Like after I’ve messed around in the nodes for a while, how do I save the output? Seems like I’m missing something super-obvious…
In node editor try : Add>Output>Image File.
jawra’s solution is one. Maybe more common is to add an Output>Composite node at the end of your noodle (aka node tree) and enable the Do Composite button (in the Scene context>Render subcontext>Anim panel). Then a regular render command (F12 or the RENDER button) takes the nodes into account and whatever is piped to the Composite node becomes the render output.
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OK, so thanks both a yas fer the replies. For the first solution, once I set that node up, what does it do? Suppose I’ve tweeked the nodes to my satisfaction and now I want to save the image. What do I do? And for the second solution, does this mean that I have to rerender? Seems like there should be a simple way to save the tweaked result…
AFAIK, the only time you have to re-render is when you make a change in the initial input, for example, a change to the model that’s on a Render Layer, or a different file is loaded into an Image node. Changes (tweaks) to node settings should update all the way through to the Composite node – you may see a little numeric “countdown” icon show up, white on black, as the nodes process. If you have the output that’s piped to the end Composite node also piped to a Viewer Node, you’ll be able to see the tweaks as they happen in a UV/Image Editor window set for IM: Viewer node. If you set it for IM: Render Result you’ll also see the output that the Composite node is getting. You can save this just as with any other render (F3).
Some types of sequential input like movies and image sequences can also be set to update with each frame change, and these will not need a complete rendering pass – only the Scene input (Render Layer(s)) will need a rendering, and only if something has changed in it during your “tweaks,” including frame changes in this case.
If you’ve broken your Scene into separate Render Layers, you need not re-render all these if a change is made on only one – there’s a button at bottom right of the Render Layer node (“Re-render this node”) that lets you do these separately as well, handy if one Render Layer has stuff that takes a while to render but the others don’t.
Alright I think I get it now. The thing I was missing was the little menu in the UV/Image Editor right after the render finishes that allows you to switch between the raw render and the composite.
Thanks a ton!
-blue