nuclear mushroom cloud

[Elmar Moelzer]

Just a test of something I have been experimenting with lately:

http://www.mediastudio-graz.com/objects/test023.mpg

Please dont mind the bad compositing, this is just for fun and I wont use this BG plate in the end anyway (gotta go and take some better pictures first).
This is my hometown, btw. I was inspired to this video by the politics of our local politicians (can you guess that I am not to happy with them?).
I did not use PFX for this, but used point- clouds that I animated with bones and just normal stretching and moving, etc. Gave me more control over the movement of the "particles".
Crits and comments are very welcome.
CU
Elmar

[Csion]

The video wont play for me...

[Elmar Moelzer]

Its an Mpeg2 video, should play fine on any mashine with a DVD-playing software installed.
Just right-click, save and then play it in whatever DVD-playing software (e.g. Power DVD) you have installed.
CU
Elmar

[Csion]

maybe its because i defaulted myself to WMP

[Elmar Moelzer]

Also plays fine in WMP here...
I think you need to have at least one DVD-player software installed for the MPEG2 codec.
Anyway here are a couple of screenshots:
CU
Elmar

[Csion]

Alright, I got the MPEG2 codec (long over-due)...

Look really cool, and a bit unnerving!
I like the motion it makes, but the cloud's internal shades don't look right, specifically the fiery creep near the end. Also, I'd put the explosion farther from the camera...near the horizon...since, right now, it just looks like a backyard hydrogen experiment gone wrong!

Can you share more about the scene with us?

-JCanuet

[Elmar Moelzer]

Yeah, some of these things are not really timed correctly yet, if you mean that (the fiery things are a bit "late" still).
Well, about the scene:
I animated the rolling mushroom- head with a ring of bones that are rotating on their bank angle.
The "hanging branches" below the main head are animated in a simillar way but are also stretched down wards. The "stem" is just a particle cloud of this shape that is then stretched inwards and upwards and moved upwards to get the motion.
The bottom cloud-ring is just a particle cloud scaled outwards. Now I did not really pay a lot of attention to this one and I will try to improve on that a lot.
You are right about the size of the explosion, it is looking a bit to close and therefore to small. But right now, I was more about making it look right. For the final composition I will use different views of the city anyway (I will have to go and take some first).
CU
Elmar

[Csion]

You should get a short animation to composite over. So the trees jostle and the camera jogs a bit.
Where is this town?

I also like the bright out in the beginning. Just make it quicker and whiter.

[hrgiger]

Pretty good Elmar although it seems a bit slow. Also, the cloud spreading over the ground seems to spawn in an odd way as it spreads.

[Elmar Moelzer]

Yeah, the compositing is not very good...
I guess thats what makes the cloud at the bottom look weird...
CU
Elmar

[tischbein3]

I really like the generall cloud movement and how the fireish part disolves into the cloud this is really nicely done. (Maybe the parts of the lower ring should disolve faster than those of the main mushroom.. but not really sure about this)

The two dislikes:
- the darkness / shaddow casting strength of the cloud itself at the end of the animation...I do think this also reduces the feeled size..

- The main lense flare (mushroom cloud center) at ~sec9 to end:
I would rather expect it to keep at a certain size and disolve out.... I'm aware of what want to archive, but somehow it does not feel right.

Mhmm although my negative critique outnumbers my positive, I really like it.

[Elmar Moelzer]

Hey!
Thanks for the nice words.
Yeah the Lensflare... This really sucks ;)
It is actually wrong. I forgot to rerender it after I changed the camera- angle... hehe ;)
You are right, I should dissolve it too, would look better...
Not exactly sure about what you meant with the shading, is it to weak?
CU
Elmar

[tischbein3]

Not exactly sure about what you meant with the shading, is it to weak?


The opposite: either a bit to strong,

[DogBoy]

The fire in the secondary ring looks too much like (domestic paper/wood) flames, to me, which breaks the effect as they ruin the sense of scale. they should be more perturbed and roiling.

[Elmar Moelzer]

Hello!
Finally had some time for some more tweaking.
Compositing is still not even close to final, for now I am only after the look of the mushroom- cloud. The BG is only for reference. BTW, if I use the compositing options in LightWave, the result is very different from the result in Fusion. Really strange...
Here is the link to the new version (right click then "save as" and use DVD- player to play it):
http://www.mediastudio-graz.com/objects/nuclear_test.mpg
CU
Elmar

[byte_fx]

Can't view anims of any type on this system so this based on the stills.

The shading on the left frame looks wrong - fireball explosions are self illuminating with external lighting having less effect on apperance.

This is a common problem with Hypervoxel lighting so it's not something easily avoidable. Just shows why Hypervoxels need an update.

byte_fx

[Elmar Moelzer]

Yeah, I noticed that problem as well... kinda hard to work arround that. The stills are old though...
I think it looks a lot better in the new version (anim).
CU
Elmar

[ghostlight]

I did a mushroom cloud:
http://one.revver.com/watch/327413

[adrian]

Can't see the anim as it says file not found, but how can you even think of blowing up Graz?!!!! What a beautiful city (like all of Austria including the girls, hehe).... just blow up the politicans!

BTW can I put in an advance order for lots of snow next winter for when I go skiing to Saalbach? Thanks.... maybe you can knock up a few HV snowclouds...

[Elmar Moelzer]

Hey Adrian!
I took the first link to the old version down, the second one here (to the new version) should work though
Here it is again:
http://www.mediastudio-graz.com/objects/nuclear_test.mpg
http://www.mediastudio-graz.com/objects/nuclear_test.mpg
CU
Elmar

[Elmar Moelzer]

Oh and the whole story is that our politicians are nuking (destroying) the city with their stupid politics (even though I sometimes feel the urge to explode as well ;) ).
You know like "these new parking fees are going to be a bombastic success" and "awesome that way we can finally get everyone to shop at the malls outside instead of visiting the inner city, how cool is that?" and "yeah the people are going to be soo happy" ... "they are going to be even happyer once we raise the fees for the street cars"... "its going to be tha bomb!".
;)
Not sure whether I will ever finish it, but thats the idea...
CU
Elmar

[Elmar Moelzer]

Here are some more screenshots for those that cant watch the video:

[JohnMarchant]

Hey Elmar any chance of a little tutorial, this is exactly the look i want for a desert nuclear test explosion.

Thanks

[Elmar Moelzer]

Hey John!
Thanks for the nice words. I will think about one, once I am done with this.
It really is more about tweaking those HVs. The motion and everything else is rather basic (but a lot of it).
CU
Elmar