Comment by liveart on September 18, 2010 at 4:06am

brilliant John.

could you provide a tip with more specifics on how the second dual mode is streamed into the selection buffer and on how to use a content context action to work with multiple movie files. Thanks

Comment by Synthetik Software on September 18, 2010 at 8:28am

I attached one movie file to the canvas with a PASeq Content Context action step. I had the second main movie loaded as my source. The movie associated with the Content Context action step was used to modulate the interactive warp. The PASeq i used is shown below.

The context action steps key off of what is loaded as the current source image (unless you use the multi key options, which bring up a find file dialog to select images(s),movies(s). So i first loaded the movie i wanted to modulate with as the source. I then ran the Action : PASeq Timeline : Record Context : Content menu command.

When the context context action step plays back in a PASeq, it sets the current layer to the image or movie file it references. if it's a movie file, it frame advances the associated movie based on the # of frames from the keyframe that references it. I use the image compressor ip op to boost the contrast of the modulating movie frame in the current layer. I then ran the canvas : selection : set to : canvas menu command. This sets the current selection buffer to the current layer (the modulating movie frame in this particular case).

I then loaded my main source movie. I dragged the source to the canvas. I then ran the image compressor to optimize the movie frame. I then ran an interactive warp using the 'selection modulate rotate' option. I then ran 3 blur ip ops with the edge composite setting to multi-scale enhance the canvas.

The 2 movie files i was working with were generated by running dualmode paint presets with loop action, recording the live painting into an open movie stream. The dualpaint presets used were based on a time particle paint synthesizer preset and a msg geometric transformation. The paint preset drags the original time particle start color.

What initially got me thinking about the use of a second movie file modulating the first movie file was that i wanted to subtly break the symmetry associated with the msg geometric transformation in the dualmode painting canvas (left-right horizontal symmetry). The movement added to the flow from the interactive warp modulation does that.

If the context step keying off of the source reference is confusing, you can use the multi key menu commands and use a find file dialog to select an image or movie file. Those menu options were initially put in to select multiple images or movies that get placed on consecutive keyframes. This is useful for selecting a series of images to build a warp or morph context. But you can just select a single one if you want.

Here's a link to some tips on working with context action steps.

Comment by Synthetik Software on September 18, 2010 at 8:31am

I should point out that the PASeq show below was used for the first segment of the animation. Each section used slightly different processing steps. Some of them use selection translate warp, and the particulars of the enhancement steps are different for each section. Some of them warp themselves as opposed to using a second movie modulator.

Comment by Synthetik Software on September 18, 2010 at 8:44am

The source i used for the original dualpaint animation movie stream runs was a series of movies i was working with initially for stack filtering experiments. So each frame is a different image, actually a series or temporal rank filtered frames generated by temporal image processing an initial stack of images for this particular experiment. I manually changed frame locations as the live dualmode paint animations progressed. I also tweaked the msg processor parameters live as the paint animations streamed out.

Comment by liveart on September 18, 2010 at 9:24am

My mind is swimming trying to follow the quaternary iterative process. Create a stack-live stream a dual mode paint animation of the stack - twice- use one of these as source and the other as a modulation agent in a PASeq which includes an interactive warp.

yeah, that was easy... ha!

thanks for explaining though. I will give the content context bit a try later.

Comment by Synthetik Software on September 18, 2010 at 10:27am

You could use anything for a source. I've been fooling around with stack filtering recently, so i was using stack filtered output movies as my sources, but that's not an essential part of what's going on in this animation. So don't get too wrapped up in that part of my particular 'process'. You could be using anything that works for you as a source for coloring for the time particles.

I was fooling around yesterday in another animation with switching back and forth between a movie source and the fixed color picker as the paint animation streamed out. Part of the time i was working with specific frames, then later i turned on 'movie loop action advance' and had the movie frames automatically play forward.

Part of what i'm trying to do with these recent experiments is work towards building a visual vocabulary for constructing these kinds of abstract animations. Forcing myself to try new animation experiments every day is a part of that process.

Comment by Otto Laske on December 12, 2010 at 8:12am

that's an extraordinary piece, John! Congratulations. I wish I had your incredible expertise.

Otto

 

Comment by Hulagirl on June 12, 2011 at 9:18pm

Check out the video that explains how to do this here  It's super easy

Comment