Turntable

Turntable Camera Animation

Orbits the camera 360 degrees around the product for a clean product showcase. Starts front-facing and loops seamlessly.

When to Use

• User wants a product turntable / spin video
• User says "rotate around", "orbit", "showcase all angles", "turntable"
• Default go-to for product showcase videos

Prerequisites

• Blender MCP: Connected (blender-mcp addon on port 9876)
• 3D model: Already imported in the Blender scene
• Output folder: ~/Desktop/Blender Videos/ (create if needed)
• ffmpeg: Installed for video encoding

Parameters

Flow

Step 1: Detect Front Face

Render 4 low-res test frames from different camera positions to find the front of the product. Ask the user which angle is the front.

pythonCopy code
import bpy, math
from mathutils import Vector

obj = bpy.data.objects['<OBJECT_NAME>']
bbox = [obj.matrix_world @ Vector(c) for c in obj.bound_box]
center = sum(bbox, Vector()) / 8

RADIUS = 4.5
HEIGHT = 2.0

# Create temp camera
bpy.ops.object.camera_add()
cam = bpy.context.active_object
cam.name = 'TempCam'
bpy.context.scene.camera = cam

# Add track constraint to center
bpy.ops.object.empty_add(type='PLAIN_AXES', location=center)
target = bpy.context.active_object
target.name = 'TempTarget'

cam.constraints.new(type='TRACK_TO').target = target

# Render 4 angles
positions = {
    'front': (center.x, center.y - RADIUS, HEIGHT),
    'right': (center.x + RADIUS, center.y, HEIGHT),
    'back': (center.x, center.y + RADIUS, HEIGHT),
    'left': (center.x - RADIUS, center.y, HEIGHT),
}
for label, pos in positions.items():
    cam.location = pos
    bpy.context.scene.render.filepath = f'<OUTPUT>/facing_{label}.png'
    bpy.ops.render.render(write_still=True)

Show all 4 images to the user and ask which is the front.

Step 2: Set Up Camera Rig

pythonCopy code
import bpy, math

# Create target empty at object center
bpy.ops.object.empty_add(type='PLAIN_AXES', location=(0, 0, 0))
target = bpy.context.active_object
target.name = 'TurntableTarget'

# Create camera at front-facing position (determined from Step 1)
# Default front = -Y axis
bpy.ops.object.camera_add(location=(0, -CAMERA_DISTANCE, CAMERA_HEIGHT))
cam = bpy.context.active_object
cam.name = 'TurntableCamera'
cam.data.lens = 50

# Track to target
track = cam.constraints.new(type='TRACK_TO')
track.target = target
track.track_axis = 'TRACK_NEGATIVE_Z'
track.up_axis = 'UP_Y'

# Parent camera to target for orbit
bpy.ops.object.select_all(action='DESELECT')
cam.select_set(True)
target.select_set(True)
bpy.context.view_layer.objects.active = target
bpy.ops.object.parent_set(type='OBJECT', keep_transform=True)

bpy.context.scene.camera = cam

Step 3: Animate 360 Rotation

pythonCopy code
import bpy, math

TOTAL_FRAMES = DURATION * FPS  # e.g. 5 * 24 = 120

scene = bpy.context.scene
scene.frame_start = 1
scene.frame_end = TOTAL_FRAMES
scene.render.fps = FPS

target = bpy.data.objects['TurntableTarget']
target.rotation_euler = (0, 0, 0)
target.keyframe_insert(data_path='rotation_euler', frame=1)
target.rotation_euler = (0, 0, math.radians(360))
target.keyframe_insert(data_path='rotation_euler', frame=TOTAL_FRAMES + 1)

# IMPORTANT: Linear interpolation for constant speed
# Blender 5.1 uses layered actions:
action = target.animation_data.action
strip = action.layers[0].strips[0]
for cb in strip.channelbags:
    for fc in cb.fcurves:
        for kp in fc.keyframe_points:
            kp.interpolation = 'LINEAR'

Step 4: Set Up Lighting

pythonCopy code
import bpy, math

# Warm sunset lighting on LIGHTS only (not on materials/world)
bpy.ops.object.light_add(type='AREA', location=(3, -3, 4))
k = bpy.context.active_object; k.name='GoldenKey'
k.data.energy = 2000; k.data.size = 3.0
k.data.color = (1.0, 0.78, 0.45)
k.rotation_euler = (math.radians(45), 0, math.radians(25))

bpy.ops.object.light_add(type='AREA', location=(-3, -2, 3))
f = bpy.context.active_object; f.name='WarmFill'
f.data.energy = 1000; f.data.size = 5.0
f.data.color = (1.0, 0.75, 0.4)
f.rotation_euler = (math.radians(40), 0, math.radians(-30))

bpy.ops.object.light_add(type='AREA', location=(0, 0, 5))
oh = bpy.context.active_object; oh.name='OverheadWash'
oh.data.energy = 800; oh.data.size = 8.0
oh.data.color = (1.0, 0.92, 0.75)

bpy.ops.object.light_add(type='AREA', location=(0, 4, 2))
r = bpy.context.active_object; r.name='WarmRim'
r.data.energy = 800; r.data.size = 3.0
r.data.color = (1.0, 0.65, 0.3)
r.rotation_euler = (math.radians(-40), 0, math.radians(180))

bpy.ops.object.light_add(type='AREA', location=(4, 0, 0.5))
sw = bpy.context.active_object; sw.name='SideGlow'
sw.data.energy = 600; sw.data.size = 2.0
sw.data.color = (1.0, 0.8, 0.5)
sw.rotation_euler = (math.radians(5), 0, math.radians(90))

Step 5: Render

pythonCopy code
import bpy, os

scene = bpy.context.scene
scene.render.resolution_x = 1920
scene.render.resolution_y = 1080
scene.render.film_transparent = True
scene.render.engine = 'CYCLES'  # better metallic reflections
scene.cycles.samples = 64
scene.cycles.use_denoising = True
scene.cycles.device = 'GPU'
scene.render.image_settings.file_format = 'PNG'
scene.render.image_settings.color_mode = 'RGBA'

# Neutral world for subtle reflections (not colored)
if not scene.world:
    scene.world = bpy.data.worlds.new("World")
scene.world.use_nodes = True
bg = scene.world.node_tree.nodes.get('Background')
bg.inputs['Color'].default_value = (0.95, 0.95, 0.95, 1)
bg.inputs['Strength'].default_value = 0.3

frames_dir = os.path.expanduser('~/Desktop/Blender Videos/turntable_frames/')
os.makedirs(frames_dir, exist_ok=True)
scene.render.filepath = frames_dir

bpy.ops.render.render(animation=True)

Step 6: Encode Video

MCP will timeout during render. Poll frames directory until all frames exist, then encode:

bashCopy code
# ProRes 4444 with alpha (transparent)
ffmpeg -y -framerate 24 \
  -i "~/Desktop/Blender Videos/turntable_frames/%04d.png" \
  -c:v prores_ks -profile:v 4444 -pix_fmt yuva444p10le \
  "~/Desktop/Blender Videos/turntable.mov"

Blender 5.1 Notes

• Render engine enum: BLENDER_EEVEE (not BLENDER_EEVEE_NEXT)
• No FFMPEG output format — render PNG sequence + encode with ffmpeg
• Layered actions API: action.layers[0].strips[0].channelbags to access fcurves
• film_transparent = True for transparent background
• Warm color goes on the LIGHTS, not on the world/materials