PHOTO-REALISTIC MOTION GRAPHICS
Developing New Techniques To Bend Reality
Using 48 hours worth of time-lapse footage I digitally recreated the facade of I.M. Pei’s Kips Bay Towers and turned it into a gigantic digital display.
![motion graphics building photorealistic lights lcd control](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/max_1200/9e3d9087895215.5fe0e4228cdcb.jpg)
In 2010 my parents moved back to New York City.
Their apartment was across the street from legendary architect I.M. Pei’s Kips Bay Towers.
I found the austere brutalist architecture mesmerizing but oppressive,
unable to grapple with its magnitude and concrete uniformity.
![motion graphics building photorealistic lights lcd control](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/1400/d0026287895215.5fe0e4228d82d.jpg)
Late one night,
I was watching the building as it’s inhabitants begin retiring for the night. The illuminated windows of their apartments powering down.
![motion graphics building photorealistic lights lcd control](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/disp/f6b43287895215.5fe0e4228d1f1.jpg)
It occurred to me;
Each of these windows, row after row, resembled the workings of a digital display.
If I could find some way to control the lights across the building,
I could draw images on the façade.
I set about capturing 932 images over 48 hours
Using a Canon 60D with Magic Lantern firmware’s time-lapse feature.
Next, using Photoshop, I created two images:
One with all the lights in the building on and one with all the lights off.
![](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/1400/3bd8da87895215.5fe0e421bb660.jpg)
![](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/1400/bd585087895215.5fe0e421bbdf0.jpg)
In After Effects I could now use a simple grid of black and white
To animate any pattern I wished.
To accomplish the shutters opening
I followed a similar technique creating two images of the shutters fully open and closed.
![](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/1400/43073c87895215.5fe0e4221e8aa.jpg)
![](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/1400/390f8287895215.5fe0e4221f0ec.jpg)
Then animated a short clip of them opening in After Effects and used a time-displacement effect to open and close them using shades of grey.
The sequence was set to Dimlite’s “In Groups to the Hydrandd”
In Premiere Pro.
The result was a new technique of creating photorealistic motion graphics
Which I’ve re-used for professional projects since.