I’ve always had a fondness for particles. From African tsetse swarms to F5 tornadoes tearing through Tornado Alley I’ve animated, composited, and enhanced blowing blizzards, monstrous blobs, and conjuring wizards.
Particle simulations add an extra touch of detail that kicks a comp up a few more notches. Sometimes giving the sense of a windstorm pushing the hero back. The shot just feels better, richer. It’s hard to put a finger on it sometimes, but it adds an extra bit of dimension and drama to a scene. Sometimes barely noticeable and other times pulling the viewer directly into the eye of the storm.
The best compliment our talented promotions compositors and VFX artists at The Weather Channel ever got was during a Storm Week promo review by the chief of the Marketing Department:
“Where did you get that shot in the promo?” We humbly replied: “we created it by combining multiple shots, adding particle simulations, stock footage elements, and a touch of compositing wizardry.”
ABOVE : TWC EXTREME WEATHER WEEK PROMO END TITLE COMPOSITE : THE WEATHER CHANNEL PROMOTIONS GROUP | COMPOSITOR : DAVID VINSON | PRODUCERS : DORELLY HERFORD, STEPHEN CLARK, SARAH FORRESTER, AND PAT PIPER | LIBRARY : JAY TELLOCK | MANAGER : GREG STROUD | VP OF DESIGN AND CREATIVE DIRECTOR : RICK BOOTH
Whether adding snow, rain, sleet, or hail we always rose to the task at hand doing whatever it took to hold the viewer’s attention and engage with them for a few more seconds.
For ten years as a full-time or freelance broadcast designer I created detailed explainer graphics for the meteorologists at The Weather Channel (TWC) with my fellow artists, ET & BS; ranging from hurricane anatomy breakdowns to rainstorms and gully washes.
During the course of those ten years, we created a plethora of shots reminiscent of those found on the silver screen to promote Tornado Week, Flood Week, Hurricane Onslaught, Extreme Weather Week, It Could Happen Tomorrow, Storm Week, Storm Stories Avalanche, Heroes of the Storm, and Wrath of Winter. The Discovery Channel began creating dramatic promos similar to ours. After my ten-year tenure ended, I collaborated with TWC for an additional four years, while I was working full-time at Artifact Design and Outpost Pictures.
Three years later, as a Red Giant Guru, I was given the opportunity to design and animate particle effects preset packs for Red Giant Software and Trapcode Particular. I also designed a concept for a custom splatter effects engine based around Trapcode Particular for them. They passed on the concept, but you can check out the proof of concept on the “Videos” page here.
To top things off, when working as Motion Design Director at Outpost Pictures, we delivered an Indy-inspired video for Southern Living At Home complete with giant mosquitoes, flocking birds, sandstorms, splashes, dust, debris, smoke, and epic whiteouts. Over a two-year period we created three corporate marketing videos that were shown at the yearly General Incentive conference headed by Gary Wright, chief of marketing, for Southern Living At Home.