Plug-in Tutorial: Embossing
This tutorial will use Switch Emboss, which is a plug-in for Object Formula Switch Lite. Open Object Formula Switch Lite and replace Mandelbrot Julia Switch with Switch Embossed. Immediately following the new plug-in will be some text recommending some changes to the bailout settings. New parameters for Light Angle, Contour Size and Emboss Type will be visible. The formula to be embossed is another plug-in with a default of the familiar Mandelbrot Julia Switch. Most of the available Switch formula plug-ins can be used here. Note that tranform plug-ins can also be added. Do not use the dual formula setting as it has a bug and doesn't work correctly. Embossing requires a special coloring formula. Emboss with Textures will be used for this tutorial as it has extensive plug-in capabilities. Three examples will be used for the Embossing Tutorial.
Example 1:
The first example, named Emboss, uses the default Mandelbrot Julia Switch in the Julia mode. Load the upr into Ultrafractal and click on the Formula tab. A special emboss gradient is used which provides black or white emboss coloring depending on the angle of the fractal to the light. The Bailout Test is set for 'and' which gives an interesting emboss pattern. Try different Bailout Test settings to see the effect on the emboss pattern. The emboss pattern can also be changed by changing the Emboss Type. Try changing the Light Angle to see the effect on the emboss pattern. The embossing can be made heavier or lighter by changing the Contour Size. Try zooming in to see the effect on the embossing.
Emboss with Textures has a number of capabilities. Switch to the Outside tab to see the parameters. To see the "plain vanilla" embossing go to the Images and Coloring section, click the browse button next to ColorTrapShapeBlock and select No Color. You should see a black and white embossed image on a transparent background. Reload the Emboss upr and go back to the Outside tab. The Images and Colorings section should show two plug-ins. the second plug-in, Default Color Merge Modes, manages two internal layers which can be merged much like the Layers tab in the Fractal Properties window. One of the layers is the embossed fractal and the other is an "image" layer created with ColorTrapShapeBlock. Try changing the Merge Mode, the Merge Order and the Merge Opacity to see the effects on the image.
Click the little arrow next to colors to open up ColorTrapShapeBlock and show the parameters, which include several more plug-ins. The first plug-in is Trap Position. Open it up to see the parameters and change some of them to see the effects. The next plug-in is Trap Shape, in this case filled with Monnier's S.F.B.M. II Texture. The next plug-in is Trap Transfer which is filled with the null plug-in. The next plug-in, Direct Color Array with the choice of Peru Mix Array, works with the Trap Shape to provide the coloring for the layer.
Example 2:
The second example is Emboss2 and uses Cayley Switch in the Julia mode. The Cayley fractal is a convergent fractal like the Newton fractal. Go to the Outside tab and look at the parameter settings in the Special Effects section. Change them and look at the results. Change back. The emboss gradient has been changed slightly to get the color blending effects I wanted. ColorTrapShapeBlock provides the coloring using Worley Textures and Desert Array.
Example 3:
The third example is Emboss3 and uses Mandelbrot Julia Switch in the Julia mode. The same color gradient is used for both embossing and coloring. The colors plugin is Worley Colors rather than ColorTrapShapeBlock.
**Plug-in Tutorial: Embossing**
This tutorial will use Switch Emboss, which is a plug-in for Object Formula Switch Lite. Open Object Formula Switch Lite and replace Mandelbrot Julia Switch with Switch Embossed. Immediately following the new plug-in will be some text recommending some changes to the bailout settings. New parameters for Light Angle, Contour Size and Emboss Type will be visible. The formula to be embossed is another plug-in with a default of the familiar Mandelbrot Julia Switch. Most of the available Switch formula plug-ins can be used here. Note that tranform plug-ins can also be added. Do not use the dual formula setting as it has a bug and doesn't work correctly. Embossing requires a special coloring formula. Emboss with Textures will be used for this tutorial as it has extensive plug-in capabilities. Three examples will be used for the Embossing Tutorial.
**Example 1:**
The first example, named Emboss, uses the default Mandelbrot Julia Switch in the Julia mode. Load the upr into Ultrafractal and click on the Formula tab. A special emboss gradient is used which provides black or white emboss coloring depending on the angle of the fractal to the light. The Bailout Test is set for 'and' which gives an interesting emboss pattern. Try different Bailout Test settings to see the effect on the emboss pattern. The emboss pattern can also be changed by changing the Emboss Type. Try changing the Light Angle to see the effect on the emboss pattern. The embossing can be made heavier or lighter by changing the Contour Size. Try zooming in to see the effect on the embossing.
Emboss with Textures has a number of capabilities. Switch to the Outside tab to see the parameters. To see the "plain vanilla" embossing go to the Images and Coloring section, click the browse button next to ColorTrapShapeBlock and select No Color. You should see a black and white embossed image on a transparent background. Reload the Emboss upr and go back to the Outside tab. The Images and Colorings section should show two plug-ins. the second plug-in, Default Color Merge Modes, manages two internal layers which can be merged much like the Layers tab in the Fractal Properties window. One of the layers is the embossed fractal and the other is an "image" layer created with ColorTrapShapeBlock. Try changing the Merge Mode, the Merge Order and the Merge Opacity to see the effects on the image.
Click the little arrow next to colors to open up ColorTrapShapeBlock and show the parameters, which include several more plug-ins. The first plug-in is Trap Position. Open it up to see the parameters and change some of them to see the effects. The next plug-in is Trap Shape, in this case filled with Monnier's S.F.B.M. II Texture. The next plug-in is Trap Transfer which is filled with the null plug-in. The next plug-in, Direct Color Array with the choice of Peru Mix Array, works with the Trap Shape to provide the coloring for the layer.
**Example 2:**
The second example is Emboss2 and uses Cayley Switch in the Julia mode. The Cayley fractal is a convergent fractal like the Newton fractal. Go to the Outside tab and look at the parameter settings in the Special Effects section. Change them and look at the results. Change back. The emboss gradient has been changed slightly to get the color blending effects I wanted. ColorTrapShapeBlock provides the coloring using Worley Textures and Desert Array.
**Example 3:**
The third example is Emboss3 and uses Mandelbrot Julia Switch in the Julia mode. The same color gradient is used for both embossing and coloring. The colors plugin is Worley Colors rather than ColorTrapShapeBlock.
