Blender Camera Rig Addon: AI-Assisted Plugin Development with ChatGPT

In this tutorial, you'll learn how to automate camera rig setups in Blender using Python scripting and AI assistance from ChatGPT. We’ll walk through the creation of a custom plugin that simplifies camera path animation, target tracking, and focus control, saving you time and effort in your Blender projects.
Whether you're working on 3D animation, game development, or cinematic shots, this tutorial will help you streamline your workflow by automating repetitive tasks like camera constraints and keyframing. By integrating AI tools like ChatGPT, we explore how to enhance plugin development and bring efficiency to your creative process.
Key topics covered:
Setting up a custom Blender plugin for camera automation
Creating dynamic camera paths and tracking multiple objects
Automating camera focus with AI-assisted scripting
Using ChatGPT to accelerate code development for Blender tools
If you're looking to improve your Blender workflow or curious about how AI can assist in plugin development, this tutorial is for you!
Here's the full prompt I used:
I want to write a Blender plugin for Blender version 4.2 in Python. The plugin should create a camera rig. A camera should be guided along a path curve. For all selected objects, target empties should be created at their origins. The camera should have track to constraints aimed at the target empties (the empties should be parented to the objects). The camera should then be animated along the path curve, with keyframes already set for target switching in the track to constraints via influence values. Lastly, an additional empty (called focus empty) should move with the target switches using copy location constraints. This should be done via drivers that link the influence values of the track to constraints with the copy location constraints of the focus empty.
It would be great if, at the beginning, I could select one or more objects and then be prompted to specify the order in which the objects should be traversed.
It would be great if the curve is created in such a way that, if there is only one object, a semicircle is formed around the object, and if there are multiple objects, the curve describes a path parallel to the objects.
Here is chain of events:
Create a GUI Panel:
In the viewport's side panel, create a new panel named "MyCamRig".
Add a Button:
Inside the MyCamRig panel, add a button labeled "Setup CamRig".
On Button Press (when one or multiple objects are selected):
Check for Existing Camera:
Verify if a camera already exists in the scene. If not, create a new one.
Add a Path Curve:
Insert a Path Curve into the scene. Ensure it has a basic shape with the five default anchor points - evenly distributed.
Name this curve "camPath".
Assign Camera Constraints:
Add a "Follow Path" constraint to the camera, targeting the camPath curve.
Set the camera's location to coordinates (0, 0, 0).
Animate the Camera Along the Path:
At the first frame of the timeline (frame 0), set the influence value of the "Follow Path" constraint to 0 and insert a keyframe.
At the last frame of the timeline (e.g., frame 100), set the influence to 1 and insert another keyframe.
Create Target Empties:
For each selected object:
Create an Empty object at its origin.
Name each Empty "target_[objectname]" (replace [objectname] with the actual name of the object).
Add Tracking Constraints to the Camera:
For each target Empty created:
Add a "Track To" constraint to the camera.
Set the respective Empty as the target of this constraint.
Handle Multiple Objects:
If multiple objects are selected:
Prompt the user with the question: "In which order do you want the camera to target the objects?"
Adjust the direction of the camPath curve so the camera targets the objects in the specified order.
Divide the timeline equally so that each object is focused on for the same number of frames.
Animate Target Switching:
For each transition between targets:
Keyframe the influence value of the "Track To" constraints from 0 to 1.
Use an interval equal to twice the frame rate (e.g., over 2 seconds) so that each target switch smoothly occurs over this duration.
Set Up Depth of Field Focus:
Create an Empty object at the origin of the first object and name it "focus_target".
On the camera:
Enable the Depth of Field option.
Set the focus_target Empty as the focus object.
Link Focus to Target Switching:
Add as many "Copy Location" constraints to the focus_target Empty as there are target objects.
Use drivers to link the influence values of the camera's "Track To" constraints to the corresponding "Copy Location" constraint influences on the focus_target.
Blender Camera Rig Automation Script - Free Download:
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