Animation and Light

I have become interested in programming live interactive experiences. I think that the manipulation of light in an artistic way is a really creative way to incite emotion in an audience. A lot of these light artists are using innovative ways to animate. The most interesting I found was light painting. For this technique they have a camera capturing a screen that is on a track that moves back and forth in the z-direction. The screen projects a different frame of a video and it creates the effects of outlining an 3-D image. Another interesting use of light to animate is the artist who uses drones programmed to move mirrors that reflect projected light to create shapes and images. One artist also featured a large sphere covered in RGB LED lights acting as pixels. This sphere could be programmed to be animated images. These videos from The Creators Project showed multiple ways to incorporate new technology, sensors, camera, programming, and lights to animate.

I foresee this technology being utilized by performers in concert, art exhibits, and theatrical engagements.

Really cool, cheap, DIY green screen

We're starting green screening in class, so I figured there's no better time than now to show off how you can make your own green screen, for very cheap. For only around $15, you can make your own green screen! Just take a trip to your local Arts & Crafts store, and find your nearest Hardware store, and you should be ready to record! While there are many ways of making your own green screen, I find The Slanted Lens' guide is very easy and cheap.

That's so traditional and old school though. I want something new! Something EXCITING! Well, look no further! Cheesy advertising aside, this new LED based chroma keying is AMAZING! I've seen it work in person, and I have to say, it's crazy revolutionary. Basically what they do, is put a special reflective screen behind the talent, and shine a bright LED ring light at the screen. The LED light can be green or blue, and doesn't require any additional lighting. From personal experience, I know how horrible lighting a green screen is, and this completely takes away the need for additional lights.

Now these setups can get pricy, ranging up to $700. I do think, however, that it might be worth it in a big budget production. This system's just so convenient and good, I can honestly say I think this might be where the future of chroma keying is headed.

Arenamation: LED Fascia or Ribbon Board

            This week I thought I'd switch it up a bit and focus on a production company called Arenamation that is out of the New York area. Arenamation is a design firm that specializes in creation of sports motion graphics. Additonally the firm prides itself in its LED Fascia/ Ribbon Board animations that  have been seen throughout sport venues in the U.S. including the NBA, MLB, NHL and the NFL. For any of you that aren't familiar with LED Fascia animations which are often referred to as ribbon board, this is the LED technology found in sport venues and on outdoor billboards. Here is an example of a ribbon board inside a Major League Baseball venue...

           A typical ribbon board has one blue, one red and one green LED (Light Emitting Diode) to form only one pixel. Although the ribbon board is capable of playing animations and live video similar to a television what sets it apart is the aspect ratio. With most ribbon boards having a height of only 48 pixels and a width of over 10,00 pixels this creates a considerable challenge when creating the content, something that Arenamation has many years of experience doing. Here is another example of ribbon board...

Here is some of Arenamation's other works...

       

        

        

This was created by Arenamation for the New Orleans Saints 2012 introduction video and is displayed right before the players take the field.

                      

Lastly another example of their work with the Pittsburgh Penguins 3D Logo...

                      

More Set Design!

During this year's Ultra Music Festival, attendees were treated to much more than a full schedule of DJs. They also had outstanding visual aesthetics to complement the music, synchronized to every beat. The amazing results you see in this video are the successful result of collaborations between SJ Lighting (stage/laser lighting design) and Dierson Design (programming). Lightwave International, the production company responsible for piecing it all together, is a professional production company that specializes in concert design (lighting, lasers, LED visuals) and special effects for movies and corporate/touring/civic events. Some of their other credits include Coachella 2013, Pretty Lights, Jay-Z, and The Killers. Customized water screens, fog screens and CO2 shows are some of the unique special effects they also use to create an amazing and captivating show. Here is their Reel:

Concert Design

Hey everyone - hope you're enjoying the awesome weather we have today. I came across this incredible video demonstrating the possibilities of motion graphics during live music events. As LEDs become more affordable, there will be plenty of new opportunities for animated graphics and art design to be used during shows. Concert design is a definite career path that anyone who excels in post-production should consider in their future. Demand for workers with skills in motion graphics will definitely continue to rise with new and evolving technology such as this. Soon, it will be even be possible to use three-dimensional graphics and non-planar shapes during concerts. This sweet example of concert design takes place at an event in Japan.

Chromatte

     After our work in class on green screen I thought that I would do some research on a new technology in the keying world.  The base of the new technology is a new fabric that is made up of thousands of small glass balls, that are coated in aluminum, called Chromatte.  This creates a retro-reflective material that reflects light in the same plane that it receives light.  The second part of the technology is an LED ring that goes around the lens of a camera.  This green or blue light ring hits the fabric with colored light that is then reflected back into the lens, creating green screen effect.   The LED's do not cast colored light onto the subject however because they are not strong enough.  This technology allows for a really clean key with no spill or issues with reflected light and shadows, and the subject can be close to the wall.  Another benefit is that you can light the subject  in any way without needing to worry about getting the background light even and flat.  The fabric is expensive, but it creates a lot of opportunities for creativity that were previously impossible.