Png

png writes a png format image file of the current image to disk.

USAGE

png filename[, dpi[, ray]]

• dpi, sets the dots per inch (dpi) of the final image (default=-1 [unspecified])
• ray, whether or not PyMOL ray traces the image before saving (default=0)

PYMOL API

cmd.png( string file, dpi, ray )

COMMENTS

Blank Screen Shots

If, when you execute the Png command, you get blank images, you may have to Ray trace your image first, before running the Png command. This occurs when there is no device context for the image, such as when running PyMOL in quiet gui-less mode. If the ray tracing is taking too long due to scene complexity or size, then please see the Ray page or search the wiki for information about making movies with PyMOL (there are many ways to speed up rendering).

Transparent Backgrounds

See Ray_opaque_background. This is very useful for presentations, or images that are placed on top of a background of nonuniform color, or if you simply want a transparent background for your images.

DPI Setting

Use the DPI option to have PyMol set the DPI of your image. If I execute

ray 1200,1200

then execute

png /tmp/ex.png, dpi=300

I will get a four-inch square image at 300dpi. Leaving off the dpi flag would net me a 1200x1200 image at 72dpi. This saves the intermediate step of having to use GIMP/PhotoShop/etc to rescale your photos for publication.