Final piece readjusted

I have just given in my final piece, but as i do enjoy after effects more than i thought, i carried on playing around with my clips and seeing if i could make the final piece any better. So i added my crazy triangles clip, and i do actually quite like it, as i do feel my final piece had a lot of dark spots. So, here it is. But i am still content with my final piece, as this really isn't very different.

Working with different compositions

When i first started using after effects, i was shown that i could use many different compositions in many different sizes.
Here, i've made a clip of my floating bubbles in a really long composition, which i then dragged onto my final piece composition (which is a lot smaller) and then changed it's position. This causes a scrolling effect over the screen and i think it looks really nice, sort of like actual drops or bubbles. I really like layering up this clip and playing around with the size. Despite it being very simple, and a little boring, i do find it very versatile and easy to use.



Here, is a good example of it scrolling across the screen. I really like this. And how it flows quite nicely with the music. This is an initial experiment for my final piece. I'm trying to decide on the music at the moment, and i do really love this song and find it very soothing, but it really doesn't change much, so may need to go for something a little more upbeat for the exhibition.

'Converting audio to keyframes'

Learnt a few days ago how to convert any audio into keyframes, so basically putting a keyframe to the beat of the music, that can be "parented" (linked) to any of my layers. Need to remember to select the whole audio, and not just a small part though.
This was really handy to know and helped a lot to put all my clips together and speeded up the process a lot. However, it didn't give me as much freedom as i wanted, and i really need to learn more about it through tutorials.

Here, the beat of the music makes the circles go really small...

Then move closer to the screen when the beat gets stronger. I really like the look of the circles in the background and remind me sort of like a galaxy. 

I also learnt that i could drag a little triangle on my timeline out to book mark places in the music that i want something to happen to my visuals. Basically, a handy reminded. These were probably the most helpful things i learnt.

I really like how i have stuck to the paper collage idea, and haven't produced and computer generated visuals. However, the paper obviously has been changed a lot, but it still has it's roots.

Keyframing outcome

Here is the outcome of the effect that i explained in the last post. I do find this clip a little scary and dangerous, but i think it could look quite good in a club. I showed it to other students and they did like it, but they did add that it has a lot of darkness in it. They think it needs to be filled with more triangles.
This is something i need to work on. For me, i think it would be best to leave this clip, but add it as an extra layer to a final to another clip.

I also learnt about the glow tool in this experimentation. I was trying to get an effect sort of like a light saber. I played around with the exposure of the triangles and saturation then added the glow effect, and then adjusted with more things on that setting. This didn't glow as much as i hoped and was a little disappointed, but somehow, i accidently added the glow effect twice, and got an outcome i'm really happy with. So a new learning, that you can add an effect to an image more than once and that the glow effect does exist, and again, you can add keyframing to this so this is very handy.

There are a few crazy coloured triangles floating about in this clip, and this was very much an accident, but i really like the look of them and feel they look like spaceships, so i will keep them like that.

As for movement, they do go well with the music, i feel. However, i don't think they add anything to the music, or to the beat. This is where adding another clip could be best and be a lot more effective.

Key framing and time reversing

Learnt all about the time reverse layer, where this makes everything in that particular layer go backwards. It's quite exciting, especially when i have made objects appear to be getting bigger, this effect sort of makes them look like they are being sucked back in and getting more distant from the screen.
I also got taught about reversing all the layers which involved compiling them all together and then switching them round. This is an effect that seems useful but not something i would need to try out right now.
However, i believe for my final piece i would like to mix all the clips i have made so far together to a piece of music, as if i was VJing the images, so maybe for that i would need to try out that effect.

Learnt a lot about 'keyframing' too. This was really fun to use. I played around a lot with position and opacity on this clip. It was very tedious and the final clip that came from it was a bit crazy, and i felt a bit dangerous but still quite fun. I do feel i am going to wrong way about trying to get certain effects, and am still very much experimenting, but i am learning a lot.

Development

Spirals

Working with scaling and saturation of colours.
I really enjoy using paper for all of my clips, but i do feel it has hindered me a little and caused a lot less freedom than i thought, as i am always having the 'keylight' the background out, but also causing the colours in my shapes to fade. Meaning that a lot of the colours in my clips have turned out very similar. However, luckily the colours are very vibrant so this is a plus, and the texture and the material of the paper does look very nice, i think. I also like the little specks that i haven't managed to get rid of, but i feel they add a bit of 'crispyness' to them, similar to the animations that i saw from at the media museum.

Bubbles

Experimenting with the effects of duplicating the layers many many times, and seeing the effects of that layering and playing around with the 'modes' buttons to change those effects. Also tried out a lot of scaling for this clip. I also found a mode called 'dancing dissolve' which made the circles look like they were dissolving and sort of bursting, very nice effect.

Learning aftereffects jargan

Learning about the keyframes and scaling and how moving objects towards the screen does help a lot when working with music.

 duplicating layers does look quite cool i find too

Playing around with scaling and causing objects to go into the negative numbers causing the triangles to go upside down. Although, learnt you can also do this process probably better in an effect called flip and flip/flop. Can also play around with keyframing using this effect too.

I would also really like to try out working with masking objects, i think this can really help a lot, especially using keyframing.
It's also nice watching videos, or anything that's on a screen and noticing the effects that may have been applied to them, and sort of knowing what effect may have been used too. Like the 4od idents.

Also like this video, can see that the masking key has been used (i think) and would/should really try it out, hopefully in this project.

Playing around with music

Tried to practice some of the effects i did on the last video. Slightly struggled to remembered them, but i am quite happy with this. I really like playing with the music too, i do think it helps everything. I would really like to take this video even further, but for now i will experiment with the other shapes i have captured.

Then taking it into after effects to play around.
I am actually surprisingly happy with this, and am starting to quite enjoy the program and it's not too depressing to use.
However, i am basically experimenting without properly knowing what i'm doing. This is quite silly to do as i don't fully remember what effects i applied here. But i do like them.
I really like the movement when the triangles come towards the screen and the effects that come from duplicating the images.
I also like how the colours have been adjusted through playing around with the saturation and hue and also, keylighting (and getting rid of the dull green background).

First proper paper stuff with the rostrum that i think i will use in the final animations. I actually quite like these and the effects of the paper material.

Tutorial 10/05/11

Today we had a tutorial... i think it went well.

Showed the videos i have made to music, and the experimentation i tried in aftereffects and talked about my visit to the media museum.

I could see that my stuff wasn't completely exciting people, but they did say they liked it. I have discovered that the animations with more objects are the more interesting and hypnotising.

Was suggested to look at this video too...




I find this music video completely crazy, but i do really like it, despite being slightly tasteless. It isn't your typical pretty shapes flying around the place, the type of stuff that i've been making.

Realising that from my tutorial and this video, and from the media museum that i need to combine my shapes, and to be a lot more crazy with what i'm producing and to be more daring, and not to be afraid of the ugly.

- Shapes need to collide and merge more and create new shapes, and to flow into new scenes. Create new shapes and patters. A bit like a kaleidoscope.

My ideas from this tutorial are...

- vary my paper ( i have a lot of paper, and this can create some crazy variety)
- get crazy with shape making
- push my ambitions further, lead to some sort of conclusion with the images
- either loop the animations of have a lot of small clips, no longer than 30 seconds
- With my triangle animation - if they all come together and make other shapes and lead to other things
- follow the triangles when folding out - lead to another clip
- experiment with music - to adjust clips to the music

Came up with a few ideas for my piece in the exhibition, but i think i will leave talking about that for another day.

But conclusion for today is that i need to push myself and be more crazy with my shapes and ideas, and maybe just get messy and create some really tacky looking things, that express this crazy experimentation.

Experiments after visiting the media museum

Paper experiment based on Norman Mclaren's mark making into the negative film. Layered up different sized paper to give it the impression it was moving towards the screen. I quite like it, but much prefer Norman's crusty animation.

Bradford Media Museum

Went to Bradford to see the Media museum, was really good and eye opening.

Discovered the first animations of simply scratching straight onto the film, using pens and ink, something that Norman Mclaren was the first to do. I love his animations and movies. They are so timeless, and simple, but so effective.

All these videos being so old obviously come with the effortless effect of authenticity, but i love that effect. I love how crusty and scratchy they all are. And crazy, they were really experimenting and pushing looks. Something i really need to be more crazy with. Colours created are amazing too.

Was a really good trip. Learnt some good stuff about tv too.

Markmaking Norman Mclaren






Oskar Fischniger



Len Lye

More experimentations

Some more experimentations in the av room, with the proper cameras and lights and programes using paper that i have around from card folders and insides of envelopes. And put to music.


Cirlces from abi sharp on Vimeo.


Trees from abi sharp on Vimeo.

Movement

I obviously need to have movement in my animation, if it is to go to music. I took a journey to London the other day (for a very amazing gig). In this journey, i happened to stare out the window for 2 hours listening to music. From this i found that movement basically 'swooshing' across a screen, or window is a really good thing for emphasizing music. Or things flying at you i think are pretty good too.

So, will try to do this is my next experiments.
Also, caught a glimpse of a rowntree advert. It involved a sort of swooshing tube coming towards the screen. I don't know if i dreamt it, but i remember it looking stop animation-ey and drawn in with collage clouds and trumpets. I think i completely made it up as i can't find it anywhere. But that thought does inspire me. And here is a video, that sort of is similar. It has the swooshing tubes, but not til right at the end.




And here is some movement testing to see what does work. I think making things bigger and smaller works best.

Interim crit

It's been nearly a week since my crit, but here is my feedback.

It wasn't quite a crit, as i really haven't produced enough. David commented that i need to look at already existing stuff that goes with music to see what really flows with any music. So basically watch visuals and see if other music goes to it. Something, i probably should have done from the start. 

I also need to create visuals that are interesting and engaging to look at, but that are simply eye candy, and also that it doesn't lead to any story, as this will distract people from the music. 

I'm starting to think that there's not a lot of brains to this project, which should probably make it a lot easier, but i am finding it quite hard. I really do enjoy telling stories, no matter how crap they are, so in hindsight now i do think i should have done something with more of a narrative. This may, may have made things slightly simpler. But really, i'm just making excuses, i should be a lot further along than i am now. 

Really basic stop animations i made and showed at the crit. These were just to experiment with the types of paper, and the movements that i liked. Most people seemed to like the one with the spikes, as more is going on and more interesting really. I really like the envelope one really, but this may be because i love envelopes.


Initial dots from abi sharp on Vimeo.


Spikes from abi sharp on Vimeo.


Envelopes from abi sharp on Vimeo.

Something i have actually done

Untitled from abi sharp on Vimeo.

Tried out some very basic stop animation at home. At first i wanted the paper to be scrumping backwards, so it would end flat, but at the end, i felt it looked better the natural way. This is just a practice and experiment. I really need to get used to the DSLR and using a tripod and not getting distracted. I really want to try out some more complicated shapes and obviously to take some more pictures.

A/V suite induction day

We got inducted into the a/v suite a few days ago, sort of. We more got shown the things that we can do with animation programs, like dragon animation, and after effects. It was actually really helpful, as it showed how simple things can be, if i just went into this room.
So for the future, i think i will practice the animation i want to make at home, using my own computer and crap animation programs that i have on my own computer, then look to see how they can be improved, then again, capture the images and animation stuff on the computers at uni, as the equipment there is so much better and there is a lot more help.

When also being shown the after effects program, it explained, well i think it explained, how some animations  that i really love are made. And makes thing seem a little less scary, although still very confusing and daunting, i really need to get started with this.

On the brighter side, i've been watching these two music videos, which show some effects that i'd really like to do. And after seeing after effects, can kind of see how it worked. I also like how these are put to music, it really helps to look at them, as ultimately my visuals will be put to music.




Also, very much love this song.




The whole of this video is very much what i would like to do. Although, maybe a little brighter. I obviously can't copy this, but it does influence and inspire me a lot.

I believe both of them to have a mixture of stop animation, with photography, which has then be put into after effects. Both must have taken yonks to do.