ESPN: The Leader in Sports in Motion Graphics

Personally I am not a fan of ESPN's content but what I do like to watch for is their motion graphics that they incorporate into their programs. Watching SportsCenter,  I get bored with their content quickly but what never fails to blow me away is the different and complex motion graphics.
I don't ever think that I would ever have the patience to ever sit down and even attempt to create something like that but thats why the people who create these types of motion graphics get paid the big bucks and why I am a college student. With that being said, I know enough now about motion graphics that I can appreciate such complex motion graphics.

Brian McCauley: The Man Behind the graphics

This is just one piece that Brian McCauley has created in his 11 years of being a designer and animator. "A collective of designers and visual artists who delight in experimentation and thrive on collaboration. We create commercials, interactive, live action, VFX and finishing work, always keeping our clients goals in clear view. Blending a variety of design techniques, our key ingredient is the creative, which is the centerpiece of everything we serve up." This quote is from the About Page on Flavor.tv, the company that McCauley works for.
In my research, I did not find McCauley's name through Flavor.tv. Where I did find his work was through Graphics Mafia, "A Place for those who create Sport Graphics." 
Chicago Blackhawks Hit the Ice 2013 from Daily Planet ltd. on Vimeo.

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...

                      

Sports Graphics

Lately, I've been editing some football highlight videos for a high school and I've been learning After Effects in class. It's unbelievable how many graphics you see in a day without even trying. All the time on television I watch Sportscenter and I just can't believe how some of the graphics look so sophisticated. As I learn more and more of After Effects, I realize that it really isn't as sophisticated as it looks on television. I looked for some really cool sports graphics to just get ideas of the design of some of them. Like the one I found below, I think this is a really attractive and well done sports graphic. I would like to try to create something like this by the end of the semester.