This week we learned about adding images and creating shapes in Photoshop and After Effects, and animating them using keyframes. We started by finding an image of a kitten and then finding something for them to look at.
The image I went for was a man doing a backflip, and my plan was to make this guy do a backflip over the cat as it watches in awe. We started by cutting the images out, isolating them from their backgrounds. This was mainly done with the pen tool as it provides a lot of accuracy since the user decides where each point is added. It can take longer than some other tools but the cleanness that you can achieve is worth it.
To animate these images I imported them into after effects and key-framed in their movements. This included the dude rotating over a period of time, and following a curved path across the screen. The cat follows the dude with it’s head and the body (which the head is attached to) turns and moves slightly, making it look like it is rolling.
While my final project probably won’t be… quite like this, it gives a lot of ideas for things that I can do with this software.
Instead of manually selecting points for After Effects to track, 3D tracking involves the software scanning a al of a video clip for points to track, and then compiles all the data together for easier use by the user. The first video included the same box as the first 2D tracking video, but this time the camera was moving and the camera was still.
Since After Effects had detected where the surface of the box was in a 3D space, I simply added the text on top of it. I also gave them a shadow by adding a light and telling it where to cast the shadow. It was simple to add text to a flat surface as After Effects can work out by analysing the whole clip where each surface is in space. It simple needs points that it can recognise and can track the movement of. The dots in the box, and even the corners of the box itself, are perfect for this.
I also added a black rectangle over a magazine on the right. Adding it was just as simple as adding the text, but what’s really impressive about this is that since it is adding it into a 3D space by working out how the camera is moving, it can continue to move accurately even when when the magazine is out of shot. This is different to 2D tracking, because if one of the points I manually selected for tracking went out of frame After Effects could even begin to guess where it is now, and so just stops tracking that area. With 3D tracking, there are many other point for it to look out for so it can work out where that area is, even when the surface i’ve added something to is no longer visible.
Next we had a video of a road, with the camera moving around, and we were giving an image of a hole. After Effects was able to track where the ground was, and I then laid the hole on that surface. I wanted to give the hole depth, and to do that I would need to simulate a parallax effect. To do this, I duplicated the layer with the hole on it, placed it above the original and masked out the actual hole, leaving only the cracked edges. I also mad the bottom layer of the hole bigger, so you couldn’t see the edge again inside the hole. Lastly, I made it so that everything that could be seen of the bottom hole layer that was outside the top hole (so not including the actual hole) would be masked out. This was to hide the edges of the bottom layer so you would only see the edges of the top layer. I then just added a grungy texture and did some colour correction to make it all blend in better.
It was surprisingly simple to add something like this to a layer, and I’ll definitely have to look into using it further for my final project. I already have a few ideas to use After Effect’s tracking capabilities but I want to try the other some things in the other workshops before I finalise anything.
I missed the workshop this week (alarms aren’t what they used to be) so I’m going entirely off of what I learned in the videos on blackboard. This week we were learning about how to use the 2D tracking tools in After Effects. We were given a video of a box with 5 dots in it moving around while keeping the dots visible at all times. We could use the dots to track the movement of the box and attach something to it.
It achieves a simple but striking effect. The dots in the corners make the tracking process much simpler as it is easier for After Effects to see the movement as it is happening. But if there aren’t any big obvious dots that are purposely kept in frame at all times, you’ll need to find something else to use.
In this video I changed the sky to look more interesting, added the sun and lens flare effects and changed the colours of the whole scene. To track the movement of the shot I used the head light post on the right and the top right corner of the first building from the left. Since these had quite defined shapes (circles and corners) and never left the shot, After Effects was able to track their movement and from this the movement of the camera. This allowed me to attach the sky and sun to the movement that After Effects tracked so that they would move with the ground.
The box video was good to get to grips with 2D tracking, but second ones definitely shows the true potential of motion tracking. Since After Effects can track how the camera is moving, as well as the things in the scene, you can add in whatever you need, e.g. a new sky, and it won’t look out of place.
I decided to download and try out Augment in a short test. I looked through their available models and chose one that stood out to me; a Coca Cola vending machine. I then looked around t find a location that I though might suit the machine, and used Augment to see if it really did.
Using this, I could effectively see what this area would look like with this vending machine here. To do something like this in the past you would need an artist to sketch the scenery and add it in. Being able make a more informed decision without needing to put a lot of effort in beforehand can save a lot of time and potentially money.
With the ever new and advancing technology that is being made available to the general public, we are able to see the world around us in new and exciting ways. It’s no longer necessary to physically change the space around us, but we can now simulate what could be using a variety of software.
One way that consumers can experience this is through the use of an application called “Augment”. It allows users to simulate 3D models shown in their environment. Users can download the app for free and use a wide range of models available for download, or they can create their own. While this can be used for a bit of fun, there are many practical applications that people are already taking advantage of. As shown in the video above, companies can use Augment to show their customers what their product looks like before they’ve even really seen it. They can also show retailers what their product’s display would look like in their store, or just the product itself. This technology opens up a wide range of possibilities for both retailers and consumers that make it easier to be more informed about a product before making a purchase.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6yg6ljnASxw
Another example, demonstrated by Microsoft earlier this year at E3, shows the capabilities of their “Hololens”. They are able to simulate a world created in the popular sandbox game Minecraft, on top of a table. The model rotates based on where the user is viewing from so there is no need for a controller. It can also work as a great hands-free alternative to programs such as Augment. You could, for example be looking around a house, deciding on furnishings. The potential buyer could be looking around the house while the seller adds things into their vision, such as alternate chairs, lighting, etc.
There are currently a few effective uses for this technology, but we are still early in its life cycle. This technology is still finding it’s feet and as such we are still finding effective ways to use it. I am sure augmented reality will be a lot more common in the future, but for now we are still finding out what we can do with it.
