Course
Instead of one single project in this chapter, we will explore 4 patterns. Each lesson builds on the previous until you're left with a well-rounded undertesting of the genre:
Looping graphical media is used a TON if you think about it: Television broadcast graphics, live stream background visuals, powerpoint presentations, device wallpapers, concert visuals, and much more. This utility as background visuals makes them far more broadly usable than a lot of CG art. Which is a key reason I wanted to include them in the course.
We will start simply by animating and looping a basic noise texture. Then we'll progress into custom procedural textures through the manipulating of vector coordinates. By the third project, we will achieve primary visual interest and quality.
Most of the time I aim to create something that's more unique than it is similar. But the “solar storm” project in particular is heavily inspired by celestialmaze’s “eclipse”. I highly recommend giving them a follow because they post looping patters frequently. All of it is very inspirational AND they usually include a breakdown clip or images of their node networks.
Here’s some other artists that also do amazing work in this genre:
Blender has a steep learning curve and it's a lot to keep track of, especially if you're new. Here's some tips for getting the most out of these lessons:
Our video player has the ability to slow down play back speed to 0.75x or 0.5x. This can be very useful for catching every detail of the workflow.
I highly recommend this approach to get the maximum informational value out of each lesson. Watch once for a broad grasp of the workflow, concepts, and techniques. You don't even need Blender open for this. Great for a commute or while you're prepping dinner.
Then watch through a second time with Blender open to follow along. Having an idea what's going to happen next will enable you to track the information much better.
Depending on how comfortable you are with Blender, you could even watch the entire chapter once before the second viewing.
Though this course is designed with Beginners in mind, it still assumes you're at least familiar with Blender's UI and basic concepts about 3D creation.
If this is your very first time opening Blender, it might be best if you watch some of these courses first:
The seed that led to SESSIONS was actually planted years ago during livestreams. Kent recorded a bunch of projects to fit within a 2-hour streaming window and they're all collected in this Playlist! 👇
