As VDMX6 and other tools were forced to sunset Quartz Composer, we've gotten quite a few requests to help revive some beloved FX patches. For those who are curious about how some of these shaders were adapted from GLSL to ISF, in this tutorial we will look at the ‘v002 Glitch Analog’ plugin as an example.
Read MoreIn this tutorial we will be creating a simple ‘flip’ FX in TouchDesigner to use inside of VDMX6 Plus with a basic set of sliders and buttons to control the composition.
The workflow described here can be used to adapt existing TouchDesigner compositions for use as sources and FX including custom published input parameters.
Read MoreUse the new Remove Background FX in VDMX6 to automatically key any video stream without having to use a blue / green screen.
Read MoreOne of the classic analog techniques for creating amazing visuals was to create video feedback loops. In previous tutorials we have covered the basic idea of how to reproduce this idea within VDMX by using groups and layer taps. In this lesson we'll look at how to take this idea to the next level by introducing composition with alpha channels and masking.
Read MoreJust as the many array of cosmological possibilities open up when pondering the vastness of the universe, so equally are the nearly infinite outputs when working with FX in VDMX. In this tutorial, Colin Evoy Sebestyen will explore creating a “Stargate” style effect. From Jupiter to beyond, get ready to traverse time and space!
Read MoreThe heart of almost every VJ / Visualist performance is the loop. There are lots of techniques and training for the production of loops, but there are some common approaches and methodology of creating a “pack” that are explored in this guest tutorial by Colin Evoy Sebestyen. To demonstrate these ideas Colin breaks down a project he created with musician Nonagon for a performance series at The Tech Museum of Innovation in San Jose.
Read MoreOne of the common types of image filters that are found in the workflow for photo and video editing are LUTs, also know as "Look Up Table" based FX. LUT FX are used to change the color palette of an image to create a different stylized look or feel, or in some cases to mimic the look of different print film types.
In this video tutorial we'll be looking at how to use each of the three different ways to use LUT FX in VDMX and how to add your own ".cube" LUT files.
Read MoreWhen creating new ISF based generators and FX for use in VDMX or other supported applications, one of the most useful tools is the free ISF Editor. In this video tutorial we'll be looking at the basics of using the ISF Editor to create a basic generator and FX.
Read MoreOnce a video is playing, the next step in the process of visual performance is to apply real-time FX to each frame to change the way it looks before it is shown to the audience.
In some cases the FX being used are in a utility function, for example a Color Correction filter makes it possible to adjust the contrast, saturation, and brightness levels when calibrating projectors. Others are designed to stylize the image to match a particular aesthetic such as glitch or film.
Read MoreUsing individual plugins to directly automate the control of different aspects of a video performance or interactive installation can create some pretty awesome results, but one of the most powerful capabilities of VDMX is the ability to connect these plugins to each other to create more complex behaviors and visual effects that can be switched between during live VJ performance.
For this set of tutorials we'll look at a few ways that the Audio Analysis plugin can be used alongside the LFO plugin and standard interface controls as a demonstration of this technique.
Read MoreAn ISF, or “Interactive Shader Format” file is a GLSL fragment shader (.fs) that includes a small blob of information that describes any input controls that the host application (such as slider, button, and color picker controls in VDMX) should provide for the user when the FX is loaded for use, as well as other meta-data including the authorship, category and a description.
In this two part tutorial we'll cover the basics of applying ISF based FX to layers in VDMX and how to install new example ISF files you may download from the Internet, followed by a quick introduction to creating your own image processing GLSL fragment shaders.
Read MoreAmong the real-time video generator and FX formats is an open source plugin type called FreeFrame and the newer GPU based FFGL format which uses the graphics card for faster image processing. In this tutorial we'll look at how to install these 3rd party FreeFrame plugins to use with VDMX.
Read MoreIn this guest tutorial we're joined by the Rockwell Group's LAB division who work as an interactive design team within a larger architecture firm where they focus on projects that blend physical and virtual spaces.
For a recent projection mapping installation in NYC, one of the techniques used by the LAB was to apply a real-time video FX on to a specific portion of one of the pre-rendered movies so that part of the image was left unprocessed in the main output while another section was color shifted to match the lighting effects in the room. Today we'll show you how that was accomplished.
Read MoreOne of the most useful sets of open source FX plugins for Quartz Composer are the v002 collection maintained by Vade and Bangnoise, which are now included as an optional separate package along with VDMX. Included are the v002 optimized fast blurs, “film” image filters, analog / digital glitch, and the Rutt-Etra analog video synthesizer emulator, along with QC based FX ready to use in VDMX or your own QC compositions.
Read MoreFor this quick technique tutorial we've made two basic Quartz Composer compositions using the “Detection” object that can be loaded into VDMX to perform basic face capture and replacement FX that can be connected in a variety of ways. You can also use these example patches as starting points for your own patches that perform more complex behaviors like tracking multiple faces within a single frame or publishing additional control information.
Read MoreLast week featured on CreateDigitalMusic we noticed the beta release of Gestrument Kinect, a simple Mac app that can be used to convert the camera depth data from a Kinect to MIDI for controlling music and VJ live visuals. Since it sends of standard MIDI, it only took a few seconds to connect it to VDMX for a quick demonstration on how it's data can be converted into gestures used to trigger movie clips and adjust video FX parameters.
Read MoreIn this technique tutorial we'll focus on two different ways the idea of a DJ style low, mid, high EQ control can be interpreted in the world of video as FX in VDMX as a means to mask out or adjust the gain level on separate discrete parts of a video stream for the purposes of blending video layers together.
The first example exchanges the low, mid and high levels for the individual RGB channels of the image for raising or lowering the intensity of each independently. The second qcFX uses a similar concept to a 3-band equalizer, breaking down the image into three different sections based on the luma (brightness) level of each pixel instead of its frequency ranges.
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