Battlefield 4: Rising Dawn

 

As an individual person, of course i have other passions and hobbies that i am active with, and one of the things i do on my spare time is play video games on console and PC. One of my favorite first person shooter games on console is Battlefield 4. Besides blowing up things and defending my bases, I enjoy viewing the introductions and stationary graphics in this game. Great composition with monochromatic colors and the streaks of bright gradient lights. So I had an idea to make my own little motion graphic.

Found three PNG stock photos online that caught my eye for my design, close-up shot of a military soldier, muzzle flash, and a background image of a jet flying in the sky. I brought the images into Adobe Photoshop to use the "Hue/Saturation" effect to change the colored images into neutral colors (gray, black, white). Drawn the vector shapes of the target rings and numbers on a separate layer, as will as the round patch on the helmet over the muzzle flash image. Made the light streaks in the background with simple brush strokes, then blurred and feather them.

Dragged the PSD file (Photoshop Document) into Adobe After Effects. Set the aspect ratio to  1920x1080 for the composition. Place each layer in their proper positions. Added a "Glow" (have colors stand out) and "Fractal Noise" (gives a bit of realism to the abstract shapes by distorting them) effects to the muzzle flash, eye patch, and target shaped vectors. Used the "Grid" texture effect on the title's text  and the "Glow" effect. From that point on I just key framed, added video effects of fade-ins and outs, dazzling lens flares and positioning.