How to Composite Large Scale Explosions | After Effects

How to Composite Large Scale Explosions | After Effects

January 18, 2018
Cody Vineyard

Learn how to composite ActionVFX Explosions into your bright, sun-filled scene.

Now that we’ve gone over creating mattes, we can tackle the real fun - Explosions! This week we will place several of our Explosions Vol. 2 Elements in a scene and blend them against a bright, sunny background.

Download the background plate here and follow along as I composite some elements from the Explosions Vol. 2 Collection into this scene.

This After Effects Tutorial Focuses On:

  • Setting up back-to-back explosions within a shot
  • Color matching shadows in your VFX to the shadows in the background plate
  • Slightly lowering VFX quality when it’s a higher resolution than the scene footage
  • Adding light wrap to blend against a blue sky
  • Creating interaction between the explosions
  • Using shift channels instead of blending modes
  • Placing smoke, dust, and shock waves for final, realistic touches
I hope you enjoyed this tutorial, and were able to discover new ways to better composite our stock footage into your projects.

First time here? ActionVFX creates action stock footage for VFX and filmmaking. (We also have some great free stuff!)

Remember to connect with us on our social networks to stay updated on our latest news, giveaways, announcements and more!