Our latest Short-Cuts episode featured a inside look at the cover art for an upcoming DVD. Featured on the cover was a slightly photoshopped version of Sam, however some kind-hearted people suggested that he was looking much younger because of the work. I thought I would post this 'before and after' and let you decide...
Although the photoshoot was much more recent than that film shoot, I guess the new diet is working.
In this new (not-so-short) Short-Cuts Episode we'll take a look at creating sparks in AE with CC Particle World and uncover some hidden features as well. This tutorial uses the new Per-Charachter 3D in AE CS3.
Be sure to stay tuned to the end for a sneak preview.
Bricks with bump mapping in AE
Same Bricks with no bump mapping
Bump Mapping is an effective way to add surface-dimension to still images and textures by allowing light to interact with the contours of the surface. Usually this is done in a 3D program but a similar technique can be imitated in After Effects, as shown in the latest Short_Cuts Tutorial.
The above example shows how bump mapping can have a dramatic effect on a still image, but sometimes a separate bump map is needed to simulate the proper depth. I created a new bump map by manipulating the original image to look like the one on the right. The white area designates "extrusion" while the black stays unchanged.
This new image is then selected by the Glass filter to be used as the "Bump Map" layer. After playing with the settings, the bricks now appears to extrude slightly. The actual settings can be seen by clicking on the screen shot.
QUICK TIP: The bump map doesn't have to be a descendant of the original image. Think of the possibilities...
Also be sure to play with the material options to mimic the properties of the surface. In this case, dull bricks don't have as much specular hot spots.
Now if you have already built bump maps to use in your 3D program, then you know how fun it is to make custom bump maps from images. Unfortunately, simply inverting an image is never good enough because the necessary depth information is not always black or white.
Our first Short-Cuts episode is online. Now there is an outlet for all the little things that would otherwise get buried in my backyard.
In this new Short-Cut tutorial, I'll cover a cool tip for generating bump mapping with 3D light as well as utilizing 3D position with 2D effects.
This one ran a little long but in the future expect 1-5 minute videos with short tips and tricks.
Here is a quick render from Blender of an earlier bullet test. (This example is a little long but it was more of a texture test.) I can safely say that it takes about the same time to create this as it does to build it in 3D max, once you get the hang of things...
Not too bad for a free program.
Just came back from the midnight showing of Iron Man, the May second plans are still on but just a later in the day.
ALL DESIGN TOOLS
