p2or
Moving the panel to the output properties?
Nice addon, however, the render borders are scene-wide and not specific to camera data. The Blender-native "Render Region" checkbox is in the Output properties. Also, the add-on's values update based on the Output dimensions, so I think it would make more sense to have the panel there.
Hi @ChameleonScales,
there is already a branch to adress that. If you enable 'render region' the panel appears underneath the property. I am unfortunately still unsatisfied with the naming of the header and some other details so if you have the time please test the changes and post your feedback.
... the render borders are scene-wide and not specific to camera data.
At the time I wrote the add-on I was hoping that blender developers would realize in the near future that this is a bad idea (7 years ago). The values should be tied to the camera rather than the actual scene to allow different border values for each camera, which is the reason why the panel is part of the camera data. I had plans to otherwise extend the add-on allowing the user to override the per-camera rendering settings, but I never had the time to implement that... Also there was no option to integrate the panel as sub-panel.
Cheers, Christian
Neat! I think it's better that way. Maybe the panel could be named "Tweak Render Region"? I wonder why the values are named X, R, Y, T, especially what the R and T stand for. I would have personally called them Xmin, XMax, Ymin, YMax.
The values should be tied to the camera rather than the actual scene
While it would be an awesome native feature, it would also raise issues. For example, currently, when rendering an animation, you can put markers in the timeline to switch camera, enabling you to render multiple shots in one go. If cameras could have different dimensions, you wouldn't be able to render directly to a video format, since videos can't change resolution mid-way. Maybe it's a small price for the benefits such a feature would bring though.
I had plans to otherwise extend the add-on allowing the user to override the per-camera rendering settings
You should have a look at https://github.com/luckykadam/render-strip
Maybe also my add-on: https://gitlab.com/ChameleonScales/camera_regions
Anecdote: I've been briefly working with someone who needs to render animated parts of electronic objects to build an interactive GUI (rotating knobs, sliders and such). He uses 3 add-ons in combination: yours and the 2 linked above, to create the sprites. The workflow could use improvements (maybe if our add-ons were combined in some ways) but it already helps getting the job done.
Hi @ChameleonScales,
Maybe the panel could be named "Tweak Render Region"?
Thanks, yeah something like that... which also does not clash with the usual naming in Blender. Strictly speaking the add-on tweaks the border instead of the region... I can't think of anything convincing right now either.
For example, currently, when rendering an animation... since videos can't change resolution mid-way.
Anyone who takes their work seriously would never render and encode directly. Another bad design decision / misleading feature that should be abolished IMHO.
You should have a look at https://github.com/luckykadam/render-strip
Unfortunately, the add-on does not improve anything in terms of preview and camera (data).
He uses 3 add-ons in combination: yours and the 2 linked above, to create the sprites.
Sounds to me like https://github.com/p2or/blender-renderborder/issues/4
Thanks for your feedback.
Cheers, Christian
Strictly speaking the add-on tweaks the border instead of the region
To my knowledge, "Border" is a deprecated term. I don't think it's anywhere in native Blender anymore. It used to be what is now called Region and had the same meaning. EDIT: If you hit F3 and type border, you have a few entries, so it's not completely gone. I just reported inconsistencies.
Anyone who takes their work seriously would never render and encode directly. Another bad design decision / misleading feature that should be abolished IMHO.
Not really. First, there are lossless video formats. Second, lossy formats are mostly used for VSE edits but should not be forbidden in 3D mode. For example, if you want to show something to a colleague, with Eevee or workbench you can very quickly render out an animation to lossy video. I've done it several times.
Unfortunately, the add-on does not improve anything in terms of preview and camera (data).
Not sure what you mean. The idea of this add-on is to have the ability to batch render the same scene with various resolutions, cameras and frame ranges. It has no focus on regions or altering camera data but, combined with my add-on, lets you batch render regions, since my add-on translates Ctrl+B regions to cameras.
Sounds to me like https://github.com/p2or/blender-renderborder/issues/4
That's exactly it. In fact the OP is that very person I was talking about in my anecdote (didn't realize immediately so I pointlessly plugged my add-on there)
Hi @ChameleonScales,
To my knowledge, "Border" is a deprecated term.
No matter if this term is no longer used or considered "legacy", a border defines a region :) As we see here, the best decisions have not always been made, so we cannot take our cue from them...
Not sure what you mean. The idea of this add-on is to have the ability to batch render the same scene with various resolutions.
It's not just about rendering in a different resolution, it's about the big picture to really improve things -> the properties for resolution, aspect ratio, render region etc. should be tied to the camera data rather than the actual scene as it is in other DCC's... to finally allow the user to override all relevant render settings per camera without having to create a new scene by default and everything that goes with it, meaning a correct representation in the viewport and the usual interactivity without any hassle (eg. when switching cameras, markers etc.) see my first comment above or #4.
Cheers, Christian