Regarding Before/After Screenshots

[cbeau]

I'm trying to improve on my screenshot skills but I've only been able to find some basic information. One thing that's been evading me is how to get precise before/after screenshots in a specific location. What I mean is, if I wanted to compare a city overhaul from a distance, I would go take a screenshot of the city without the mod from a chosen vantage, then install the mod and return to take another screenshot. How would I make absolutely sure that I've returned to the exact location the last screenshot was taken in, and am looking in the exact same direction when I take the new shot? Any screenshot gurus around? Thanks.

[anjenthedog]

I'm no screen shot guru, but you could

1. save the game
2. take your first snapshot
3. close the game --- DO NOT MAKE ANY NEW SAVE prior!!!
4. change the enb (or whatever)
5. open the game
6. open the save
7. take snapshot

 

and voila there you are in exactly the same position in each image. You could then close the game, switch to yet another enb (or whatever) open the game, open that same save, snapshot....ad infinitum.

 

In fact, if the snapshot is fired quickly after loading, you could capture an almost perfect replication of any dynamic background items as well (deer, flying dragons, cloud pattern, rabbits, foxes, some troll who's about to try to keel you, etc).

 

...note: you might have to rapidly adjust the frame (camera position) via pan using some predetermined reference point if you wanted some particular direction of view that differs from the load camera position. so perhaps each snap wouldn't be "identical" due to variance in human reaction time. Might be best to make your save, then reload before shooting the first image using whatever view it offers upon load

 

The caveat is that if you intend snapshots in various locations, you'd need to repeat the process again for each enb (or whatever).

 

Point being, I don't think you can fire off all the snapshots for one enb (or whatever) and then switch to a new enb (or whatever). The save and location would have to take primacy.

 

ps> one beauty of that process is that you would need zero cleanup after swithcing mods, since you're not creating any new saves that might inject new script or other material into the save used for doing the snap shots, which is based on your "initial mod list before doing the snapshot expose. You *would* want to revert to the original mod scheme prior to moving to a new location to avoid any accidental injections though.

[cbeau]

Thanks! Works perfectly for my purposes!

[anjenthedog]

Awesome! (seriously). I came up with that process on the fly after reading your query. Funny thing is, I'd always wondered how they did that in videos prior to writing my response ... So thank you too!