Support saving multiple file when using --animation-autoplay and --output

[mwestphal]

Context
F3D supports playing animation and saving png outputs, lets bring these features together in order to be able to save multiple frames of an animation as pngs.

Suggested solution
When using --animation-autoplay and --output, write multiple png files, and rely on filename templating to writing different files.

[Meakk]

Actually, it may be out of scope of f3d.
If someone wants to generate a video, the camera, and the animation frame should be specified through the future libf3d API or via command line arguments, and generate a fixed image, with a script. Then the animation with ffmpeg by combining the images.
Wdyt @mwestphal?

[mwestphal]

I agree, but you mean that this should be another application, not F3D ?

[xzhub]

By using command line argument to generate a series of images is very slow, it would be nice to have some parameters for f3d to generate a video file directly:

1. speed of the rotation
2. maybe some inbuilt fancy camera routes, circling should be one of them.

[mwestphal]

needs #741 first

[mwestphal]

Supporting writing multiple pngs would already be great

[mwestphal]

related to #1194 and #10 as well.

[mwestphal]

Here is my idea for this.

With autoplay and output, generate numbered screenshot with manipulating the time based on a new output-fps option.

What do you think @snoyer @Meakk ?

[Meakk]

I think there are three different use cases:

1. Animated model with a fixed camera
2. Fixed model with animated camera path

There could be a third use case with both but I'll omit it for now.

Case 1: We just need the --autoplay argument and find a way to export several files. Maybe we could support things like --output /tmp/export_%t.png and substitute %t with the time step index?

Case 2: Some file formats like glTF and USD support camera animation so specifying --camera-index should support the given camera path. Otherwise, just like we define a fixed camera by default, we could have an option --camera-path=[orbit,zoom_in,whatever] which will define a new animated camera path (having a --fps defaulted to 30 would be useful here too). Then we could use the same %t substitution as in case 1.

[mwestphal]

Not sure what you mean, animated camera and animated model is exactly the same code path in F3D.
Creating an animated camera like an orbit would be nice, but this is a different issue.

In any case, the code we are talking about would need autoplay in both cases.

[mwestphal]

With filename templating in #1194, then this now even more easy to do.

[mwestphal]

updated the text of the issue.

[mwestphal]

autoplay added in #1065

[0xfedcafe]

may i try working on this issue?

[mwestphal]

Of course, I've assigned it to you :)

[mwestphal]

How is it going @0xfedcafe ?

[mwestphal]

Hi @0xfedcafe

How is it going ? Please let us know so we can reassign this issue if needed :)

[0xfedcafe]

Hi @0xfedcafe

How is it going ? Please let us know so we can reassign this issue if needed :)

oh I'm sorry that it takes so long, I've done some progress but stopped due to a lack of time, I can resume working again on this issue from the 28th or you can reassign it if it's needed quite urgently. I'm really sorry for the inconvenience.

[mwestphal]

No worries, Ill unassign it for now so its available for someone else if needed.