Automate my renderings with Cycles

[gdomecq]

Please could you help me to automate my renderings with Cycles ? How to do?
I’m usine RG6.6 version.
Thank you so much

[ivelin.peychev]

First I suggest you update Rhino.

Then you can use Grasshopper.

Ah yes you’ll have to install GhShadeNodes plugin for Rhino/Grasshopper. Run the command _TestPackageManager install from there then restart rhino

[gdomecq]

thank you for replying me.
and after that should it be possible to use renderstudio presets ?

[jesterking]

No need to use Grasshopper for render automation.

All you need is to script the ViewCaptureToFile and do some scene management.

@gdomecq, can you elaborate on what aspect you want to automate? Materials? Textures? Environments? Rendering of a set of 3dm files?

[gdomecq]

@jesterKing I would like to automate materials (gold, silver, … different colors of stones) for rendering of a set of bmp files

[ivelin.peychev]

@gdomecq

I would like to automate materials (gold, silver, … different colors of stones) for rendering of a set of bmp files

Then you need Grasshopper (GhShaderNodes) I guess.

Here are a few threads I recently created about that topic:

Raytraced grasshopper question

So basically I want to learn how to use the RayTraced GH plugin (Shader). Since I couldn’t find any tutorials that match the latest icons, and since I don’t know anything about rendering’s terminology. I found this video (by @nathanletwory ): I get to the point where you “set one material” but I don’t have that XML available. As a matter of fact the whole “Set One Material” is grayed out. [image] What is the reason for this?

How do I delete unused environments from my file?

Use the Materials and Environment panels to delete what you don’t want.

Glossy Material GhShaderNodes

I’d love to learn how to do that, but that’s beyond my understanding as of now I found a way to add material from ghpython, but Cycles.xml is an xml not generated with System.Drawing.Color I’ll create another thread for that.

How do I generate Cycles.xml with ghpython?

Yay

[gdomecq]

Sorry, but it’s not what I’d like to do…
i want to ude the same tool than Rhinogold 4 but not activated with Rhinogold 6.6.

[ivelin.peychev]

@gdomecq

Rhinogold 6.6

Ah, I didn’t know RG means Rhinogold. I thought it was a typo

I’m not familiar with this plugin, sorry.

[gdomecq]

oh ok
but may be you have one solution.

I don’t know how to script… I need help …

[ivelin.peychev]

@gdomecq

but may be you have one solution.

For that I need to understand how Rhinogold works, does it use Rhino materials? If so you just need to get your model inside Grasshopper then the above links can help you set up the model for rendering.

[nathanletwory (Nathan 'jesterKing' Letwory)]

@ivelin.peychev

Then you need Grasshopper (GhShaderNodes) I guess.

No you don’t.

@gdomecq

materials (gold, silver, … different colors of stones) for rendering of a set of bmp files

As long as you have access to the materials you can write a script that assigns a material to the object of choice, then crunches out a ViewCaptureToFile with the Raytraced engine, then goes on the next material and so on.

I’ll type an example later tonight, or if I don’t manage during my weekend I’ll do it tomorrow.

This is what I essentially do for my regression test suite, although there I mainly do environment switching - it will work the same. I crunch out around a 1000 images for my test suite.

[gdomecq]

Thank you, I’m waiting for your example because I don’t know how to write a script…

[ivelin.peychev]

@nathanletwory

No you don’t.

Well…,

The reason I do everything in Grasshopper first is because it’s a visual programming if someone wants to understand the workflow it’s easier to read grasshopper algorithm than a script. You can always switch to just script afterwards.

Here’s a video of my current workflow, although it’s kind of difficult to debug the wrong result. You can see me struggling

https://youtu.be/6MiY-RBjv7s

[nathanletwory (Nathan 'jesterKing' Letwory)]

@ivelin.peychev

You can see me struggling

I can. Do start a new thread for that if you want to ask about it. For the sake of this thread: this doesn’t help in automating renderings.

@gdomecq, writing the script goes to Monday. While this further mulls in my head would the following procedure be close to what you want?

• have a model with several objects, of which one should be rendered with different materials
• have several materials in the model
• loop through each (wanted) material
  • assign to object
  • switch to Raytraced (for as few samples as possible)
  • create a -:ViewCaptureToFile with a certain resolution

[ivelin.peychev]

Hi Nathan,

Is it possible and you have time (and desire ) when you make the script. Could you also make use of UserText attribute and/or layer and/or group as a material assignment criteria.

That is if you want to make a more powerful script. I can imagine in most cases there are objects that have been duplicated.

@nathanletwory

Do start a new thread for that if you want to ask about it.

I remember you mentioning that there’s something you need to fix. So whenever you can fix it. No need for another thread.

[nathanletwory (Nathan 'jesterKing' Letwory)]

@gdomecq

Attached a simple (and not fault-tolerant) script, along with a sample model.

materialswitcher_raytraced_capturer.py (1.5 KB)

MaterialSwitcherAndAutomatedRendering.3dm (993.0 KB)

The script looks like this

# Material switcher
# and Raytraced viewcapturing

import scriptcontext as sc
import Rhino.Render as rr
import Rhino as r
import Rhino.DocObjects as rdob

import System

av = sc.doc.Views.ActiveView

cycles = sc.doc.Views.ActiveView.RealtimeDisplayMode
oldpasses = cycles.MaxPasses
cycles.MaxPasses = 2

def capture_viewport(name):
	cycles.Paused = True
	view_capture = r.Display.ViewCapture()
	view_capture.Width = av.ActiveViewport.Size.Width
	view_capture.Height = av.ActiveViewport.Size.Height
	view_capture.ScaleScreenItems = False
	view_capture.DrawAxes = False
	view_capture.DrawGrid = False
	view_capture.DrawGridAxes = False
	view_capture.TransparentBackground = False
	view_capture.RealtimeRenderPasses = 10
	bitmap = view_capture.CaptureToBitmap(av)
	if bitmap:
		folder = System.Environment.SpecialFolder.Desktop
		path = System.Environment.GetFolderPath(folder)
		filename = System.IO.Path.Combine(path, name + "_raytraced_capture.png")
		print("saving ", filename)
		bitmap.Save(filename, System.Drawing.Imaging.ImageFormat.Png)

selobs = [ob for ob in sc.doc.Objects if ob.IsSelected(False)>0]

if len(selobs) > 0:

	showroom_materials = [rm for rm in sc.doc.RenderMaterials if rm.Tags and rm.Tags.find("ShowRoom")>-1]
	
	for rm in showroom_materials:	
		for ob in selobs:
			ob.RenderMaterial = rm
			ob.CommitChanges()
			sc.doc.Views.Redraw()
		print("capturing with ", rm.Name)
		capture_viewport(rm.Name)
else:
	print("no capturing today")

cycles.MaxPasses = oldpasses
cycles.Paused = False
``

It works by having a view set to `Raytraced` and the object(s) you want to have the materials switched on selected.

The materials you want to use should be in the material editor. Those you wish to use also need to have the tag `ShowRoom` set.  This tag is used to gather all the materials in a list.

With the object selected use  `_EditPythonScript` and load the attached Python file (or copy/paste in empty script from this post).

When you select to run it you'll see that the maximum passes of the  active `Raytraced` view is changed to two. After each material application `Raytraced` is paused and then a view capture is generated of that view. Once successfully completed the capture is saved to the desktop with the name of the material and "_raytraced_capture.png"  combined.

In this sample script I have set the passes to 10 - increase that to get the required quality.

Also set the Width and Height of the view capture to something you want - if the current viewport size is good just leave the current code in.

With the sample model loaded running the script should give you four captures on your desktop.

On purpose I left a lot of niceties and handling out - I wanted to give a springboard for the community to build out a user-friendlier script :) At least filename handling should be taken care of. Right now you shouldn't use characters in material names that are forbidden in filenames, like colons, equals, asterisk, etc.

I hope that despite that it can be already useful in its current state.

[gdomecq]

Hello, sorry for the wait

I would like something like that :

Thank you

[jesterking]

You mean you want that functionality withour having to get RhinoGold?

[gdomecq]

I have Rhinogold 6.6 ! but this fonctionality doesn’t works …according to Cadlink, this fonctionaliy was not updated / plug

[jesterking]

Sorry, I don’t know RhinoGold. You’ll have to contact the developer for that.

I hope that otherwise my script can be of use for someone.