Cameras
The Cameras tab lets you save, replay, and animate camera views. It has two sub-tabs:
- Fixed — single static camera shots you can snap to instantly
- Paths — keyframed camera paths that play back as smooth animated sequences
All cameras are saved to cameras.json in [track_folder]/extension/steelstudio/.
Fixed Cameras
A fixed camera stores a single position, orientation, FOV, and DOF setting.
Capturing a shot
- Position the camera in the game view as desired.
- Type a name in the input field and click Capture.
The new shot appears in the tile grid as a thumbnail.
Using a fixed camera
Click any tile to snap to that camera view immediately. Steel Studio takes control of the camera (you will see the camera grabbed indicator).
Editing a fixed camera
Hover a tile and click the edit icon to open the editor. While editing:
- Use the nudge controls in the right panel to fine-tune the view (see Right-panel controls below).
- Click Save to persist the updated position.
Path Cameras
A path camera is a sequence of keyframes. Steel Studio interpolates between them to produce a smooth animated camera move.
Recording a path
- Move to your first camera position and click Add Keyframe.
- Move to subsequent positions and keep clicking Add Keyframe (at least 2 are required).
- Enter a name, then click Save Path.
Playback controls
| Control | Description |
|---|---|
| Play / Pause | Start or pause playback at the current time |
| Stop | Halt playback and return to time 0 |
| Loop | Restart the path automatically when it reaches the end |
| Autoplay | Cycle through all saved path cameras in sequence, looping endlessly |
| Step slider | Controls how much time (0.05–2.0 s) each playback step advances |
Path settings
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Duration | Total length of the path in seconds (1–60) |
| Interpolation | linear — straight lines between keyframes; smooth — Catmull-Rom spline (curved) |
| Easing | linear, easeIn, easeOut, or easeInOut — controls how the playhead accelerates |
Timeline
Below the playback controls, a timeline bar shows:
- Diamond markers at each keyframe position
- A red cursor indicating the current playback time
Click the timeline to jump to a time. Use the < KF and KF > buttons to jump between keyframes.
Editing keyframes
While a path is open for editing:
| Action | Description |
|---|---|
| Navigate with < KF / KF > | Jump to the previous or next keyframe |
| Update KF | Overwrite the selected keyframe with the current camera view |
| Delete KF | Remove the selected keyframe (minimum 2 required) |
Pressing F1–F7 releases Steel Studio's camera grab. For path editing, this drops the live camera but keeps the editing overlay active — you can continue adjusting keyframes using the nudge controls without holding the camera (F7 mode).
Right-panel controls
These controls appear whenever a camera is grabbed (fixed or path edit mode).
Rotation
Buttons to nudge the camera angle by the configured step:
- Pitch — tilt up / down
- Yaw — pan left / right
- Roll — rotate around the forward axis
Position
- Elevate — move up / down
- Strafe — move left / right
- Move — move forward / backward
Field of view
Increase or decrease the FOV in increments of the configured step.
Depth of field
| Control | Description |
|---|---|
| DOF toggle | Enable or disable depth of field |
| Focus distance | Distance to the focal plane (0–500 m) |
| CTRL+click | Click anywhere in the scene to set the focus distance to that point's depth |
DOF relies on the YEBIS post-processing effect being active. The aperture (f-stop) is set globally by the active PP filter and cannot be changed from Steel Studio.