Admiral's GIFs - Motion Graphics & Creative Coding

I am Admiral Potato - Design Scientist, Motion Graphic Artist, Developer. You'll mostly find GIFs and good times here on my Tumblr, but if you're feeling like rainbows, check out the browser based RainbowSpace Image Color Gamut Visualizer that I recently launched! Try dragging in images from here, as well as all over the web! :D

[admiralpotato]

Halloween Game!

https://admiralpotato.github.io/halloween-game/

Are you a Ghost? Or are you an Alien? Are you the kind of spook that can’t get enough of the sweet stuff, and have to stop at every house to get every possible piece of candy? Or are you the type of sneak to stealthily slink through the neighborhood as quickly as possible to get back to your ship... or ice-cream cone? This is a game about collecting Candy on Halloween in as few moves as possible!

To control your character: Touch-screen users can use the on-screen arrows, Keyboard users can use: W,S,A,D, the arrows, and the Numpad.

Things this game is: Cute, Quick to win, Made quickly, Designed to play on Phone browsers, Actually text-based on the inside, Art therapy for me, A learning experience, Open Source

Things this game is not: Having plot, Ultra-Polished, Challenging, Well or consistently lit, Playing the character animations like it’s supposed to

And you know what? I’m okay with this. It’s not completely perfect. But it felt great to make something this competent and complete so quickly - and in being able to make me feel like perhaps I can get back into my creative habits - it was the perfect exercise. The game that you see here was started on only Friday the 26th at 11PM local time!

You may have noticed that it’s been a hot minute since I’ve posted anything on any of my webbernet places. I’ve been lacking creative inspiration a lot this year, and as a result, dealing with a lot of self-worth related depression. When I make things, I feel good about myself. When I am not creating, I feel like I am nothing. So the instant I finally felt my muse's presence again, I knew that I had to leap as far away from my daily routine as I could in order to spend some time with her, and I’m glad that I did!

On the tech front - While I have been using Vue.js professionally for the past 2 years, I have shied away from the built flavor Vue templates for many personal projects - simply because I absolutely loathe its build tool. Webpack: a black-hole of broken-out-of-the-box configuration hell where far too much human time and energy has gone to die. Well, I really need to give a round of applause to the Vue team - the Vue CLI 3 has finally come out, and it’s... it’s beautiful. It means that I will hopefully never have to deal with Webpack BS on my personal projects ever again, while getting all of the benefits of using .vue files! The CLI’s `serve` command just worked in every way I needed it to, except like twice.

Source here: https://github.com/AdmiralPotato/halloween-game

[admiralpotato]

Hex Doctor

Check out the Highest Quality version at my Full Screen Video Portfolio!

Find it other places at my Ello, Imgur, Dribbble, and G+ Photos.

4K PNG wallpapers can be found at G+ Photos. When I was a kid, there was a game that came pre-installed on a lot of my school's Macintosh computers called "Spin Doctor". It was a game about square grids of dots, and the sticks that would rotate around those dots, then connect to and rotate around adjacent dots to traverse the perils of the level.

I don't know why I started thinking about that game again recently, but it occurred to me that the game could be played on any arbitrarily arranged set of dots, as long as any two dots were spaced the length of the stick away from each other. This idea worked well with the @gifartistscollective February 2018 monthly design theme of “Hexagon”. I threw this design together in about 2 nights and... I've got to say, it really satisfies my curiosity in wondering what that game would look like if rendered in a modern context, on a hexagonal grid.

You can see and read about out each step of this design’s development at the Creative Process Gallery.

[admiralpotato]

Layers of Ridges

Check out the Highest Quality version at my Full Screen Video Portfolio!

Find it other places at my Ello, Imgur, Dribbble, and G+ Photos.

This animation is tribute to a design by @stockandrender, titled "[Never Enough]". This animation is also my entry to the @gifartistscollective January 2018 monthly design theme of "Layers".

Additional influence came from a design named "timespace" by @bigblueboo

You can see and read about out each step of this design's development at the Creative Process Gallery.

[admiralpotato]

I have just created what's probably one of the most fabulous bugs in the history of my entire development career.

[admiralpotato]

GIFmas Tree 2017 - Diamond Waves

Check out the Highest Quality version at my Full Screen Video Portfolio!

Find it other places at my Ello, Imgur, Dribbble, and G+ Photos. Merry GIFmas, everyone! Each year, I practice a tradition of introspection and reflection on the designs that I’ve created over that year, the inspirations which lead to them, and the techniques that I used to create them. I then create a new design in the shape of a tree, but composed of elements from the designs of that year. I call this tradition "GIFmas".

This year, the design that I felt was most deserving of a revisit was titled "Diamond Waves" - and this may just be my favorite GIFmas tree to date. :)

You can see and read about out each step of this design's development at the Creative Process Gallery.

[admiralpotato]

Snowflake Lattice - MisteryMyra collaboration part 3

Check out the Highest Quality version at my Full Screen Video Portfolio!

Find it other places at my Ello, Imgur, Dribbble, and G+ Photos.

This is the third and final branch of ideas that @misterymyra and I came up with while working on our first collaboration. I think that this is my favorite in the set! Also, quick shout-out to @hexeosis - Myra and I kept saying “Damn, this is giving some serious Hexeosis vibe” the whole time we were making it. You are a constant inspiration to us all!

Check out each step of the creative process for this animation the Creative Process Gallery.

[admiralpotato]

Handing out whole bulbs of Garlic and Onions for Halloween tonight!

Kids stopping by my place get a super awesome treat tonight!!!!~

reblog if you agree

[admiralpotato]

Candy Corn Rain

Watch the Highest Quality version in Fullscreen at my Video Portfolio!

Find it other places at my Ello, Imgur, Dribbble, and G+ Photos.

This is the stuff that my Cute Little Ghost's dreams are made of!

[admiralpotato]

Laser Hexagrams - @misterymyra collaboration part 2

Check out the Highest Quality version at my Full Screen Video Portfolio!

Find it other places at my Ello, Imgur, Dribbble, and G+ Photos.

This is another one of the branches of ideas that @misterymyra and I came up with while working on our previously posted collaboration. There may still be a few more branches we can explore on this tree. I don't think I have much to say about this, but we are both pleased with how relaxing this one feels, now that it's finished.

Check out each step of the creative process for this animation the Creative Process Gallery.

[admiralpotato]

Nebula Cells - @misterymyra Collaboration

Check out the Highest Quality version at my Full Screen Video Portfolio!

Find it other places at my Ello, Imgur, Dribbble, and G+ Photos.

Check out each step of the creative process for this animation the Creative Process Gallery. It’s AMAZING how many steps we put into this!

These are Cells that contain Nebulas that are twisting, growing, evolving, and becoming more awesome all the time! :D

This is by far one of the most complex design iteration processes I’ve ever worked through. The biggest problem has been that we kept seeing potential to move the design in a new direction without making a decision on exactly what it could or should be.

I have thoroughly enjoyed working with @misterymyra over screen sharing to create this entire series of iterations. We came across so many shared inspirations and spent so much time working together to create this set, and I am incredibly grateful for her time and patience as well as her creativity and problem solving while we have worked on this. :D Thank you!

[admiralpotato]

Regolo Bizzi tribute: "Astral Expansion"

Highest Quality version at my Full Screen Video Portfolio!

Find it other places at my Ello, Imgur, Dribbble, and G+ Photos.

I wish that I had dedicated more time to this design. As beautiful as it may be, I don't think I did justice to the amazing inspiration that I was filled with when I saw Regolo Bizzi's design that inspired me. I rushed myself on this design, because I wanted to post one before the end of the month. Ah well. It's not that this is bad. It's just less... than I wanted it to be.

Why was I rushed? Because I've been putting so much effort into my new Video Portfolio! I wouldn't call it done yet, but I would say that I'm at least comfortable sharing it at this point! For this project, the focus was -quality-, not instant gratificaiton - so expect it to take some time to load if you're not on a fast connection; these animations are between 25 and 100 MB to load. So if you've got the bandwidth, prepare to watch some high quality animations in full screen! Take a look, and let me know what you think! :D

Check out each step of the creative process for this animation at this Imgur gallery.

[admiralpotato]

Diamond Waves

Higher resolution versions at Ello, Imgur, Dribbble, and G+ Photos.

Check out the Creative Process Gallery, where I have posted a test render from each step of this design's development, and the thought process describing the changes in each iteration. This set is pretty great.

Sometimes you've been uninspired all month long, then you see ONE IMAGE, and it's like "BOOM"! Then that's it. You're off. You're ready to go. Your inspiration is carrying you through the design and everything is almost effortless. I kinda hate designs like that because they can only happen at the intersection of your availability to work on the design, your level of energy to focus on and create it, and then the inspiration striking you in just the right way. In some ways, it feels like cheating, with everything on auto-pilot; In other ways, it feels like a rare moment that must be seized at all costs, and held on to for a long as possible, and holding on to it takes every shred of you to push through to the very final step.

The image that fueled me with the inspiration me to create this design was "poemergent · 60″ x 120″", by a designer named @kiandjan.

[admiralpotato]

Electric Flower

Higher resolution versions at Ello, Imgur, Dribbble, and G+ Photos.

So, back in June of 2014, I made one of my most beautiful animations ever, titled: "Electric Branches - 0". For some reason, it came to mind while I was thinking what I could pull off before the end of the month for the @gifartistscollective monthly theme of "Flower". I feel like I already said everything I could say about this design over in the Creative Process Gallery, so go read about it there if you like.

On another topic... Here's a little secret I'll let you in on. I've been very busy building my own infrastructure for a high quality, HD, fullscreen, perfect looping animation portfolio of all of my favorite designs. You can fullscreen it and study these animations at a much higher quality than what's allowed at any of the other places I've been posting them. Even I can get lost in my own work if I leave the full quality versions of these animations open too long.

It's really close to done, but not quite there yet. I'm still working out the bugs in the last details - I want this to be the best possible experience for perfect looping animation enthusiasts - and my perfectionism is close to being satisfied on this project. Look forward to it. ;)

[admiralpotato]

Easter Shark 2017 - A closeup on 4 perfect Chocolate Eggs

Higher resolution versions at Ello, Imgur, Dribbble, and G+ Photos.

You can see each step in the creation of these designs in the Creative Process Gallery.

These eggs have already been personally quality inspected by the Easter Shark, and are ready to go on to the next phase of the production process. Look at how flawless they are!

You can learn more about the legend of the Easter Shark from previous years designs here.

[admiralpotato]

The Easter Shark Warms Up for 2017!

Higher resolution versions at Ello, Imgur, Dribbble, and G+ Photos.

You can see each step in the creation of these designs in the Creative Process Gallery.

This is the first quality inspection phase of the Easter Shark's annual production process. After the Chocolate Chickens lay the Chocolate Eggs, the Eggs need to be checked before they get wrapped. The Easter Shark personally checks each Egg for any defects before swimming across the sky in a rainbow to deliver them to the children of the world.

You can learn more about the legend of the Easter Shark from previous years designs here.

[admiralpotato]

Hall of the Enlightened Triangles & Domes + 4k Wallpaper

Higher resolution versions at Imgur, Dribbble, and G+ Photos.

The lossless 4k PNG Wallpaper is available at G+ Photos.

You can see all of the iterations on this design in the Creative Process Gallery.

So, on the topic of "Enlightening" things - Have any of you other Cycles users been playing with the "Filmic" color system yet? I can't speak highly enough about it - I have tried to work on well-lit scenes within a closed space before, only to blow out all detail in the light areas, and say goodbye to any approximation of subtlety in the highlights. Filmic expands Blender's dynamic range from 5 photographic stops to 25! SUCH BRIGHT DETAILS HOTNESS!

I don't normally think much about the "environment" for my designs - I have an idea for a subject, and that's what I create. The "set" of the scene is not something I am in the habit of thinking much about yet - but I think it payed off to spend more time on the scenery in this animation. I think I'll try more of this out moving forward. It was a lot of work, but it was worth it.

I should also say, as painfully dumb a movie as Lego Batman was (though, yes, the classic Batman callbacks were quite fun) - it was almost worth sitting through most of the brain-damagingly stupid slapstick comedy, just to find the wonderful gem of visual design inspiration that I caught at about 36 seconds in to the "Intro to the credits sequence music video".

[admiralpotato]

Jester's Court, Revisited + 4K Wallpapers Higher resolution versions at Ello, Imgur, Dribbble, and G+ Photos.

4K PNG wallpapers can be found at the G+ wallpapers gallery.

A few whiles back, I created an animation that I named "Jester's Court". Looking at that design again recently, I found myself inspired by some of its elements, while also thinking "I can do better than that now". I like to think that the same "Jester" who decorated the original court grew up a little bit, became interested in the sciences, went to college and got a degree in bio-chem, and eventually came back and redecorated his court with a slightly keener sense of style.

This design went through a crap-ton of variations before it became what it is now - each one of them really interesting. If you'd like to see how this came about, please take a look at the Creative Process Gallery.

Also, a shout-out and thanks to @staff for boosting the GIF size limit to 3MB. :)