May 20, 2021 : Venture Bros. Movie Announced

As alluded to since their cancellation, The Venture Bros. will live on – at least in the form of a new movie on HBO Max, which was announced last week.

Movies for Metalocalypse and Aqua Teen were also mentioned in the release (no Stroker and Hoop? weak); but I am curious if these are simply development deals, and their actual execution is still up in the air.

That said, Venture Bros. looks to be a stand alone movie, thus leaving loose ends still untied. Who knows if other episodes are still in play. I hope that’s not contingent on the movie’s success because then we won’t know one way or another until 2028.

posted by Pi Visuals at 11:38 pm

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May 6, 2021 : Diving Into Lightwave 2020’s Lighting/ Cel Shading

I finally got to fiddle around in Lightwave 2020, with the goal of learning the new light system and cel shading capabilities. Beforehand, I spent some time researching things online. I learned a few things, but sadly Lightwave’s community is a far cry from where it was back in its heyday. Sigh…

Lightwave 2018 implemented a new lighting system (my previous version was 2015). One change was the unit of measurement for a light’s intensity. Previously it was a percentage but is now measured in ‘lux’ (or lx) – which is the SI derived unit of illuminance. This was a pretty straight forward change having found out 3.14 lx equates to 100%, and 0 lx corresponds to 0%.

The bigger change was the removal of the global Ambient Intensity setting. This was replaced with an additional default ‘light’, called the Environment Light. This light acts as a multiplier for the background and objects, which appears to have the same effect. Oddly enough, the intensity for this light is still measured in percent, not lux.

For Surfacing, there are now two tabs: a Material Tab and a Shading Model Tab. The Material Tab has several Material options. While the default is Principled BDSF, I used the Standard option – which looked to have settings similar to previous versions of Lightwave.

The Shading Model tab has several options, including the Cel Shading Model; and this looks completely different from Lightwave 2015. Here is how you can create different zones of shading. I wasn’t able to get this effect, but to be honest, it’s not something I strive for in my projects. That said, I would like to learn how in order to get a better understanding of the shader.

With respect to the actual Cel Shading, I was having a tough time getting the rendered colors to match the specific HEX Numbers given in the Material Tab. The colors looked similar but weren’t exactly what I set in the Diffuse property. I eventually was able to get this by lowering the default Distant light intensity to 0Lx (equivalent to 0%), and setting the Environment light intensity to 100%.

I still need to explore these settings. I’m not sure I am doing things the correct way, perhaps just accidentally stumbling on the desired results. Plus it felt like the stability was suspect – there were times I would get different renders while not changing anything.

Also, setting the distant light to 0 lx made the view in OpenGL dark, which isn’t ideal. To get a better view of things, I had to increase the light to 3.14 lx; but the colors got washed out in the render (see the middle render above, with the pastel colors). This might be a simple OpenGL setting change, but it’s a difference in workflow compared to what I’m used to nonetheless.

posted by Pi Visuals at 4:26 pm

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April 19, 2021 : Dolly Zoom Exploration: Addendum

Via the comments of my last post on the Dolly Zoom technique, UrbanExile3d called me out pointed out that I didn’t properly execute the maneuver. In particular, the main subject did not remain the same size in the shot. Instead, I took creative liberties and chose to zoom in on him as well.

As a result, I created a new batch of renders, more accurately capturing the Dolly Zoom:

The top two versions definitely give that traditional Dolly Zoom vibe – although the workbench still looks funky to me so I prefer the upper right take.

Oddly enough, I wasn’t a fan of the lower left version this time around. I think the BG was too boring to really capture much emotion. Similarly, I felt the lower right version looked cool but wasn’t as compelling as the previous version.

Ultimately, the context of the scene should inform the proper camera angles and movements; and it was fun to dive deeper into the Dolly Zoom technique.

posted by Pi Visuals at 11:54 pm

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April 16, 2021 : Dolly Zoom Exploration

I finished up my quick Dolly Zoom Study. Several versions were created for review – using the same character movement but changing the background. I also threw in animated color corrections to better sell it in After Effects. Below is the final compilation (click on the image for the GIF to animate):

From a technical perspective, performing the maneuver digitally was very easy. I had full control of the camera and was able to tweak things to get things how I wanted.

The background composition sold the effect. Having a flat one dimensional BG (upper right) made things very dull and ineffective. Similarly, the upper left version added depth with the workbench, but it moved in parallel to the Character… not in contrast, thus limiting its value.

The lower left version did have two walls in the shot, and I felt it was an improvement; but the lower right had the most dynamic staging. As such, it had the most dramatic. Overall, it was a cool exploration into the Dolly Zoom, and I’m glad I have it in my skillset moving forward.

A footnote: this was done in Lightwave 2015… I still don’t have much of a clue how to use 2020.

posted by Pi Visuals at 11:35 pm

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March 31, 2021 : New Exercise Identified: The Dolly Zoom

A few months ago, I did some research on the camera technique called “The Dolly Zoom.” There are a lot of videos that cover it, and below is one I thought was solid:

I wasn’t planning on using The Dolly Zoom for anything in particular. Instead, it was more out of curiosity. Since then, I’ve wanted to re-create the effect in Lightwave – which admittedly will be much easier than doing it with a real camera.

My hope is to work on it over the next month, most likely re-using assets from Me and Me. I think it’s a cool technique to have in one’s arsenal. The real question is if I will take a stab at doing this in Lightwave 2020 or not.

posted by Pi Visuals at 9:51 pm

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March 14, 2021 : Happy Pi Day!

It’s been a year. However, I know a sure fire way to cheer you up – with the celebration of your favorite day and mine (probably mostly mine)… Pi Day!

Did you know there’s a site dedicated to Pi Day? The internet… who knew, amirite? Anyway, it’s filled with all things Pi. So pretty much porn for nerds. They even sell some solid shirts, which I may or may not be considering.

posted by Pi Visuals at 12:15 am

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March 6, 2021 : Linus and Lucy

A normal Holiday tradition of mine is to relearn Linus and Lucy on piano (commonly known as the Peanuts theme song). Sadly, I haven’t done it the last two years. As such, I challenged myself the last month and change to spend 10-15 minutes a day on the song – even learning a slightly new arrangement. Below is the end result.

It’s far from perfect – with a few rough spots – but overall I was happy with it. I recorded it to keep myself honest with achieving my goal, but I also used it as an exercise in composition. The video wasn’t not nearly as theatrical as other piano pieces of mine, but it was fun nonetheless.

posted by Pi Visuals at 10:33 pm

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February 24, 2021 : The Heart of Batman Documentary

It apparently came out in 2018, but there’s a documentary about Batman: The Animated Series – and DC just put it up on their YouTube Channel.

The history of the show’s development was really cool, with plenty of insight and interviews from all the key players… and even a Kevin Conroy sighting!

Throw in some character sheets, tons of stills and Boards, and a bunch of 2.5D parallax effect on photos; and it’s a nice stroll down memory lane.

posted by Pi Visuals at 10:04 pm

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February 5, 2021 : Lightwave 2020 Will Have A Learning Curve

I finally got Lightwave properly installed – thanks to UrbanExile and with absolutely zero help from Newtek support (ugh). Unlike previous upgrades, it looks like I will need some time to study and learn about the new version. When opening up a previously created Scene in 2020, Lightwave creates new files and source directory folders. More importantly, the scene looks different, with the Textures/ Shaders (and thus renders) affected.

I am a little torn about this. To be honest, at the moment I don’t have the time to learn new software. One of the reasons I like Lightwave is my familiarity with it and how it fits into my pipeline so easily. Then again, these changes could signify Newtek actually improving the software. It’s worth pointing out these changes could very well have taken place in Lightwave 2018, but I skipped that upgrade.

In either case, it looks like they didn’t focus much on having satisfactory customer support… awful.

posted by Pi Visuals at 11:27 pm

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January 15, 2021 : Adding C4D To The Arsenal

I still haven’t installed Lightwave 2020, but it’s on the To Do list. Also on said list is getting more familiar with Cinema 4D. I’ve used the program on and off over the last few years, but I wouldn’t call myself a regular (or proficient). That said, the software is great for motion graphics and complements After Effects really well.

As such, I am trying to make a more concerted effort to use it. I have identified a few professional projects where I can inject some C4D work in the pipeline. It’s not intended to create anything Earth-shattering. Instead, I want to give the final video some added flair. The goal isn’t to become a master but to get more fluent.

posted by Pi Visuals at 11:19 pm

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