], axis=0) / 2.0
+    reach = np.abs(ndc[:, :2]).max(axis=0)
+    return float(span[0]), float(span[1]), float(reach[0]), float(reach[1])
+
+
+def _step_towards(camera: OrbitCamera, axis: np.ndarray, viewport) -> np.ndarray:
+    """The NDC displacement produced by a 1 mm step along a world axis, at the target."""
+    points = np.stack([camera.target_sensor_m, camera.target_sensor_m + axis * 1e-3])
+    ndc = _project(camera, points, viewport)
+    return ndc[1, :2] - ndc[0, :2]
+
+
+# ------------------------------------------------------------- the stated frame
+def test_the_fitted_transform_columns_are_the_empty_axes() -> None:
+    """The frame is read, not assumed: the transform's columns are orthonormal."""
+    rotation = _transform()[:3, :3]
+    assert np.abs(rotation @ rotation.T - np.eye(3)).max() < 1e-12
+    assert float(np.linalg.det(rotation)) == pytest.approx(1.0, abs=1e-12)
+    frame_x, frame_y, frame_z = _frame()
+    # Recorded here because every preset below is a statement about these three: the
+    # export's +Y is the sensor's -Z, and its +Z (up) is the sensor's -X.
+    assert np.allclose(frame_x, [0.0, 1.0, 0.0], atol=1e-6)
+    assert np.allclose(frame_y, [0.0, 0.0, -1.0], atol=1e-6)
+    assert np.allclose(frame_z, [-1.0, 0.0, 0.0], atol=1e-6)
+
+
+def test_the_default_view_is_the_frames_own_view() -> None:
+    """The default: an eye on the empty's +Y, up along its +Z, +X to the left."""
+    assets, presets = _presets()
+    frame_x, frame_y, frame_z = _frame()
+    assert [preset.name for preset in presets] == ["default", "front", "side", "top"]
+    preset = presets[0]
+    camera = _camera_for(preset, assets)
+    right, true_up, backward = _screen_axes(camera)
+
+    # The view direction and the up are the frame's, exactly.
+    assert float(backward @ frame_y) == pytest.approx(1.0, abs=EXACT), (
+        "+Y is the view axis"
+    )
+    assert float(true_up @ frame_z) == pytest.approx(1.0, abs=EXACT), "+Z is screen up"
+    # ...and screen-right is -X, which is what "+X appears to the left" means.
+    assert float(right @ frame_x) == pytest.approx(-1.0, abs=EXACT), "+X is on the left"
+    # The camera is on the +Y axis: the eye's offset from the target is the frame's +Y.
+    eye = np.asarray(preset.eye_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64) - np.asarray(
+        preset.target_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64
+    )
+    assert float((eye / np.linalg.norm(eye)) @ frame_y) == pytest.approx(1.0, abs=EXACT)
+    # ...and reproduced by the camera, not merely stated by the preset.
+    assert np.allclose(camera.eye_sensor_m(), preset.eye_sensor_m, atol=1e-9)
+
+    # The same statement through the projection: a step along the frame's axes moves
+    # where it must on the screen.
+    towards_x = _step_towards(camera, frame_x, (640, 480))
+    towards_z = _step_towards(camera, frame_z, (640, 480))
+    assert towards_x[0] < -VISIBLE_STEP, "+X must move left, not right"
+    assert abs(float(towards_x[1])) < VISIBLE_STEP / 2.0, "+X must not move up or down"
+    assert towards_z[1] > VISIBLE_STEP, "+Z must move up"
+    assert abs(float(towards_z[0])) < VISIBLE_STEP / 2.0, "+Z must not move sideways"
+
+
+def test_every_preset_states_the_frame_the_same_way() -> None:
+    """The view table: what each preset puts on the screen, axis by axis.
+
+    ``+X`` on the left of ``default``/``front`` is not an accident to be repeated: the
+    ``top`` view is the default one tilted 90° about its own horizontal axis, so it keeps
+    the same left/right; ``side`` looks along ``+X`` and therefore puts ``+Y`` on the
+    right. A view that was rolled would fail the two "no drift" assertions.
+    """
+    assets, presets = _presets()
+    frame_x, frame_y, frame_z = _frame()
+    by_name = {preset.name: preset for preset in presets}
+
+    # (name, eye axis, screen-right, screen-up)
+    table = (
+        ("default", frame_y, -frame_x, frame_z),
+        ("front", frame_y, -frame_x, frame_z),
+        ("side", frame_x, frame_y, frame_z),
+        ("top", frame_z, -frame_x, -frame_y),
+    )
+    for name, eye_axis, expected_right, expected_up in table:
+        camera = _camera_for(by_name[name], assets)
+        right, true_up, backward = _screen_axes(camera)
+        assert float(backward @ eye_axis) == pytest.approx(1.0, abs=EXACT), name
+        assert float(right @ expected_right) == pytest.approx(1.0, abs=EXACT), name
+        assert float(true_up @ expected_up) == pytest.approx(1.0, abs=EXACT), name
+        # The frame's up is screen-up wherever it is not the view axis (which is what
+        # "the view is not rolled" means, stated in the frame's own terms).
+        if name != "top":
+            assert float(true_up @ frame_z) == pytest.approx(1.0, abs=EXACT), name
+        else:
+            assert float(backward @ frame_z) == pytest.approx(1.0, abs=EXACT), name
+        # A left-handed view would mirror the whole model.
+        assert float(
+            np.linalg.det(np.stack([right, true_up, backward]))
+        ) == pytest.approx(1.0, abs=1e-6), name
+
+
+def test_the_presets_are_not_the_surface_normal() -> None:
+    """The superseded heuristic, pinned: the default is not the face normal.
+
+    The pad's mean normal is 24.6° off the frame's +Y, so a preset derived from it cannot
+    sit on the +Y axis. With no frame stated the fallback still uses the normal — that is
+    the repair path for a package an older compiler baked — and that is why this test
+    asserts the difference rather than its absence.
+    """
+    assets, presets = _presets()
+    sensing = assets.sensing_part()
+    normal = sensing_surface_normal(
+        np.asarray(sensing.positions_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64),
+        np.asarray(sensing.triangles, dtype=np.int64),
+    )
+    frame_x, frame_y, frame_z = _frame()
+    assert float(normal @ frame_y) < 0.99, "the fixture no longer distinguishes the two"
+
+    eye = np.asarray(presets[0].eye_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64) - np.asarray(
+        presets[0].target_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64
+    )
+    direction = eye / np.linalg.norm(eye)
+    angle = float(np.degrees(np.arccos(np.clip(direction @ normal, -1.0, 1.0))))
+    assert angle == pytest.approx(24.57, abs=0.1), (
+        f"the default view is {angle:.2f}° off"
+    )
+
+    fallback = default_finger_presets(
+        assets.bounds_sensor_m,
+        positions_sensor_m=np.asarray(sensing.positions_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64),
+        triangles=np.asarray(sensing.triangles, dtype=np.int64),
+        surface_normal_sensor=normal,
+    )
+    fallback_front = np.asarray(
+        fallback[1].eye_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64
+    ) - np.asarray(fallback[1].target_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64)
+    fallback_front = fallback_front / np.linalg.norm(fallback_front)
+    assert float(fallback_front @ normal) > 0.99, (
+        "the no-frame fallback must still look straight at the sensing side of the surface"
+    )
+    fallback_default = np.asarray(
+        fallback[0].eye_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64
+    ) - np.asarray(fallback[0].target_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64)
+    fallback_default = fallback_default / np.linalg.norm(fallback_default)
+    assert float(fallback_default @ normal) == pytest.approx(
+        1.0 / np.sqrt(1.36), abs=1e-6
+    )
+
+
+# --------------------------------------------------------------------- the fit
+def test_the_default_view_fits_the_model_at_two_viewport_sizes() -> None:
+    """Zoom to extent, measured: the bounds fill the viewport, and never clip.
+
+    Both sizes are the same shape as the pane at its usual size, so both axes are inside
+    the band. A wide viewport cannot do that for a square-ish part — the binding axis is
+    asserted on its own below, because "fill 90 % of the height and stay uncropped" is the
+    most a 16:9 window can be given without cropping the model.
+    """
+    assets, presets = _presets()
+    preset = presets[0]
+    bounds = np.asarray(assets.bounds_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64)
+
+    for viewport in ((640, 480), (700, 530)):
+        aspect = viewport[0] / viewport[1]
+        camera = _camera_for(preset, assets, aspect, viewport)
+        assert MIN_DISTANCE_M < camera.distance_m < MAX_DISTANCE_M
+        span_x, span_y, reach_x, reach_y = _bounds_fractions(assets, camera, viewport)
+        # Nothing touches an edge...
+        assert max(reach_x, reach_y) <= FILL_MAX, (viewport, reach_x, reach_y)
+        # ...both axes are filled sensibly...
+        assert span_x >= FILL_MIN, (viewport, span_x)
+        assert span_y >= FILL_MIN, (viewport, span_y)
+        # ...and the axis that binds is tight, which is what "zoom to extent" means.
+        assert max(reach_x, reach_y) >= 0.85, (viewport, reach_x, reach_y)
+        # Nothing is outside the frame, and nothing sits on a frustum plane.
+        corners = np.array(
+            [[i, j, k] for i in (0.0, 1.0) for j in (0.0, 1.0) for k in (0.0, 1.0)],
+            dtype=np.float64,
+        )
+        ndc = _project(camera, bounds[0] + corners * (bounds[1] - bounds[0]), viewport)
+        assert np.all(np.abs(ndc[:, :2]) <= 1.0), (viewport, np.abs(ndc[:, :2]).max())
+        assert np.all(np.abs(ndc[:, 2]) < 0.9), viewport
+
+
+def test_a_wide_viewport_fills_what_the_geometry_allows() -> None:
+    """At 16:9 the vertical binds: no cropping, and the height is still filled."""
+    assets, presets = _presets()
+    viewport = (1280, 720)
+    camera = _camera_for(presets[0], assets, viewport[0] / viewport[1], viewport)
+    span_x, span_y, reach_x, reach_y = _bounds_fractions(assets, camera, viewport)
+    assert reach_y == pytest.approx(0.92, abs=0.01)
+    assert span_y == pytest.approx(0.92, abs=0.02)
+    assert span_x < FILL_MIN, "a square part in a 16:9 window cannot fill both axes"
+    assert span_x > 0.4, span_x
+    assert reach_x <= FILL_MAX, reach_x
+
+
+def test_applying_any_preset_reframes_the_pane(qt_app) -> None:
+    """Every preset is framed, through the pane's own path, at two window sizes.
+
+    The defect this replaces: the first picture was framed, but choosing a view from the
+    combo adopted the preset's baked distance and zoomed the part until it overflowed
+    (measured on the shipped package: 2.16 x 2.12 of the viewport on ``default``).
+    """
+    from orisys_studio.scene3d.view import Scene3DView
+
+    assets = _scene()
+    view = Scene3DView()
+    if not view.available:
+        view.close()
+        pytest.skip(f"no GL view here: {view.reason}")
+    try:
+        assert view.use_scene(assets, source_id="frame-views")
+        seen = set()
+        for size in ((560, 500), (700, 560)):
+            view.resize(*size)
+            view.show()
+            qt_app.processEvents()
+            widget = view.gl_widget
+            viewport = widget.viewport_pixels()
+            seen.add(viewport)
+            for preset in assets.camera_presets:
+                view.apply_preset(preset.name)
+                qt_app.processEvents()
+                span_x, span_y, reach_x, reach_y = _bounds_fractions(
+                    assets, view._camera, viewport
+                )
+                assert max(reach_x, reach_y) <= FILL_MAX, (
+                    size,
+                    preset.name,
+                    reach_x,
+                    reach_y,
+                )
+                assert max(reach_x, reach_y) >= 0.85, (
+                    size,
+                    preset.name,
+                    reach_x,
+                    reach_y,
+                )
+                # Both axes cannot be filled when the view is narrow (``side`` sees a
+                # 7.5 x 15.8 mm profile in a 1.19:1 viewport), so what is asserted is that
+                # the axis the fit binds on is filled and the other is not cropped.
+                assert max(span_x, span_y) >= FILL_MIN, (
+                    size,
+                    preset.name,
+                    span_x,
+                    span_y,
+                )
+        assert len(seen) == 2, f"the two window sizes gave one viewport: {seen}"
+    finally:
+        view.close()
+
+
+def test_a_drag_in_the_default_view_spins_about_the_frames_up() -> None:
+    """The turntable's pole is the frame's +Z, so a horizontal drag is not a roll.
+
+    With the sensor's own Z as the pole the default view would sit *on* the pole: a
+    horizontal drag would do nothing at all and a vertical one would tilt the part out of
+    its frame. Measured here as the world axis the target-to-eye direction turns about.
+    """
+    assets, presets = _presets()
+    frame_x, frame_y, frame_z = _frame()
+    camera = _camera_for(presets[0], assets)
+    before = camera.eye_sensor_m() - camera.target_sensor_m
+    camera.orbit((30.0, 0.0), (640, 480))
+    after = camera.eye_sensor_m() - camera.target_sensor_m
+    assert np.linalg.norm(after - before) > 1e-4, "a horizontal drag did nothing"
+    # A rotation about the frame's up keeps the vector perpendicular to it, and keeps
+    # the frame's up fixed on the screen's up axis.
+    assert float(after @ frame_z) == pytest.approx(0.0, abs=1e-9)
+    _right, true_up, _backward = _screen_axes(camera)
+    assert float(true_up @ frame_z) == pytest.approx(1.0, abs=EXACT), (
+        "the drag rolled it"
+    )
+
+    # A rightward drag swings the eye towards the frame's -X (the screen's right is -X),
+    # so the part itself appears to turn to the right: a turntable, not a roll.
+    camera = _camera_for(presets[0], assets)
+    camera.orbit((30.0, 0.0), (640, 480))
+    moved = camera.eye_sensor_m() - camera.target_sensor_m
+    moved = moved / np.linalg.norm(moved)
+    assert float(moved @ frame_x) < 0.0
+    assert float(moved @ frame_y) > 0.0
diff --git a/shared/src/orisys_app_shared/scene3d/framing.py b/shared/src/orisys_app_shared/scene3d/framing.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0a9a96d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/shared/src/orisys_app_shared/scene3d/framing.py
@@ -0,0 +1,162 @@
+"""Where to put a camera so a box fills the viewport.
+
+One implementation, two callers: the compiler bakes every ``CameraPreset`` with
+:func:`fit_distance_m`, and the Studio's orbit camera re-frames a preset with the same
+call. Two implementations would let the picture the asset states and the picture the
+pane draws disagree, which is the defect class this module exists to remove.
+
+The camera *basis* lives here too. ``right = cross(up, backward)`` is easy to get
+backwards — that yields a left-handed basis and mirrors the model — so it is written
+once, with the one fallback for the degenerate case.
+
+Units are the asset's: metres in the sensor frame, column vectors.
+"""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+from collections.abc import Iterable
+from typing import Any
+
+import numpy as np
+
+#: Fraction of the viewport the box's projected bounds are made to occupy, on the
+#: axis that binds. Under 1.0 so the silhouette is never flush with the edge, high
+#: enough that "zoom to extent" means what it says. A square-ish model in a wide
+#: viewport cannot reach this on both axes at once: the other axis gets
+#: ``fill · (model aspect) / (viewport aspect)``, and cropping the model to do
+#: better is not framing.
+FILL_FRACTION = 0.92
+
+#: Metres. A degenerate box (one point) still needs the camera outside it.
+MIN_FIT_DISTANCE_M = 1e-4
+
+#: The eight corners of a box, in the order (x, y, z) = (low/high).
+_CORNERS = np.array(
+    [[i, j, k] for i in (0.0, 1.0) for j in (0.0, 1.0) for k in (0.0, 1.0)],
+    dtype=np.float64,
+)
+
+
+def screen_basis(backward_sensor: Any, up_sensor: Any) -> tuple[np.ndarray, np.ndarray]:
+    """``(right, true_up)`` for a camera looking along ``-backward`` with ``up``.
+
+    ``backward`` points from the target towards the eye. ``right`` is
+    ``cross(up, backward)`` — the *negated* form of ``cross(backward, up)`` — because
+    that combination is the right-handed one; the other mirrors the model. When the
+    two inputs are parallel the camera is at its own pole and no ``right`` is defined,
+    so a stable axis is used rather than a zero vector.
+    """
+    backward = np.asarray(backward_sensor, dtype=np.float64)
+    backward = backward / max(float(np.linalg.norm(backward)), 1e-15)
+    up = np.asarray(up_sensor, dtype=np.float64)
+    right = np.cross(up, backward)
+    norm = float(np.linalg.norm(right))
+    if norm < 1e-8:
+        right = np.array([1.0, 0.0, 0.0], dtype=np.float64)
+        norm = 1.0
+    right = right / norm
+    true_up = np.cross(backward, right)
+    return right, true_up / max(float(np.linalg.norm(true_up)), 1e-15)
+
+
+def fit_distance_m(
+    bounds_sensor_m: Any,
+    backward_sensor: Any,
+    up_sensor: Any,
+    aspect: float,
+    vertical_fov_rad: float,
+    *,
+    fill: float = FILL_FRACTION,
+) -> float:
+    """Distance from the target that makes a box occupy ``fill`` of the viewport.
+
+    The box's eight corners are put in the camera's own frame and each one states how
+    far the eye must be for it to land inside the ``fill`` envelope:
+
+        ``d >= n + |across| / (fill · tan(half_angle))``
+
+    ``n`` is the corner's depth along ``backward``, so a corner nearer the eye pushes
+    the camera back further — which is what makes this a fit for a perspective camera
+    rather than for a bounding sphere. The maximum over the corners and over the two
+    axes is the answer; the binding axis lands exactly on ``fill``.
+    """
+    bounds = np.asarray(bounds_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64)
+    if bounds.shape != (2, 3):
+        raise ValueError(f"bounds must be [2,3], got {bounds.shape}")
+    low, high = bounds[0], bounds[1]
+    centre = (low + high) * 0.5
+    corners = low + _CORNERS * (high - low)
+    right, true_up = screen_basis(backward_sensor, up_sensor)
+    backward = np.asarray(backward_sensor, dtype=np.float64)
+    backward = backward / max(float(np.linalg.norm(backward)), 1e-15)
+
+    aspect = max(float(aspect), 1e-6)
+    vertical = min(max(float(vertical_fov_rad), 0.1), 2.6)
+    tan_v = float(np.tan(0.5 * vertical))
+    # The projection's own relation (``OrbitCamera.matrices`` builds it this way), so
+    # the fit and the frustum cannot disagree about how wide the viewport is.
+    tan_h = tan_v * aspect
+    fill = float(fill)
+
+    relative = corners - centre
+    across_right = relative @ right
+    across_up = relative @ true_up
+    depth = relative @ backward
+    needed = np.maximum(
+        depth + np.abs(across_right) / max(fill * tan_h, 1e-9),
+        depth + np.abs(across_up) / max(fill * tan_v, 1e-9),
+    )
+    return max(float(needed.max()), MIN_FIT_DISTANCE_M)
+
+
+def projected_fractions(
+    bounds_sensor_m: Any,
+    backward_sensor: Any,
+    up_sensor: Any,
+    distance_m: float,
+    aspect: float,
+    vertical_fov_rad: float,
+) -> tuple[float, float]:
+    """``(horizontal, vertical)`` fraction of the viewport the box's bounds occupy.
+
+    The same statement :func:`fit_distance_m` solves for, evaluated rather than
+    solved: 1.0 means the bounds touch both edges of that axis.
+    """
+    bounds = np.asarray(bounds_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64)
+    low, high = bounds[0], bounds[1]
+    centre = (low + high) * 0.5
+    corners = low + _CORNERS * (high - low)
+    right, true_up = screen_basis(backward_sensor, up_sensor)
+    backward = np.asarray(backward_sensor, dtype=np.float64)
+    backward = backward / max(float(np.linalg.norm(backward)), 1e-15)
+    vertical = min(max(float(vertical_fov_rad), 0.1), 2.6)
+    tan_h = np.tan(0.5 * vertical) * max(float(aspect), 1e-6)
+    relative = corners - centre
+    depth = float(distance_m) - relative @ backward
+    horizontal = np.abs(relative @ right) / np.maximum(depth * tan_h, 1e-12)
+    upright = np.abs(relative @ true_up) / np.maximum(
+        depth * np.tan(0.5 * vertical), 1e-12
+    )
+    return float(horizontal.max()), float(upright.max())
+
+
+def drawn_bounds(
+    parts: Iterable[Any], *, housing_visible: bool = False
+) -> np.ndarray | None:
+    """Bounds of the geometry a pane will draw, or ``None`` when it draws nothing.
+
+    The sensing surface is always drawn; the housing only when it is shown. Framing
+    the sensing bounds while the frame is on screen would crop the very part the
+    operator just asked to inspect — on the finger the frame is ~33 % taller than the
+    surface it surrounds.
+    """
+    blocks = [
+        np.asarray(part.positions_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64)
+        for part in parts
+        if part.role == "sensing" or housing_visible
+    ]
+    blocks = [block for block in blocks if block.size]
+    if not blocks:
+        return None
+    points = np.concatenate(blocks, axis=0)
+    return np.stack([points.min(axis=0), points.max(axis=0)]).astype(np.float64)
diff --git a/shared/src/orisys_app_shared/scene3d/legacy.py b/shared/src/orisys_app_shared/scene3d/legacy.py
index 5c906e2..84556a2 100644
--- a/shared/src/orisys_app_shared/scene3d/legacy.py
+++ b/shared/src/orisys_app_shared/scene3d/legacy.py
@@ -54,11 +54,15 @@ from orisys_app_shared.scene3d.digest import (
     geometry_id,
     source_geometry_digest,
 )
+from orisys_app_shared.scene3d.framing import fit_distance_m
 from orisys_app_shared.scene3d.overlays import build_surface_mapping
 
 #: Keys the importer needs, and what it does when they are missing.
 MESH_KEYS = ("vertices", "faces", "uv_data", "loop_to_vertex")
 
+#: Vertical field of view every derived preset states, in radians (~34°).
+DEFAULT_PRESET_FOV_RAD = 0.6
+
 #: The mesh's material: the sensing surface is colour-mapped, never shaded into
 #: looking like a different value.
 SENSING_MATERIAL = Material((0.85, 0.85, 0.88, 1.0), "unlit_scalar", True)
@@ -829,6 +833,13 @@ class LegacyFingerImporter:
                     bounds,
                     positions_sensor_m=positions_sensor,
                     triangles=triangles,
+                    # The export's own axes, which are the transform's rotation block:
+                    # ``transform_sensor_from_source`` maps the frame the mesh was
+                    # written in (the ``origin_sensor`` empty) onto the sensor frame,
+                    # so its columns *are* that frame's X, Y and Z. Stating the views
+                    # in it is what stops the presets from being a guess about which
+                    # side of the surface the camera belongs on.
+                    source_frame_sensor=transform[:3, :3],
                 )
             ),
             bounds_sensor_m=bounds,
@@ -938,10 +949,12 @@ def sensing_surface_normal(
 
     Area-weighted over the triangles (so a dense region does not outvote a large
     face) and oriented away from the mesh's own centroid. This is the direction a
-    camera has to sit on: the sensor's *own* geometry says which side is the sensing
-    side, and a preset that assumes an axis instead is wrong the moment the export's
-    frame rotates (measured: the shipped ``default`` preset sits 122.7° from this
-    normal, i.e. behind the surface).
+    camera has to sit on when nothing states the export's frame: the sensor's *own*
+    geometry says which side is the sensing side, so a package an older compiler baked
+    without a frame can be repaired instead of shown from behind. It is **not** how the
+    presets are derived once the frame is known (:func:`default_finger_presets`): on the
+    finger the pad's normal is 24.6° off the frame's +Y, and the picture belongs in the
+    artist's frame, not tilted to follow a facet.
     """
     positions = np.asarray(positions_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64)
     triangles = np.asarray(triangles, dtype=np.int64)
@@ -965,26 +978,47 @@ def default_finger_presets(
     triangles: np.ndarray | None = None,
     *,
     surface_normal_sensor: np.ndarray | None = None,
+    source_frame_sensor: np.ndarray | None = None,
 ) -> tuple[CameraPreset, ...]:
-    """The default views for a flat sensing surface, in sensor metres.
+    """The default views of a sensing part, in sensor metres.
 
-    Derived from the bounds and from the surface's **own** normal. The absolute axes
-    are not the sensor's: the design export's frame is rotated relative to the SDK
-    asset's, so a preset hard-coded to look down ``+Z`` ends up behind the surface
-    (~123° from its normal), where 96.5% of it is hidden by the frame when the
-    housing is shown. The three-quarter view therefore comes from the mesh: the eye
-    is placed along the outward normal, raised off-axis so the relief is visible.
+    Two derivations, and which one applies is the whole point:
+
+    * **The stated frame** (``source_frame_sensor``, the compile path). The three
+      columns are the design export's own axes — the ``origin_sensor`` empty's X, Y
+      and Z — expressed in the sensor frame, which is exactly the rotation block of
+      the ``--transform`` the compiler is given. The views are then stated in the
+      frame the artist worked in: ``default``/``front`` look along the frame's +Y with
+      +Z up, ``side`` looks along +X, ``top`` looks along +Z. The sensing surface's
+      own normal never enters it, so a tilted pad (the finger's is 24.6° off +Y) does
+      not tilt the picture.
+    * **The mesh's own normal** (no frame stated). A package baked by an older
+      compiler, or the load-time repair path, has no frame to trust, so the eye is put
+      on the outward side of the surface the geometry actually shows. This is the
+      fallback, not the design.
     """
     low, high = np.asarray(bounds_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64)
     centre = (low + high) * 0.5
     span = float(np.max(high - low))
     distance = max(span, 1e-4)
-    normal = surface_normal_sensor
-    if normal is None:
+
+    if source_frame_sensor is not None:
+        return _frame_presets(
+            np.asarray(bounds_sensor_m, dtype=np.float64),
+            source_frame_sensor,
+            centre=centre,
+        )
+
+    if surface_normal_sensor is None:
         if positions_sensor_m is None or triangles is None:
-            normal = np.array([0.0, 0.0, 1.0])
-        else:
-            normal = sensing_surface_normal(positions_sensor_m, triangles)
+            raise error(
+                "geometry_mismatch",
+                "the default views need either the export's source frame or the mesh's "
+                "own surface: without both, the derivation would be a guess",
+            )
+        normal = sensing_surface_normal(positions_sensor_m, triangles)
+    else:
+        normal = surface_normal_sensor
     normal = np.asarray(normal, dtype=np.float64)
     normal = normal / max(float(np.linalg.norm(normal)), 1e-15)
     # In-plane basis for this surface: the principal axes of the vertex cloud with
@@ -1014,8 +1048,7 @@ def default_finger_presets(
 
     return (
         # Three-quarter: 31.0° off the normal, so the surface is seen almost head-on
-        # with enough tilt to show its relief. (The old fixed vector put this 122.7°
-        # away — behind the surface — for the design frame.)
+        # with enough tilt to show its relief.
         CameraPreset("default", eye((1.0 * normal + 0.6 * tangent) / np.sqrt(1.36)),
                      tuple(centre), tuple(normal), 0.6),
         # Straight down the outward normal.
@@ -1027,5 +1060,75 @@ def default_finger_presets(
     )
 
 
+#: The aspect each baked preset is framed for. The pane re-frames at its own shape
+#: (``OrbitCamera.fit``), so this only has to be a sane statement for a consumer that
+#: draws the preset with no viewport of its own — 4:3 is the conservative one.
+PRESET_REFERENCE_ASPECT = 4.0 / 3.0
+
+
+def _frame_presets(
+    bounds_sensor_m: np.ndarray, source_frame_sensor: np.ndarray, *, centre: np.ndarray
+) -> tuple[CameraPreset, ...]:
+    """The four engineering views of the frame the design export states.
+
+    ``source_frame_sensor`` is a 3x3 whose columns are the export's X, Y and Z axes in
+    the sensor frame. Each view is named for what it looks along, and each ``up`` is
+    perpendicular to its own view direction — which is what "not rolled" means, and
+    what lets the pane reproduce the preset exactly.
+    """
+    frame = np.asarray(source_frame_sensor, dtype=np.float64)
+    if frame.shape != (3, 3):
+        raise error(
+            "geometry_mismatch",
+            f"source_frame_sensor must be 3x3, got {frame.shape}",
+        )
+    axes = []
+    for column in range(3):
+        axis = frame[:, column]
+        norm = float(np.linalg.norm(axis))
+        if norm <= 1e-12:
+            raise error("geometry_mismatch", "the source frame has a zero axis")
+        axes.append(axis / norm)
+    frame_x, frame_y, frame_z = axes
+    if float(np.linalg.det(np.stack(axes, axis=1))) < 0.0:
+        raise error(
+            "geometry_mismatch",
+            "the source frame is left-handed: it is not a rotation of the sensor frame",
+        )
+
+    # (name, eye direction, up). ``front`` is the default by the operator's own
+    # definition: the view the finger is presented in.
+    table = (
+        ("default", frame_y, frame_z),
+        ("front", frame_y, frame_z),
+        ("side", frame_x, frame_z),
+        # Looking straight down the frame's up. ``up`` is the frame's -Y so that the
+        # view is the default one tilted 90° about its own horizontal axis: +X stays
+        # on the left, as it is in every other view here, and nothing is rolled.
+        ("top", frame_z, -frame_y),
+    )
+    presets = []
+    for name, direction, up in table:
+        # The baked distance is a statement for a consumer that draws the preset with no
+        # viewport of its own; the pane re-frames at its own shape on every application.
+        distance = fit_distance_m(
+            bounds_sensor_m,
+            direction,
+            up,
+            PRESET_REFERENCE_ASPECT,
+            DEFAULT_PRESET_FOV_RAD,
+        )
+        presets.append(
+            CameraPreset(
+                name,
+                tuple(centre + direction * distance),
+                tuple(centre),
+                tuple(up),
+                DEFAULT_PRESET_FOV_RAD,
+            )
+        )
+    return tuple(presets)
+
+
 def identity_transform() -> np.ndarray:
     return np.eye(4, dtype=np.float64)
diff --git a/shared/src/orisys_app_shared/scene3d/package.py b/shared/src/orisys_app_shared/scene3d/package.py
index 6d7c4a5..6ce4145 100644
--- a/shared/src/orisys_app_shared/scene3d/package.py
+++ b/shared/src/orisys_app_shared/scene3d/package.py
@@ -787,12 +787,11 @@ def scene_from_contents(
         for item in manifest.get("camera_presets", [])
         if isinstance(item, dict) and item.get("name")
     )
-    # A preset baked by an older compiler points down a fixed axis, which is only
-    # correct if the export's frame happens to match the sensor frame. The design
-    # export does not: its shipped ``default`` sits ~123° from the sensing surface's
-    # own normal, where the housing hides ~100% of the surface. If the package's
-    # default preset is on the far side of the surface, replace the set with one
-    # derived from the mesh rather than presenting a view of the back of the sensor.
+    # A preset is trusted only if its eye is in front of the surface. A package whose
+    # presets were baked without the export's frame — an older compiler, or a compilers'
+    # axis guess that happened to be wrong — can point at the back of the plate, where
+    # the housing hides all of it; the mesh's own normal then says which side the sensing
+    # side is, and the set is replaced rather than presented.
     sensing_only_for_presets = tuple(part for part in parts if part.role == "sensing")
     if sensing_only_for_presets:
         sensing_part = sensing_only_for_presets[0]