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render animation from camera view?
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render animation from camera view? // New Users
Post by grymmjack // Aug 12, 2008, 3:30pm
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grymmjack
Total Posts: 87
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hi. i've created a simple animation spanning ~60 frames, and animated the camera viewport assuming that would be the 'view' it uses for rendering, but it's not working. is there something i have to do to make the camera the render window source or something? forgot to mention that i've double clicked the legs of the camera and am seeing the view in the worksapce exactly as i want it to output in render. |
Post by grymmjack // Aug 12, 2008, 3:44pm
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grymmjack
Total Posts: 87
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i guess the question i'm asking is also this:
is there someway to export exactly what i'm seeing in directx render shader mode of modeler (realtime render i guess it's called) to an avi file animation?
it seems like i should be able to? that's what i want :) |
Post by J90 // Aug 12, 2008, 4:50pm
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J90
Total Posts: 107
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The modeler side is the lightworks and virtualight renderer. The workspace has the direct x real time renderer.
it is not currently possible to render in real time to an .avi movie file
Instead you can render each frame as a image and then use another program to compile all the images into an avi movie with a program.
I currently use a free program called MonkeyJam it's actually made for stop motion animation.
HTH, J90 |
Post by Jack Edwards // Aug 12, 2008, 7:22pm
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Jack Edwards
Total Posts: 4062
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To make a camera the current view:
1.) select the camera
2.) select the view window frame
3.) click the "set camera" icon
Another useful tip is that if you've set your keyframes on workspace side, you can adjust the keyframed camera's spline path in the FCurve editor. |
Post by TomG // Aug 13, 2008, 3:52am
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TomG
Total Posts: 3397
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Did you have more than one 3D view open there (ie another window inside the Model side)? If so, you need to select that window before clicking on Render To File - Render will render whatever 3D window is currently selected.
So long as your selected 3D window is set to look through the camera (rather than perspective, top, left etc you choose camera), then it will render the animation as seen from the camera.
HTH!
Tom |
Post by grymmjack // Aug 14, 2008, 5:00pm
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grymmjack
Total Posts: 87
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To make a camera the current view:
1.) select the camera
2.) select the view window frame
3.) click the "set camera" icon
Another useful tip is that if you've set your keyframes on workspace side, you can adjust the keyframed camera's spline path in the FCurve editor.
awesome. was wondering where that was at. thanks jack.
Did you have more than one 3D view open there (ie another window inside the Model side)? If so, you need to select that window before clicking on Render To File - Render will render whatever 3D window is currently selected.
So long as your selected 3D window is set to look through the camera (rather than perspective, top, left etc you choose camera), then it will render the animation as seen from the camera.
HTH!
Tom
hi tom. i think it was what jack said as i didn't have other views open. hrm. at any rate i'm wondering if i should just use a really high framerate screen recording of the dx9 render :) that would solve my lack of dx9 animation render model side. i've got an old version of camtasia that i am going to try it with. it would also be simple in truespace since it supports the window size controls per 3d window and camtasia can lock to regions of fixed geometry.
tis worth a shot ;)
thanks all. |
Post by Jack Edwards // Aug 14, 2008, 6:03pm
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Jack Edwards
Total Posts: 4062
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Not sure why you'd want to use a screen recorder when you can get accurately timed animation rendered using the Render to File icon (found in the flyout with the manual icon at the bottom right).
You can access the AnimPref panel with the animation frame rate and playback settings by selecting the settings tab in the stack view and then clicking on the title bar of the Animation Editor (4D) window. Those settings will apply to the DX9 Render to file. |
Post by TomG // Aug 15, 2008, 4:44am
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TomG
Total Posts: 3397
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Yes, not sure why screen grabbing the animation would be better. The real-time renderer will capture and give an animation that will play back accurately timed, with better quality.
Note that with the real-time view, lossless codecs (lagarith and techsmith) can only do about 3 or 4 fps I've found, when there is a lot of movement going on in the 3D view (they work fine when just moving the mouse pointer around in a course, but not fine when the whole window is updating with moving cameras etc).
A lossy codec can do better, maybe from 15 to 30ps, but you get color banding and other lossy artefacts.
So with a screen capture program, you are going to lose either frame rate or color depth / quality compared to using the real-time render to file.
HTH!
Tom |
Post by grymmjack // Aug 15, 2008, 9:06am
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grymmjack
Total Posts: 87
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Not sure why you'd want to use a screen recorder when you can get accurately timed animation rendered using the Render to File icon (found in the flyout with the manual icon at the bottom right).
You can access the AnimPref panel with the animation frame rate and playback settings by selecting the settings tab in the stack view and then clicking on the title bar of the Animation Editor (4D) window. Those settings will apply to the DX9 Render to file.
ahh! i was under the impression that workspace side could not render animation out to file in directx9 mode?? will try your advice.
Yes, not sure why screen grabbing the animation would be better. The real-time renderer will capture and give an animation that will play back accurately timed, with better quality.
Note that with the real-time view, lossless codecs (lagarith and techsmith) can only do about 3 or 4 fps I've found, when there is a lot of movement going on in the 3D view (they work fine when just moving the mouse pointer around in a course, but not fine when the whole window is updating with moving cameras etc).
A lossy codec can do better, maybe from 15 to 30ps, but you get color banding and other lossy artefacts.
So with a screen capture program, you are going to lose either frame rate or color depth / quality compared to using the real-time render to file.
HTH!
Tom
tom the only reason i was considering it was because i wanted to capture the animation of the DX9 realtime render to an AVI or MOV file, etc. if it can do it then no worries i'll just use it's native export :)
i thought that it couldn't though? workspace render dx9 animation is possible? not using vray but DX9 what you see in the workspace is exact output?
thanks guys :) |
Post by grymmjack // Aug 15, 2008, 9:11am
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grymmjack
Total Posts: 87
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all from workspace now:
ok i found the animation prefs panel.
i have it set to go from -3 to 61 frames but when i click the render to file button and choose save animation from frame -3 to frame 61 and then ujnder file i choose my file and hit the ellipsis button (...) to browse and choose file type there are no motion formats available only still image formats :( |
Post by grymmjack // Aug 15, 2008, 9:12am
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grymmjack
Total Posts: 87
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The modeler side is the lightworks and virtualight renderer. The workspace has the direct x real time renderer.
it is not currently possible to render in real time to an .avi movie file
Instead you can render each frame as a image and then use another program to compile all the images into an avi movie with a program.
I currently use a free program called MonkeyJam it's actually made for stop motion animation.
HTH, J90
ahh! stupid me,. i just ready this again.
googling monkeyjam.
so you render batch frames -> compile into movie.
got it.
thanks |
Post by Jack Edwards // Aug 15, 2008, 9:26am
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Jack Edwards
Total Posts: 4062
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Also good is Virtualdub:
http://www.virtualdub.org/
I use Sony Vegas Pro currently, but there are other members of the family that are very affordable:
http://www.sonycreativesoftware.com/products/vegasfamily.asp |
Post by TomG // Aug 15, 2008, 9:32am
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TomG
Total Posts: 3397
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Yes, real-time render will not go straight to an animated format like AVI, you go to separate frames, then composite to AVI or MOV or WMV later. This is actually recommended practice anyway in most cases (see several threads going over that in recent weeks :) ) so is not actually a major problem.
Particularly as the software to do that compositing is free :)
HTH!
Tom |
Post by grymmjack // Aug 15, 2008, 7:08pm
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grymmjack
Total Posts: 87
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yep :)
was just a matter of me getting ahead of myself and missing things from my skim/assume/jump to conclusion nature :)
you know what i wish TS had? i wish TS had a simple way to select multiple objects and turn them visible on/off and some layer palette like photoshop where you can click the eyeballs. i know that there are layers in modeler but are there layers in workspace?
sorry for off topic |
Post by spacekdet // Aug 15, 2008, 7:22pm
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spacekdet
Total Posts: 1360
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are there layers in workspace?
Sigh.
"Not yet."
And no way to hotkey object invisibility either...DOH! |
Post by grymmjack // Aug 16, 2008, 5:19pm
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grymmjack
Total Posts: 87
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bummer. now the million dollar question; when is the next version? :P |
Post by TomG // Aug 18, 2008, 3:00am
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TomG
Total Posts: 3397
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No layers yet, so you'd need to enable or disable visibility one by one for the objects. A script to run through all selected objects and set them to visible or invisible should be pretty easy to code up, put out a request for one and maybe someone can make one.
As per our standard "can't discuss future plans" I can't comment on when the next release will be :)
HTH!
Tom |
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