With my positive experience using Fusion 360 I decided to experiment using Blender. Blender is a free, open-source 3D software that can be used used for creating animated films, visual effects, 3D printed models, motion graphics, I had never used Blender before and it was quite overwhelming looking at the user interface however I was able to learn some basic tools and functions after watching several YouTube tutorials. As an extra form of experimentation I thought I would push myself to create something with this software as it will also be relevant when I study visual effects at university level. I wanted to make a vortex animation that looked organic. Firstly, I started with a basic cylinder and subdivided it.
I then decimated the cylinder, offset vertices' using a displace and created a wireframe.
After this, I thickened the wireframe and used the shade smooth tool to get rid of any sharp edges.
To make the vortex more complex I duplicated the cylinder and put it inside of its copy. So that the camera had a long enough track to fly through I had to extend the cylinder. After this, I added textures to the string matter to make the render even more mesmerizing.
Next, I set the path for the camera to follow to ensure that the animation was a seamless loop and set the output to 120 frames. Finally I exported the model as individual PNG frames which I then sequenced in Premiere Pro.
Here is a render of the view inside my model. I love the surreal aesthetic of the vortex and how it looks like mutated DNA strands. It is also reminiscent of the colour portal in 2001: a space odyssey and hyperspace sequences in Sci-Fi films.
Below is my final animation. Considering it was my first time using Blender I am very pleased with the outcome.
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