If you’re a molecular modeler or researcher working with complex biomolecular systems, you’ve likely faced the challenge of quickly generating clear and visually appealing representations. You might need to rotate 3D models, highlight ligands, distinguish chain types by color, or prepare images for figures and presentations. Doing all of this by adjusting individual rendering parameters can be tedious and error-prone.
Fortunately, SAMSON provides a streamlined solution with visual presets—collections of predefined visual settings that apply meaningful representations and colors in just a few clicks. This can significantly reduce setup time while improving the clarity and aesthetics of your visuals ✨.
What Are Visual Presets?
Visual presets in SAMSON allow you to apply multiple visual models and color schemes simultaneously based on molecular features like residues, chains, or atom types. Instead of manually building up representations model by model, you can select an entire preset and apply it instantly to your molecular system.
One Example: Protein-Ligand Rendering
Let’s say you’re studying a ligand bound to a protein (a common scenario). With SAMSON’s Protein-ligand preset, you can immediately generate a view where the ligand and protein are rendered using distinct and molecule-appropriate models like ribbons for the protein and licorice or van der Waals for the ligand. Here’s how it can look:
This preset not only enhances the readability of the molecular interaction but also saves valuable time when preparing figures or presentations.
How to Apply a Visual Preset
To use visual presets in SAMSON:
- Open your molecular structure (e.g. using Home > Fetch with a PDB code),
- Navigate to Visualization > Visual preset,
- Choose from presets like Protein-ligand, Illustrate…, or others provided by default,
- That’s it—your model updates instantly with the new style.
Create Your Own Presets
If you frequently use a specific combination of visual models and colors, SAMSON allows you to create and save your own presets. That way, you can quickly apply your preferred style to any molecular system without repeating configuration steps.
Bonus: The Illustrative Style
Inspired by the RCSB’s “Molecule of the Month” visual style, SAMSON offers an Illustrative preset for both visualization and rendering. With just another click, you can create visuals that mimic scientific illustration aesthetics. It’s especially helpful for educational content:
Wrapping Up
Using visual presets in SAMSON is a practical and efficient way to enhance molecular visualization. Whether you’re preparing high-quality images for publication or analyzing structures visually, these one-click styling tools save time and improve clarity.
Learn more in the official SAMSON documentation.
SAMSON and all SAMSON Extensions are free for non-commercial use. You can get SAMSON at www.samson-connect.net.