Render Flam3 – Step v.1.1
26th March 2007
Last version is available on my Scripts page.
I decided to update the script after recent talking with some other Apo users involved in animation.
I normally do most of the things by hand using a text-editor but I’m more than aware that a quite good script can facilitate most users.
Render Flam3 – Step v.1.1
Download here: RenderFlam3_Step_1.1 (Right click – Save As)
Released under GPL License – http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.html
v. 1.1
Saving scheme updated
It’s now completely resolution indipendent.
Use “Maintain Aspect Ratio” for perfect matching or Apo’s free scale: may have no perfect matching (depending on flames) but let you scale in no-proportional way.
“Maintain Aspect Ratio” added
“Animation Loop” added
“Copy first flame’s MasterScale/Zoom to each others” added
This is an hard-coded testing option (no user-request displayed)
Change the “szcopy” variable value.
Verbose messages in Scripts window.
Usage:
First you will have to install flam3, and it’s best to place it in a folder called c:\flam3.
Then create a folder c:\flam3\anims. The .flame and .bat and renders will all end up here.
You can change all of this of course, but this makes it easy.
After you run the script, you will have a .flame and a .bat file in c:\flam3\anims.
Simply doubleclick the .bat file and the rendering will begin.
You wont have an animation at the end; you’ll have all the frames.
Both Apophysis and Flam3 cannot directly compile an avi or mpeg but they can save only still images.
When you have all the frames you can create the final avi/mpeg using an external program; a good free one is the famous VirtualDub, you can find it here: http://www.virtualdub.org/
If you render a preview using the Step option then you also need an utility to rename the frames.
Example using Step=3
test_0000.jpg, test_0003.jpg, test_0006.jpg and so on
have to be renamed to
test_0000.jpg, test_0001.jpg, test_0002.jpg and so on.
Maintain Aspect Ratio
Resolution indipendent rendering using Flam3′s proprotional scale function
resolving some Apophysis scripting scale problems.
ACTIVE by default.
“Copy first flame’s MasterScale/Zoom to each others”
All flames will have the same MasterScale and Zoom value;
the value is grabbed from the first flame and copied to each others.
Hard-coded testing option: change the “szcopy” variable value.
STEP usage
Frame Step parameter
Let you step the frame rendering; useful for preview if you not need to render all frames.
Using “Progessive Steps” you can also automaticly progressively complete the whole animation.
This way you can have a preview and then render the complete sequence. 
Progessive Steps parameter
Automatic Step refinement: flam3-animate will be automaticly exectuted as many times as need
to render the complete animation.
Example
Frame Step = 3
execute flam3-animate 3 times (one after the other) to complete the whole animation
Animation Loop
Add the first Flame at the sequence’s end to create a complete loop.
Example using 3 flames: 0 -> 1 -> 2 -> 0
26 March 2007 at 22:55
Exper!
Thanks for this…I will give it a try this week!
Chris
BTW…excellent new work below!
27 March 2007 at 09:38
Hi, Chris.
Glad you liked this script; this version shoud work far better than the previous one but there’s a lot to do before having a good script.
The most pressing is a the raw flame saving scheme; I’ll add it as soon as possible.
Thanks for appreciation about my last designs!
Exper
28 March 2007 at 01:55
thank you so much! I finally have my first animation rendering from your new script. I used most of your defaults, I used 4 flames, the first mandala_0000.jpg took about an hour then
mandala_0002.jpg the same
mandala_0004.jpg etc. is is going to render every other flame (200 or so) at an hour each? Yikes- I should have rendered smaller sizes and less resolution I guess. when its complete will there be an mpeg or avi?
28 March 2007 at 05:58
Glad it helped you!
The rendering time depends mainly by Resolution and Quality settings.
Using the Step option you can also create a preview rendering a limited number of frames: use low-res and low-quality.
You wont have an animation at the end; you’ll have all the frames.
Both Apophysis and Flam3 cannot directly compile an avi or mpeg but they can save only still images.
When you have all the frames you can create the final avi/mpeg using an external program; a good free one is the famous VirtualDub, you can find it here: http://www.virtualdub.org/
If you render a preview using the Step option then you also need an utility to rename the frames.
Example using Step=3
test_0000.jpg, test_0003.jpg, test_0006.jpg and so on
have to be renamed to
test_0000.jpg, test_0001.jpg, test_0002.jpg and so on.
Hope it helps… let me know if you need more infos.
28 March 2007 at 15:56
Great! so using step 1 renders each flame in order and step 5 would render every 5th frame. I will experiment with frame size and qual and res to tweek rendering time
28 March 2007 at 18:57
Yes, the Step is really useful.
29 March 2007 at 10:00
[...] Usage and Options can be found here: Render Flam3 – Step v.1.1 I’ll write updated documentation as soon as possible. [...]
29 March 2007 at 11:37
[...] v. 1.2.b4 Some minor bug fixes in raw-save when Animation Loop option is active Usage and Options can be found here: Render Flam3 – Step v.1.1 I’ll write updated documentation as soon as possible. [...]
29 March 2007 at 14:57
[...] Usage and Options can be found here: Render Flam3 – Step v.1.1 I’ll write updated documentation as soon as possible. [...]
30 March 2007 at 19:12
[...] Usage and Options can be found here: Render Flam3 – Step v.1.1 I’ll write updated documentation as soon as possible. [...]
1 April 2007 at 08:15
[...] Usage and Options can be found here: Render Flam3 – Step v.1.1 I’ll write updated documentation as soon as possible. [...]
3 April 2007 at 18:56
[...] Usage and Options can be found here: Render Flam3 – Step v.1.1 I’ll write updated documentation as soon as possible. [...]
13 April 2007 at 15:03
[...] Preliminary Usage and Options docs can be found here: Render Flam3 – Step v.1.1 I’ll write updated documentation as soon as possible. [...]
3 May 2007 at 18:03
[...] v. 1.2.b12 Flame Scaling always internally perfomed by Apophysis (perfect matching) Output frames… [...]