Batch Camera Render

272 votes
Version: 
1.18
Date Updated: 
08/03/2022
Author Name: 
Sergo Pogosyan

This script aims to replace standard 3dsmax's Batch Render and imitates Houdini Output Node workflow. Using it you can specify rendering parameters - frame size, frame number, output path - directly to camera object, so every camera in scene 'knows' what it intended to render. Additional functionality is Lighting Assignment - you can specify which light will be turn on or off for selected camera during the rendering.

1.18:

  • Support for 3ds max 2023 Update fixed

1.17:

  • Corona and Vray Sun inside Daylight System fixed (thanks to busseynova for reporting)

1.16:

  • CoronaSun supported inside Daylight System

1.15:

  • Don't Save Render Elements Checkbox (Thanks to antomor)
  • Limited support for camera objects in xref scene files (Only root objects in first level xrefs. Cameras in nested xrefs not supported)

1.13 Bugfix:

  • Deadline submission should work now

1.12 New Feature:

  • Deadline support.
    Very basic imlementation, it allows you to submit your jobs on a deadline server. Enter deadline repository address and check "Use Deadline" checkbox. Other checkbox doesn't matter in this case ("Net render", "Show Submit Dialog").
    Probably it requires Deadline 3ds max Submitter installed. I didn't have a chance to check it on a clean machine.

1.11 Features and fixes:

  • State sets support added
  • "projectname" keyword added which resolves to project's folder name
  • other fixes and improvements

1.10.3b Fixes:

  • Crash when vray ir/lcache maps are set to auto-save
  • Region render was not set properly during the rendering

This is major update of the script, so it may not be as stable as before. Backup scenes or cameras at least before running this version. More information can be found here - 1.10b Multiple presets for each camera

Previous updates:

1.10.2b Fixes:

  • Problems with render elements paths
  • Copy/paste of render region settings
  • Properly convert render region values when change resolution

New features:

  • Multiple presets for each camera
  • New keyword %presetname% to support multiple presets
  • Distributed rendering checkbox added to vray common settings
  • Bugfix - Net render not starting after cancelling during local rendering.
  • Improved performance with scenes with lots of cameras
  • Added support of Vray RT as a production renderer
  • Added support of using MFRender script to render scenes through BatchCamera script.
  • Bugfix - Error was popping up sometimes during drag-n-drop
  • Bugfix - Render elements didn't render in certain conditions
  • Bugfix - Pre-render/post-render scripts didn't work on network rendering
  • Bugfix - Select All and Toggle All buttons didn't work properly

Here are some details: http://usakhelo.github.io/batchcam/batchcam-1.9.20.html

Script's website - http://usakhelo.github.io/batchcam/

Github - https://github.com/usakhelo/batchcam

2015 Updates

  • Region render parameter can be specified for each camera
  • Set Viewport button sets viewport camera and resolution and aspect as well
  • It is possible now to specify backburner servers and server groups for silent rendering submit (code editing required)
  • Vray Elements fixed for Vray 3 and Vray output saving with VFB color correction
  • Cancelling of rendering of multiple cameras at once,
  • Hierarchical ini files

2013 Updates

  • Drag-n-drop of cameras in list
  • Camera list window size can be changed (script restart required)
  • When committing region render it is possible to switch to view render without restarting the render
  • Keyword syntax can be used in Scene State names - thanks to Stefan Runevik for suggestion

2011 Updates

  • Preview button added - renders only current frame without saving anything - no images, no vray maps, no scripts running, no elements.
  • Ortho mode added to Vray rollout - it turns any camera to orthographic, including Vray Physical camera.
  • Copy/Paste from one camera to one/several cameras - use new buttons at the top of the window.
  • Submit Scripts section - you can assign script files that will run on each render submit. Per Submit script runs once per render submit and Per Camera script runs for each camera before submit. All these scripts run on local machine, not on render server.
  • Last Rendered Location field - here is stored last render file location. Very useful for locating last-time rendered images.
Additional Info: 

Installation:

Run this script with Maxscript -> Run Script command from any folder on your hard drive, then go to the *'Customize User Interface' -> 'Toolbars'*, browse to category 'Sergo Pogosyan' and add 'Render scene cameras...' button to the toolbar or to the menu.

Usage:

When you start this script it iterate over all cameras in scene and list them in the dialog box. To each of these cameras you can assign frame resolution, number of frames to render including nonsequential frames, output file location and lighting setup. All these properties can be changed for one or several selected cameras. Output file location is split to folder path and file name, so you can specify new folder for all selected cameras in scene. 'Lighting assignement' section contains three list: Solo light list contains lights that will be only lights turned on during the rendering, 'Forced On' and 'Forced Off' lights are turned on or off respectively during the rendering. After all these setting will be set up (if some properties is not set value from the Render Setup will be used), check the camera(s) in the list and hit Render button. Check Net Render checkbox to submit network render job.

Supported lights: All bundled 3ds max lights, all Vray Lights
Supported cameras: All bundled 3ds max cameras, Vray PhysicalCamera

Version Requirement: 
3ds max 2008-202x
AttachmentSize
batchcamerarender_1.17.ms245.88 KB
batchcamerarender_1.18.ms245.92 KB

Comments

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sergo's picture

Thank you for the

Thank you for the bugreport!

I can't upload a new version since it's not finished, but you can correct this bug for yourself:
Click right mouse button on script button and browse to line 2662. At the end of that line replace the file_path.text command with elements_path.text. Evaluate script by pressing Ctrl+E. That's all.

birket's picture

Hi Great script. However, it

Hi
Great script. However, it doesn't seem to 'remember' which folder you assign to save the elements in: it always falls back to the place you tell it to save the main image.

----------------------
www.blinkimage.com

pifitas's picture

:D yessss! thank you I'll be

:D yessss!

thank you
I'll be waiting for it

:D!!!!

sergo's picture

I've already started to add

I've already started to add vray maps options. But now I'm busy with some other work, so new version will be ready in two weeks or so.
Stay tuned :)

pifitas's picture

I still using it everyday and

I still using it everyday

and yes, SAVE/LOAD Vray VR and VRLMaps needed please :(

please plaease pleaseeee

pixela's picture

Thank you for your care and

Thank you for your care and support :) All is fine now. Looking forward to the update for this great script :)

sergo's picture

Just don't save "Object

Just don't save "Object Properties" with scene state and you can freely use scene state with Batch Camera script.
You've said that you made scene states for different materials, so you don't need to save Object Properties.

Regarding your final crash I don't think it was caused by the Batch Render script. We're three who using it at our company nearly a year and we didn't have such a problem.

Anyway, your case showed me the problem with scene states, and I will work to find the workaround.

Thank you, and hope you coped with the render problems.

pixela's picture

I understood. Actually there

I understood.
Actually there were 7 states for each camera with some differences in materials and object properties. And when I was making test renders, I am not sure if I have tested with BatchCamera. Probably I did. So batchcamera settings were probably saved inside scene states. Actually I was not aware of this- that batchcamera setting were saved into scene states too.
Anyway I reverted back to the latest draft and my scene started to render. Unfortunately I can't use BatchCamera :( Is there a chance that this will be fixed? I mean when sacing scene states, why batchcamera is saved with camera?

sergo's picture

I've rendered your scene as

I've rendered your scene as it was opened and it rendered ok. I've only changed E: drive to D:. All folders and output files have been created.
Then I've tryed to switch the scene states and found that when camera properties are saved to scene state, switching them couses changing the user properties of the camera objects. And this means that if you changed batch camera properties in different scene states they will mess up when you switch them. It is really, really bad, since script is not checking if the properties are changing during script is running.

pixela's picture

pls urgent help. my scene

pls urgent help.
my scene dont render at all anymore. when I click render button nothing happens. I can't render from max too.

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