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Posted on 26/11/04 09:05:02 AM |
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Steve Caplin
Administrator Posts: 6934 Reply  |
Contest 22: Don't try this at home
There are two things I've heard about microwave ovens, that I've never dared try out. One is that if you put sugary things like a bar of chocolate in them, they'll explode. The other is that if you put metal things in them, they'll spark and then explode. So what, I wonder, would happen if we tried to microwave a sugary tin of Golden Syrup? High res microwave here, syrup tin here.  |
Posted on 26/11/04 2:01:03 PM |
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maiden
Golden Gif Gagster Posts: 471 Reply  |
Re: Contest 22: Don
It was fun not relying upon Eye Candy for most of the FX: Smoke, syrup, and electrical sparks were all filters & blending modes. I also exploded the side of the can using a modified version of Tweaknik's glass-filter technique for the bullet-holes in the taxi challenge. 
click for hi-res version As for chocolate exploding in the microwave it's a myth. I have often melted some chocolate in the mircowave on a low setting for use on my home made profitteroles and chocolate eclairs. Syrup will more that likely explode but it isn't because of the sugar but because of the air that is trapped in the syrup.  _________________ mad as a badger and twice as furry |
Posted on 26/11/04 10:08:30 PM |
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Jeff Scranton
* Posts: 43 Reply |
Re: Contest 22: Don't try this at home
Wow, that was fast! The high-res version shows a lot of stuff that you can't see in the low-res. This going to be fun after all the masonry. |
Posted on 27/11/04 01:54:19 AM |
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Paul
** Posts: 64 Reply  |
Re: Contest 22: Don't try this at home
Maiden, thats fantastic .. I never have time to do much myself in the way of montages, but I just love coming in and seeing the entries  |
Posted on 27/11/04 09:36:55 AM |
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maiden
Golden Gif Gagster Posts: 471 Reply |
Re: Contest 22: Don
That's a pity, Paul, it's great fun learning how to achieve various effects - for example I learnt how to make the syrup look gooey with a mixture of blending modes and some plastic wrap. I painted 50% gray blobs at first then added some Noise and 1-2% Median (to roughen the noise up a bit as noise can look too much like noise if you know what I mean). Then I used Dodge and Burn to create the highlights and shadows and applied a Plastic Wrap with highlights and smoothness set to highish levels - this added to the gooey effect. To this layer I layer-linked a Hue & Saturation Adjustment Layer to set the colour of the goo to a syrup colour. and set the Blending Mode of the Goo layer to Screen. I then Duplicated both the Goo and the Hue & Sat Layer and placed them above (re-linking the layers) and set the Blending Mode to Multiply. The purpose of this two stage Blending Mode technique is that The Screen Mode layer is too light when an object is placed in the background, so the Multiply Mode layer darkens the effect of the screen layer giving an overall effect of thick see-thru syrup. I would encourage you to have a play about with this style - even if you don't submit an entry for the challenge because it just looks so good ( remember to put a background in else you won't really get to see the full effect) *you can play about with the blending modes because there are several combinations that work well together like Overlay & Multiply, Soft Light & Linear Burn etc. Becky _________________ mad as a badger and twice as furry |
Posted on 28/11/04 06:23:40 AM |
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Atomicfog
Virtual Visualizer Posts: 238 Reply  |
Re: Contest 22: Don
The microwave image won't load 
I was in the mood to photoshop it now too
_________________ -Atomic |
Posted on 28/11/04 12:13:22 PM |
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maiden
Golden Gif Gagster Posts: 471 Reply |
Re: Contest 22: Don't try this at home
Seems to be working fine for me. Atomic. Although the board was experiencing some problems earlier probably the server backing up the database. Try again it might work now. Becky _________________ mad as a badger and twice as furry |
Posted on 28/11/04 4:49:39 PM |
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Atomicfog
Virtual Visualizer Posts: 238 Reply |
Re: Contest 22: Don't try this at home
Thanx, Here mine is.  _________________ -Atomic |
Posted on 28/11/04 5:05:31 PM |
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maiden
Golden Gif Gagster Posts: 471 Reply |
Re: Contest 22: Don't try this at home
Great sense of movement, Atomic, and nice electrics too _________________ mad as a badger and twice as furry |
Posted on 28/11/04 7:12:22 PM |
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ryan
Guest Reply |
Re: Contest 22: Don't try this at home
This was a great challenge this week. Tried making the microwave door look as real as possible and finally managed to get it looking just right and the damn thing fell on the floor. Steves miracle wrap technique worked a treat on the gooey treacle.
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Posted on 28/11/04 7:15:56 PM |
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ryan
Guest Reply |
Re: Contest 22: Don't try this at home
Nice touch Becky with the digital clock |
Posted on 28/11/04 9:58:47 PM |
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ryan
Guest Reply |
Re: Contest 22: Don't try this at home
Thought this added a touch of realism  |
Posted on 28/11/04 10:40:12 PM |
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mj
Guest Reply |
Re: Contest 22: Don't try this at home
I didn't do a very good job on the syrup but here's my image.  |
Posted on 30/11/04 02:03:38 AM |
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Paul
** Posts: 64 Reply |
Re: Contest 22: Don
Thanks for that Becky. I'll have a play around with this when I get some time. I'm on holiday next week, so I'll probably give next weeks challenge a bash !
Paul. |
Posted on 30/11/04 02:25:01 AM |
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Brian Garrison
* Posts: 55 Reply |
Re: Contest 22: Don't try this at home
Well here's my offering. Rather than go for an action shot, I opted for the consequential clean-up, although there is some remaining electrical activity...  |
Posted on 01/12/04 07:20:30 AM |
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Jeff Scranton
* Posts: 43 Reply |
Re: Contest 22: Don't try this at home
Since this particular microwave was in the break room of the Parallel Universe Medical Off-Center, rather than an explosion, there was an IMplosion rusulting in the creation of a black hole with an enormous sweet tooth. It's enough to ruin your whole day.  |
Posted on 01/12/04 7:54:52 PM |
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Glen
Montage Maestro Posts: 282 Reply  |
Re: Contest 22: Don't try this at home
Bit busy this week so here's my rushed go (the can is being inspected by quality control at Tate and Lyle)  _________________ most of the lack of sunshine in our lives is caused by us standing in our own shadow |
Posted on 02/12/04 7:29:37 PM |
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CubanPete
* Posts: 36 Reply |
Re: Contest 22: Don't try this at home
Glen: DAMN! that's good! _________________ Paranoia is reality on a finer scale. |
Posted on 03/12/04 09:01:03 AM |
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Steve Caplin
Administrator Posts: 6934 Reply |
Re: Contest 22: Don't try this at home
You do like smashing things up, don't you. Still, as long as you keep your destruction virtual, there's no need to get the authorities involved. Yet. Congratulations to every one of you for having mastered Plastic Wrap. A fine array of syrup all round! First off the mark was maiden, of course. A beautifully opened door - you've made more work for yourself by choosing to show it from the inside, but it's a perfect job. Great distortion on the tin lid, and the exploded can is a real treat. Glad you remembered the revolving glass tray. And thanks, too, for the detailed explanation that followed. Looking forward to your profiteroles and eclairs one of these days. Yum yum. There's some real dynamism in Atomicfog's entry, with powerful blur effects on the door and lid that give them a real sense of movement. Great smoke, too. Perhaps the syrup could have spattered a bit more? Best bit for me is the shadow under the lid. It's a small point, but it really adds to the effectiveness of the scene. Ryan, I'm not even going to mention perspective on this one. Great crackly sparks, though, and placing that lid in the foreground is a nice touch. Perhaps we could have done with a bit more movement on the tin? But you've recessed where the door's been taken off nicely, making that right-hand panel stand forwards like that really works. You seem to have a curious concept of the physical properties of metal and glass, MJ. I don't think either the tin or the door could possibly bend like that! And why are there dozens of Sydney Opera Houses growing out of the top of the microwave? A great sense of movement in the explosion, though, and that syrup seems to have reached boiling point. A nice take on the problem from Brian Garrison, although I'd think you'll need more than a dishcloth to scrape that congealed syrup off the worktop. Great lighting inside the microwave, and the perspective on the opened door almost works. It's really, really close, I'd just have lifted the top edge up a fraction… …but not as much as on Jeff Scranton's entry. Love your spinning vortex, though - the twirl on that spume of syrup is a great touch. Is that a tiny lid we can see disappearing into the void? Oh, and the LED lettering has been done to perfection - it even matches the number of digits on a real clock. Excellent touch! What a fine closing entry from Glen. The sense of destruction is impeccable, and I love the way you've made a double thickness of sheet steel for the nearside wall. Look at the details here, folks: the rebuilding of the tiles behind, the directional spattering of the syrup away from the middle, the displaced control panel… Almost perfect. If only the door wasn't too small, none of this need have happened! But as CubanPete said: Damn, that's good. |