Hello. I'm trying to use SRWE for the first time and things are not clicking. I feel like I should understand what I'm reading, but I also feel like I missed the beginning of a conversation.
Info: TS4; PC; I currently use Reshade to take my screenshots
The following is from one of your SRWE faqs and I hope you can clarify somethings for me.
-Type in the dimensions of the shape of screenshot you want to take (or leave it as the shape of your current window/monitor)
-Set up your screenshot
---#1 - Without SRWE, to me, setting up my screenshot (usually) means using the tab/cinematic camera (and saved camera positions)
-Tab out to SRWE
---#2 - Does this mean to actually tap the "Tab" key? If so, how does that work when I'm using the tab camera?
-Type in the same dimensions but larger (so, if it’s a square shot, type in something like 3000x3000)
-Tab back into your game
---#3 - Same as question as #2.
-The window will get really big and you won’t see all your game
-Take the screenshot
---#4 - Which program am I using to take the actual shot? TS4? Reshade? SRWE? If the latter, what am I clicking (see SRWE screenshot below)
---#5 - If the case is that can't use the tab camera, how do I hide the GUI?
---#6 - How do I set where my screenshots save?
---#7 - In the screenshot, what are the bracketed sections for?
Sorry it took me a couple of days to reply to this. I've been looking forward to answering your questions!
Okay, on the 'tab out' thing - on a Windows PC you can alt+tab to switch between the windows you have open. You press alt and while you hold that down you press tab, and each time you press tab it will switch to a new window (depending on how many you have open at the same time). If there's only one window open, pressing alt+tab will 'tab out' to the desktop instead. 'Tab out' is just a shorthand way of saying to press alt+tab to cycle through your windows.
As long as the alt key is held down, pressing the tab key won't affect your tab mode camera at all. Alt is a 'modifier' in this instance. Keys like alt, shift and control are all modifiers and mean one key - like tab, or any other key on your keyboard - can have multiple uses, basically extending and expanding the number of keys you have available for certain functions and operations.
So when I say to 'tab out to SRWE' I mean to press (and hold) alt and then press tab to cycle away from your TS4 window and into the SRWE window. And then when you're done you can 'tab back in' to TS4 by doing the same. Remember, while alt is held down it bypasses TS4's regular tab key function, so it won't affect the tab mode camera.
So, set up your shot by going into the tab mode camera and composing everything as you want. Once you're happy, press and hold down alt, and then press tab as many times as needed to make SRWE the main window. When you're done setting up the resolution you want, alt+tab back into the game and it'll still be set up as you left it, and you can take your screenshot.
If you use ReShade, you'll be using ReShade to take the screenshot as normal. It'll save wherever you usually save ReShade screenshots, but it'll be bigger!
To set where ReShade saves your screenshots, in the ReShade menu go to the Settings tab at the top and a little way down you'll see a screenshot path section - just point that to wherever you want your screenshots to go. I have a folder inside my main screenshots folder just called RESHADE, that's where mine go, and I separate them out into different game folders from there when I'm ready, but you can set it up into whatever folders you want.
Scale: I've never used that, but I'm guessing maybe you can specify a multiplier of your current window size instead of putting in exact dimensions? Don't quote me on that. You don't need to worry about it.
Window scaling from megapixels: This is fun. This didn't exist when I wrote my initial SRWE tutorial. Do you remember the bit in the tutorial where I talked about megapixels, and how if you work out how many megapixels your computer can handle it can help you to work out the best sizes for each aspect ratio you want to set up? Well this section makes that even easier.
You can use the aspect ratio box (where it says 1:1) to select the aspect ratio (obviously!), and directly underneath in the megapixels box you can type in the megapixel amount you know your PC can handle. It will then fill in the output resolution box on the right for you with the dimensions of that aspect ratio with that specific megapixel amount. So you don't have to go through all the hassle of using the aspect ratio calculator to set up a bunch of profiles if you don't want to, just select the aspect ratio and the MP and SRWE will do the rest. (You may still want to set up a profile for your favoured aspect ratios at sizes that fit on your PC monitor for when you're composing, unless you've already worked out what MP they are specifically. I think profiles in that case are easier.)
Don't want to set up a bunch of profiles but want a million of them ready to go?
Here you go: MY CURRENT SET OF SRWE PROFILES
Unzip that folder and add all the profiles inside to your Profiles folder, which should be wherever you launch SRWE from. If you don't already have a Profiles folder, just put mine wherever you want, and you can navigate to it when you choose load profile in SRWE.
All my recent portrait ratio shots that I've been taking to showcase Sunblind have been taken in the 6:7 ratio - I love it so much.