ENDA Episode 173→ The time when ENDA gets in a bullet fight with John Wick (Part 5)
Most of the time, we’ll be using smoke footage. So the first step is colour correction, and for that, we need to understand that smoke is heavily influenced by the environment.
Have you ever wondered what makes one muzzle flash stand out from another?
The design?
The colour?
The intensity?
Answer: the integration of the smoke.
Some might overlook it, but guns tend to emit smoke when they fire.
It’s logical: what’s happening inside the gun is an explosion created by gunpowder, and inevitably, that process produces smoke.
Now, the important question: how do we integrate that smoke?
Most of the time, we’ll be using smoke footage. So the first step is colour correction, and for that, we need to understand that smoke is heavily influenced by the environment.
First, it tends to absorb the colour of the light source nearby. In this case, the intense orange/yellow of the muzzle flash.
Then comes the density of the smoke. This is directly related to how the light interacts with it. If there’s a strong light source close by or passing through it, the smoke will appear less dense. If not, it will look thicker and heavier.
In our shot, because the smoke is emitted at the same time as the muzzle flash, its density is quite low. On top of that, there’s a cyan light coming from the side, which also affects it and makes it feel even lighter.
Finally, we get to the blur, the last touch that helps it sit seamlessly in the plate. For this shot, it was necessary to blur the entire smoke element because its movement is fast. Remember: it’s coming from an explosion.
And yes, there are even more steps, depending on the kind of shot and the situation in which you’re integrating your smoke…
But that will be for a future episode.
The journey continues...
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