---
title: "Render Molecule: Make your structure look beautiful with Blender"
url: "https://help.dectris.cloud/en/article/render-molecule-make-your-structure-look-beautiful-with-blender"
language: "en"
last_updated: "2026-07-16T01:05:34.131Z"
---

# Render Molecule: Make your structure look beautiful with Blender

Use Blender and MolecularNodes to generate a beautiful render of your protein structure!

[This job template](https://app.dectris.cloud/sections/library/jobs/templates?id=0199a3c8-7e40-7690-aeff-96536fcc02f6) is built with the [Blender + MolecularNodes](https://app.dectris.cloud/sections/analysis/environments?id=0197e097-38f9-77d3-b748-062e070a2b97) environment. The user must define the path to a PDB or CIF file containing a molecular structure.

The job uses a Python script that runs within blender. It loads the file, adjusts the scene and renders an image.

## **Quick Start**

To run this job, you need to specify the following input variables:

-   **DC\_MODEL:** Path to a PDB or CIF file containing a molecular structure.

Optionally, the following input variables can also be configured:

-   **DC\_STYLE**: MolecularNodes rendering style. Can be: **cartoon**, **ribbon**, **surface**, **spheres**, **sticks**, **ball\_and\_stick**
-   **DC\_COLOR\_MODE**: Color of the molecule. Can be: **common**, **nc\_gradient** or **(R, G, B, A)** (e.g. "(1.0, 0.5, 0.0, 1.0)")
-   **DC\_CMAP**: CMAP gradient in case DC\_COLOR\_MODE is nc\_gradient. Can be: any of the [matplotlib cmaps](https://matplotlib.org/stable/users/explain/colors/colormaps.html#sequential)
-   **DC\_ENGINE**: Renering engine. Can be: **CYCLES** (for ray tracing) or **EEVEE** (for rasterization)
-   **DC\_RESOLUTION**: Resolution in pixels of the rendered image: **width** and **height**
-   **DC\_CENTER:** Centers molecule's center of mass on center of rotation (not necessary for stills).
-   **DC\_VIEW**: Determines the side from which the molecule is viewed. Can be: **default**, **front**, **back**, **top**, **bottom**, **left**, **right, all**
-   **DC\_MOVIE:** Renders 360 degree turnable animation of molecule rather than still image.
-   **DC\_MOV\_SECONDS**: Time in seconds to complete the 360 degree rotation.

## **Examples**

### **360 degree movie:**

These variables run on [PDB 7WAH](https://www.ebi.ac.uk/pdbe/entry/pdb/7wah) resulted in this movie:

![](https://cdn-assets.productfruits.com/1ffe71c1-a60c-49f4-a05a-30b7305299b7)

[Embedded content](https://www.youtube.com/embed/HgJZDiOXRsE)

### **Still image:**

These variables run on [PDB 4V6X](https://www.ebi.ac.uk/pdbe/entry/pdb/4v6x) resulted in this image:

![](https://cdn-assets.productfruits.com/ce4c9711-c6a8-40df-b4c0-0324a6fbab49)

![](https://cdn-assets.productfruits.com/373f5a88-4a36-4ea7-8b26-c978c7b2898b)

## **Output**

A successfully completed job generates the following outputs:

![](https://cdn-assets.productfruits.com/aedda9d9-d59e-4550-8e48-0aad8ee610a7)