Render images and simple 3D assets directly inside the current Neovim buffer.

rndr.nvim pairs a Lua plugin with a native C++ renderer. Open an image or model, run :RndrOpen, and the buffer is replaced with an in-place preview you can rerender, rotate, and restore.

• Raster images: png, jpg, jpeg, gif, bmp, webp, tga, psd, hdr, pic, pnm, ppm, pgm, pbm
• Vector images: svg, svgz
• Models: obj, fbx, glb, gltf, dae, 3ds, blend, ply, stl, x, off
• SVG rasterizers: rsvg-convert, magick, or convert

Required:

• Neovim with Lua support
• git
• CMake 3.16+
• A C++23-capable compiler

Optional:

• rsvg-convert, magick, or convert for SVG rendering

lazy.nvim:

{
  "SalarAlo/rndr.nvim",
  build = "make",
  config = function()
    require("rndr").setup()
  end,
}

require("lazy").setup({
  git = {
    timeout = 900 -- 15 minutes
  }
})

packer.nvim:

use({
  "SalarAlo/rndr.nvim",
  run = "make",
  config = function()
    require("rndr").setup()
  end,
})

If make is unavailable:

{
  "SalarAlo/rndr.nvim",
  build = "./scripts/build_renderer.sh",
}

If you keep the binary somewhere else, override renderer.bin in setup().

Clone the repository and build the native renderer:

git clone https://github.com/SalarAlo/rndr.nvim.git
cd rndr.nvim
make

This produces the renderer binary at renderer/build/rndr.

If assimp is not installed locally, CMake falls back to fetching a bundled copy during configure. That path still needs network access, so offline builds currently require a local assimp installation.

make is a thin wrapper around ./scripts/build_renderer.sh. If you prefer raw CMake commands:

cmake -S renderer -B renderer/build -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release
cmake --build renderer/build --parallel --config Release

Minimal setup:

require("rndr").setup({
  preview = {
    auto_open = true,
  },
})

Open a supported file and run:

:RndrOpen

Or render a specific file directly:

:RndrOpen lua/examples/dog.jpg

Check whether the renderer binary and optional SVG tools are available:

:checkhealth rndr

• :RndrOpen [path]
• :RndrClose
• :RndrRotateLeft
• :RndrRotateRight
• :RndrRotateUp
• :RndrRotateDown
• :RndrResetView

Rotation commands only affect model files.

require("rndr").setup({
  preview = {
    auto_open = true,
    events = { "BufReadPost" },
    render_on_resize = true,
  },
  assets = {
    images = { "png", "jpg", "jpeg", "gif", "bmp", "webp" },
    vectors = { "svg", "svgz" },
    models = { "obj", "fbx", "glb", "gltf", "dae", "blend", "ply", "stl" },
  },
  window = {
    termguicolors = true,
    size = {
      width_offset = 0,
      height_offset = 0,
      min_width = 1,
      min_height = 1,
    },
    options = {
      number = false,
      relativenumber = false,
      wrap = false,
      signcolumn = "no",
    },
  },
  renderer = {
    bin = "/absolute/path/to/rndr.nvim/renderer/build/rndr",
    supersample = 2,
    brightness = 1.0,
    saturation = 1.18,
    contrast = 1.08,
    gamma = 0.92,
    background = "0d0f14",
  },
  controls = {
    rotate_step = 15,
    keymaps = {
      close = "q",
      rerender = "R",
      reset_view = "0",
      rotate_left = "h",
      rotate_right = "l",
      rotate_up = "k",
      rotate_down = "j",
    },
  },
})

Telescope preview override:

local rndr = require("rndr")

require("telescope").setup({
  defaults = {
    buffer_previewer_maker = rndr.telescope_buffer_previewer_maker,
  },
})

This keeps Telescope's normal previewer for non-renderable files and swaps in rndr automatically for supported images and models.

The renderer can also be called directly:

./renderer/build/rndr <file> <term-width> <term-height> [supersample] [yaw] [pitch] [brightness] [saturation] [contrast] [gamma] [background]

.
├── lua/rndr/             # Neovim plugin code
├── lua/examples/         # Sample assets
├── renderer/             # Native renderer built with CMake
├── scripts/              # Build helpers
└── showcase/             # README media