Make 3D rotation snap angle configurable via rcParams

Chirag3841 · Chirag3841 · commit 24c3a53a8f91 · 2026-02-24T11:35:10.000+05:30
diff --git a/doc/api/toolkits/mplot3d.rst b/doc/api/toolkits/mplot3d.rst
@@ -121,3 +121,10 @@ the toolbar pan and zoom buttons are not used.
    proj3d.proj_transform
    proj3d.proj_transform_clip
    proj3d.world_transformation
+
+Rotation snapping
+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
+
+When rotating a 3D Axes while holding the Control key, the rotation
+angle is snapped to increments defined by the rcParam
+:rc:`axes3d._snap_rotation` (default: 5 degrees).
diff --git a/doc/release/next_whats_new/snap_3d_rotation.rst b/doc/release/next_whats_new/snap_3d_rotation.rst
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+3D rotation snapping via Control key
+-------------------------------------
+
+Holding the Control key while rotating a 3D Axes snaps the rotation
+angle to configurable increments. The snap angle is controlled via
+the rcParam :rc:`axes3d._snap_rotation`, which defaults to 5 degrees.
diff --git a/lib/matplotlib/rcsetup.py b/lib/matplotlib/rcsetup.py
@@ -1181,6 +1181,7 @@ def _convert_validator_spec(key, conv):
     "axes3d.mouserotationstyle": ["azel", "trackball", "sphere", "arcball"],
     "axes3d.trackballsize": validate_float,
     "axes3d.trackballborder": validate_float,
+    "axes3d.snap_rotation": validate_float,
 
     # scatter props
     "scatter.marker":     _validate_marker,
@@ -2143,6 +2144,12 @@ class _Param:
         description="trackball border width, in units of the Axes bbox (only for "
                     "'sphere' and 'arcball' style)"
     ),
+    _Param(
+        "axes3d.snap_rotation",
+        default=0.0,
+        validator=validate_float,
+        description="Snap angle (in degrees) for 3D rotation when holding Control."
+    ),
     _Param(
         "xaxis.labellocation",
         default="center",
diff --git a/lib/mpl_toolkits/mplot3d/axes3d.py b/lib/mpl_toolkits/mplot3d/axes3d.py
@@ -1612,12 +1612,14 @@ def _on_move(self, event):
 
                 q = dq * q
                 elev, azim, roll = np.rad2deg(q.as_cardan_angles())
-            if getattr(self, "_snap_rotation", False):
-                step = 5
-                elev = float(step * round(elev / step))
-                azim = float(step * round(azim / step))
-                roll = float(step * round(roll / step))
-
+            if (
+                self._snap_rotation
+                and mpl.rcParams["axes3d.snap_rotation"] > 0
+            ):
+                step = mpl.rcParams["axes3d.snap_rotation"]
+                elev = step * round(elev / step)
+                azim = step * round(azim / step)
+                roll = step * round(roll / step)
             # update view
             vertical_axis = self._axis_names[self._vertical_axis]
             self.view_init(
diff --git a/lib/mpl_toolkits/mplot3d/tests/test_axes3d.py b/lib/mpl_toolkits/mplot3d/tests/test_axes3d.py
@@ -2819,6 +2819,8 @@ def test_ctrl_rotation_snaps_to_5deg(monkeypatch):
 
     ax._snap_rotation = True
 
+    monkeypatch.setitem(plt.rcParams, "axes3d.snap_rotation", 5)
+
     monkeypatch.setitem(plt.rcParams, "axes3d.mouserotationstyle", "azel")
 
     captured = {}
