Finding high-quality water visual effects can be a challenge. Many times you get a limited collection of low-res CGI assets that not only require a lot of clean-up in post, but also require your audience to have an incredibly forgiving suspension of disbelief. However, ActionVFX aims to solve these issues with its new Water FX Series, a VFX Collection of 155 individual large-scale clips that were all shot in a giant pool with a RED Weapon Helium 8K to give you as much latitude and as many options as possible when working in post.
The Water Category is ActionVFX's newest addition to its massive library of stock VFX. Collections include:
Water Blasts
This Collection comes with 50 total water blasts that vary in direction, force, and shape. Ten of the blast elements are very large, some going as high as 25 feet in the air, and are perfect for bombs and large explosives. The other 40 are slightly smaller, but are great for smaller explosions and large caliber bullets hitting the water.
Learn more about the Water Blasts Collection.
Water Splashes
There are 40 water splashes in this Collection. Just like in the Water Blast Collection, the Water Splashes offer plenty of variety to cover whatever you need, from large splashes to smaller ones, as well as plenty of different shapes and intensities. These elements work well for scenes in which objects are dropped into water or come out of it, or if there is a lot of chaotic movement in water, like soldiers trying to escape an aerial attack on the beach.
Learn more about the Water Splashes Collection.
Shot on the RED Weapon 8K
All 155 clips in the series are 100% real, shot in-camera on the RED's new Weapon Helium 8K in 5K at 96fps. This means that each clip has both high detail and dynamic range, giving plenty of latitude if you want to crop in, add a color grade, or slow down footage to create an epic battle sequence. The Water Series is delivered in 10-Bit Prores 4444 with Alpha (2K and 4K), along with the original unkeyed 5K .R3D files.
Near drag-and-drop
While there's really no such thing as a true drag-and-drop element, these water effects are the closest thing you're going to get to it. To create clips that seamlessly interact with a scene, ActionVFX shot each one from multiple angles (front-facing and high-angle), managing to get most of the clips contained within the entire frame. For the larger explosions that sent water careening past the edges, ActionVFX cleaned them up so they're still easy to work with.
100% real, high-quality elements
Perhaps the most promising thing about this new Water Series from ActionVFX is the fact that it fills a gap that has existed for quite a while in the VFX space: the need for VFX elements that satisfy everything quality assets are supposed to be: unique, high-quality, realistic, seamless, versatile, and—for action VFX anyway—big, explosive, and exciting. In a press release, ActionVFX CEO Rodolphe Pierre-Louis says, "Capturing real, large-scale, Water Elements was one of the hardest tasks we've done at ActionVFX, but in the end, the results speak for themselves. Currently, users have to solely rely on time-consuming CG simulations to create water effects at this scale, but once these are released, all that should change."
The Water Series will be offered in 2K and 4K Prores versions, as well as the original unkeyed 5K .R3D files. To learn more about the Water Series, head on over to ActionVFX's website.
Source: ActionVFX
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