This is the first time coming across your channel, the pacing of the tutorial, the clear instructions, the charm, it's bloody brilliant. Fantastic stuff, I'm gobsmacked you're under 1k subscribers!
Thank you, I have a lot of fun making these tutorials and I’m glad you enjoyed it. As nice as more subscribers might be, it’s comments like yours that make it worth it.
Of ALL the nebula/galaxy tutorials out there (currently). Yours is the best. Its very realistic and has density, life, and a awe to it. Thanks for sharing this.
AMAZING!!! What a beautiful beautiful galaxy. This whole tutorial is off the charts creative and informative. So engaging especially with your little character and I learned a bunch. Huge Thanks :)
@@ShiveringCactus For sure. I built it while watching the video; I didn't realize you linked to a project. I guess it's best to do it myself so I can dial things in.
I much prefer to build things myself too when watching tutorials, but sometimes people are in a rush and just need the project. “Better to have it and not need it then...” sort of thing
Overall, I think I agree with you, but coming up with it in Particular was so much easier. Having both options, I think inside the galaxy looks better in Particular, but CC Particle World looks better from the outside.
Would you consider doing this same tutorial for Superluminal Stardust? Trapcode isn't available as a standalone anymore and the cost with all of the Red Giant software is unbelievably expensive. Also, you mention near the end of the tutorial that you can do this with CC Particles and that there's another link to that tutorial. I can't find that link, THANKS!
Here’s the link to my CC Particle Galaxy video: czcams.com/video/b5QyJhg4cAQ/video.html I don’t have Stardust and while it’s a lot cheaper than the red giant subscription, it’s still quite pricy. Maybe one day.
Excellent tutorial, thank you, although a little bit difficult for me, subscribed at once. What about camera movement? Hard for me to make it from scratch.
I struggle a lot with expressions so it's a great challenge to follow your tutorials and I'm learning a lot. Though I'm confused by the element "galaxysize", before minute 4. I thought it was just a name you gave to a value, and could be named differently. But, when I change it, the expression doesn't work anymore. My goal was to re-use the fibonacci formula, without the elements specific to this tutorial, but it seems to need the slider. Do you have any hint what I got wrong? (I prefer the particular version, the gas clouds have much more depth)
Thank you for your kind words. If you change the name of the slider, you also need to change the name where it appears in the expression (in both places)
I’d do this by rotating Galaxy Null by 90 degrees(?) after the 10 second mark and then adding a new keyframe on the radius slider back to the first value at 20 seconds. So it will take 20 seconds to draw rather than ten, but it should work
This is such an awesome tutorial. I've subbed to your channel. I am however getting an error with the expression used for the Emitter position. It says "expression result must be of dimension 3, not 1" any ideas?
Hi! I love this tutorial. Thank you so much! I have a question when you get a chance. I am working in the newest version of Trapcode. And at around 10:29 - 10:45, some of the Particle Menus have changed. There is no longer a "Texture" drop down where I can connect the Dust Tex file. Do you know where I would connect this file in the new version of Trapcode? Thank you for any help!
Thank you. I’m sorry, but I don’t know. I found the help files but can’t see any mention of textures. help.maxon.net/rg/en-us/#html/trapcode-particular/particle-type.html# best I can suggest is that selecting a texture should be visible when you choose a sprite. Maybe try using the designer to select a particle with a texture to see how it’s done. You could ask @redgiant their support is pretty good.
Has trapcode been updated since this tutorial? A lot of settings are in other places for me, and 'sprite colorize' isn't there either (only sprite). Great tutorial nonetheless!
Yeah, this tutorial was made using Trapcode Particular 4. Since then, Maxon bought Red Giant and moved to a subscription model, and released Particular 5. The upgrade looks cool, but I don’t use it enough to justify spending £50 per month (you get more than Particular for that, but as it’s bundled, you don’t get a choice)
So after finishing the tutorial, i cant get the camera to follow along the path like you have it showing the 3 diminensional aspects of the composition?.... ive tried every camera but how are you getting the zooming in, above and under view?
I'm sorry, I've had to wait until I had some free time to get the project open. Your camera is in 3D space as is your galaxy particles. The best way I found to animate the camera was to add a layer, with a circle mask. Make it 3D and line it up with the galaxy. I then turned the galaxy particles off, so I could more easily preview the camera's movements, using the circle layer like a 3D proxy. Linking the Point of Interest to a new 3D null makes it easier to control where the camera is looking and then it's "just" a case of setting keyframes for position and refining the movement.
Are you changing the colour during the first ten seconds on the timeline? Is there another key frame in the way? If you get stuck it might be worth downloading my version from the description and comparing it.
Hi for some reason I am not seeing texture in the drop down of my Trapcode? maybe a newer version? where should I be looking to set texture to Dust Tex?
As we are "locking" all the particles of the galaxy in place, you do have to animate the camera to create movement. If you have the camera orbit the galaxy it will make the galaxy appear to rotate. And there's nothing stopping you using a precomp for the galaxy if you are wanting to add it into another scence.
I have been trying this for hours and it does not seem my after effects wants to render past like 4 seconds. Any tips? Also mine does not look like yours, though that could be because my render isn't working. I am working on a space documentary and would really love to use this, so please let me know if you have any advice!!
Oh no, sorry to hear that. Drop me a line at shiveringcactus.net/vfx-clinic we can trade email addresses and projects and I’ll take a look. If may be something to do with Particular versions. And you might need to look at my CC Particle World Galaxy instead.
I folowed the tutorial all the way, but as a complete beginner I have no idea how to run the animation LOL any help getting the next step to use this ?
Once you've created your camera (Layer > New > Camera and I tend to prefer a 2-node camera) you can have important properties on the timeline: Point of Interest (PoI) and Position. PoI is what the camera is looking at and position is where the camera is. Animate these to move around the galaxy. I talk a bit about animating cameras in this video: czcams.com/video/ZOZyR5GiTHg/video.html
I am old and my brain is a bit decrepit .... no matter what I put into the expression control I get the orange error line ... I cant get the project file to work as I have an earlier version .... (2018) .. i have this ,,galaxySize=thisComp.layer("galaxy null").effect("radius")("slider")/145; direction=1;......? error bla bla
In AE’s file menu, go to Project Settings. Do you have a programming language choice? Is it set to JavaScript? If it isn’t, set it to that instead of ExtendScript. If you don’t have that option, check out the preset I shared on my Golden Spiral video: czcams.com/video/KXUEb045EXs/video.html Thst has the spiral baked into as a path. You can copy this path to the position instead.
@@ShiveringCactus thankyou very much for taking the time to A , do this great tut , and B , replying to questions .... I managed to cheat in the end and upgraded to 2020 version , hence I could open the project file .. lovely galaxy
I’m currently learning Blender. After Effects is more than capable, it’s what I know and sometimes you don’t need a full 3D package. Imagine you want to composite this galaxy into a video scene. You could edit in Premiere, open the sequences requiring VFX directly in AE, add in your galaxy and render once. With Blender, that’s an entirely different workflow.
This is the first time coming across your channel, the pacing of the tutorial, the clear instructions, the charm, it's bloody brilliant. Fantastic stuff, I'm gobsmacked you're under 1k subscribers!
Thank you, I have a lot of fun making these tutorials and I’m glad you enjoyed it. As nice as more subscribers might be, it’s comments like yours that make it worth it.
Of ALL the nebula/galaxy tutorials out there (currently). Yours is the best. Its very realistic and has density, life, and a awe to it. Thanks for sharing this.
Aww thank you. I have fun making these, but it’s always nice to get feedback like this.
Every tutorial i watched everyone made it in 2d finally a 3d tutorial for ae
I’ve had the same experience, I wanted to fly through space not just a look from the outside.
thank you so much making like this tutorial😭❤amazing 😍😱
Aww, you’re welcome. thank you for commenting
OMG！Best galaxy creating tutorial ever!
Thank you, glad you enjoyed it
AMAZING!!! What a beautiful beautiful galaxy. This whole tutorial is off the charts creative and informative. So engaging especially with your little character and I learned a bunch. Huge Thanks :)
Aww, thank you. So pleased you enjoyed it.
I watch many tutorials. This is one of the most engaging thats for sure :)
A stunning galaxy! And a delightful and super informative tutorial. Wow. Thank you!!
Thank you, glad you found it useful.
I loved that star trek red alert! hahaha
Glad you liked it. For a quick joke, it took way longer to make than it should have
Great/enjoyable tut, thank you! So glad to find it online, and I'm using this setup for my client already.
Thank you, it’s really cool to think this might end up in use by a professional. If possible, will you post a link your final video?
@@ShiveringCactus For sure. I built it while watching the video; I didn't realize you linked to a project. I guess it's best to do it myself so I can dial things in.
I much prefer to build things myself too when watching tutorials, but sometimes people are in a rush and just need the project. “Better to have it and not need it then...” sort of thing
really awesome.. as usual! :)
Thank you! Cheers!
I prefer the CC Particle World look better. After all that is what you are striving for. The look!
Overall, I think I agree with you, but coming up with it in Particular was so much easier. Having both options, I think inside the galaxy looks better in Particular, but CC Particle World looks better from the outside.
Still here, still loving space, still loving cactus
I think it’s official now, you’re my biggest fan
@@ShiveringCactus ❤️
Would you consider doing this same tutorial for Superluminal Stardust? Trapcode isn't available as a standalone anymore and the cost with all of the Red Giant software is unbelievably expensive. Also, you mention near the end of the tutorial that you can do this with CC Particles and that there's another link to that tutorial. I can't find that link, THANKS!
Here’s the link to my CC Particle Galaxy video:
czcams.com/video/b5QyJhg4cAQ/video.html
I don’t have Stardust and while it’s a lot cheaper than the red giant subscription, it’s still quite pricy. Maybe one day.
@@ShiveringCactus Thanks! And I have a question for you that I'll ask via email.
@@ShiveringCactus Thanks and if there's any way that I can help you out getting into Stardust, just lmk.
Excellent tutorial, thank you, although a little bit difficult for me, subscribed at once. What about camera movement? Hard for me to make it from scratch.
Thank you. I find it best to link a camera’s point of interest to a 3D null object, then I can animate that and animate the camera’s position
@@ShiveringCactus thank you, I'll give it a try
I struggle a lot with expressions so it's a great challenge to follow your tutorials and I'm learning a lot.
Though I'm confused by the element "galaxysize", before minute 4. I thought it was just a name you gave to a value, and could be named differently. But, when I change it, the expression doesn't work anymore.
My goal was to re-use the fibonacci formula, without the elements specific to this tutorial, but it seems to need the slider.
Do you have any hint what I got wrong?
(I prefer the particular version, the gas clouds have much more depth)
Thank you for your kind words.
If you change the name of the slider, you also need to change the name where it appears in the expression (in both places)
Great tutorial. Stupid question, but is there a way to tweak the formula to have 4 or more arms for the galaxy?
P.s Love the 3d cloudy look.
I’d do this by rotating Galaxy Null by 90 degrees(?) after the 10 second mark and then adding a new keyframe on the radius slider back to the first value at 20 seconds. So it will take 20 seconds to draw rather than ten, but it should work
This is such an awesome tutorial. I've subbed to your channel.
I am however getting an error with the expression used for the Emitter position.
It says "expression result must be of dimension 3, not 1"
any ideas?
Make sure your null is set as a 3D layer. It’s giving you a Z value, but your null doesn’t have a Z position property.
Hi! I love this tutorial. Thank you so much! I have a question when you get a chance. I am working in the newest version of Trapcode. And at around 10:29 - 10:45, some of the Particle Menus have changed. There is no longer a "Texture" drop down where I can connect the Dust Tex file. Do you know where I would connect this file in the new version of Trapcode? Thank you for any help!
Thank you. I’m sorry, but I don’t know. I found the help files but can’t see any mention of textures. help.maxon.net/rg/en-us/#html/trapcode-particular/particle-type.html# best I can suggest is that selecting a texture should be visible when you choose a sprite. Maybe try using the designer to select a particle with a texture to see how it’s done. You could ask @redgiant their support is pretty good.
@@ShiveringCactus thank you!
Has trapcode been updated since this tutorial? A lot of settings are in other places for me, and 'sprite colorize' isn't there either (only sprite).
Great tutorial nonetheless!
Yeah, this tutorial was made using Trapcode Particular 4. Since then, Maxon bought Red Giant and moved to a subscription model, and released Particular 5. The upgrade looks cool, but I don’t use it enough to justify spending £50 per month (you get more than Particular for that, but as it’s bundled, you don’t get a choice)
So after finishing the tutorial, i cant get the camera to follow along the path like you have it showing the 3 diminensional aspects of the composition?.... ive tried every camera but how are you getting the zooming in, above and under view?
I'm sorry, I've had to wait until I had some free time to get the project open. Your camera is in 3D space as is your galaxy particles. The best way I found to animate the camera was to add a layer, with a circle mask. Make it 3D and line it up with the galaxy. I then turned the galaxy particles off, so I could more easily preview the camera's movements, using the circle layer like a 3D proxy. Linking the Point of Interest to a new 3D null makes it easier to control where the camera is looking and then it's "just" a case of setting keyframes for position and refining the movement.
11:04 when I change the color, in the view it doesnt change color at all it stay white, I change it to blue even dark blue
Are you changing the colour during the first ten seconds on the timeline? Is there another key frame in the way? If you get stuck it might be worth downloading my version from the description and comparing it.
Hi for some reason I am not seeing texture in the drop down of my Trapcode? maybe a newer version? where should I be looking to set texture to Dust Tex?
One of the included presets provides the texture,p. You might just have to relink it.
Do I have to add camera movements to fly through like your intro video.
As we are "locking" all the particles of the galaxy in place, you do have to animate the camera to create movement. If you have the camera orbit the galaxy it will make the galaxy appear to rotate. And there's nothing stopping you using a precomp for the galaxy if you are wanting to add it into another scence.
When I change "Emitter Type" to "Light" everything disappears - but if it is set to sphere or box etc I can see particles?
Your light might need to be named somethings starting with ‘a’ if I remember correctly. There’s a setting in Particular’s options that covers it
I have been trying this for hours and it does not seem my after effects wants to render past like 4 seconds. Any tips? Also mine does not look like yours, though that could be because my render isn't working. I am working on a space documentary and would really love to use this, so please let me know if you have any advice!!
Oh no, sorry to hear that. Drop me a line at shiveringcactus.net/vfx-clinic we can trade email addresses and projects and I’ll take a look. If may be something to do with Particular versions. And you might need to look at my CC Particle World Galaxy instead.
I folowed the tutorial all the way, but as a complete beginner I have no idea how to run the animation LOL any help getting the next step to use this ?
Once you've created your camera (Layer > New > Camera and I tend to prefer a 2-node camera) you can have important properties on the timeline: Point of Interest (PoI) and Position. PoI is what the camera is looking at and position is where the camera is. Animate these to move around the galaxy. I talk a bit about animating cameras in this video: czcams.com/video/ZOZyR5GiTHg/video.html
I am old and my brain is a bit decrepit .... no matter what I put into the expression control I get the orange error line ... I cant get the project file to work as I have an earlier version .... (2018) .. i have this ,,galaxySize=thisComp.layer("galaxy null").effect("radius")("slider")/145;
direction=1;......? error bla bla
In AE’s file menu, go to Project Settings. Do you have a programming language choice? Is it set to JavaScript? If it isn’t, set it to that instead of ExtendScript. If you don’t have that option, check out the preset I shared on my Golden Spiral video: czcams.com/video/KXUEb045EXs/video.html Thst has the spiral baked into as a path. You can copy this path to the position instead.
@@ShiveringCactus thankyou very much for taking the time to A , do this great tut , and B , replying to questions .... I managed to cheat in the end and upgraded to 2020 version , hence I could open the project file .. lovely galaxy
Bro i don't have rg trapcode effect
You might be better trying this version instead then: 3D Spiral Galaxy using CC Particle World
czcams.com/video/b5QyJhg4cAQ/video.html
@@ShiveringCactus bro could you please give trapcode plugin link
@@amalsreekumar369 www.maxon.net/en/red-giant/trapcode
why you are not using blender if you're doing 3d work all the time? I know ae is cappable but... its like making your life harder for purpose.
I’m currently learning Blender. After Effects is more than capable, it’s what I know and sometimes you don’t need a full 3D package. Imagine you want to composite this galaxy into a video scene. You could edit in Premiere, open the sequences requiring VFX directly in AE, add in your galaxy and render once. With Blender, that’s an entirely different workflow.