AquaShella is a globally recognized aquarium festival that takes place twice a year. The festival attracts hobbyists with varying levels of experience, from beginners to experts, and even those who have never owned an aquarium before. The festival showcases a wide range of freshwater and saltwater fish, along with all the necessary equipment and supplies. Visitors can participate in numerous events and contests, including panels featuring expert creators and the American Shrimp Contest.
I was really excited to create a promo showcasing all four aspects of the festival: freshwater, saltwater, reptiles/ponds, and shrimp/aquascapes. To bring my idea to life, I used Photoshop to create all the necessary assets and backgrounds.
Freshwater
Reptiles & Aquascaping
Saltwater
Shrimp & Hardscaping
Once everything was ready, I exported them to After Effects where I turned them into 3D layers and set up the scene on a long horizontal composition. Using the 3D camera and various lighting techniques in After Effects, I was able to achieve the continuous movement and look that I had envisioned.
To make the fish movements as realistic as possible, I did extensive research on how they swim. I precomposed the different parts of the fish, applied various effects, and used a lot of keyframes to get the movements just right. Once I was satisfied with the movement, I exported the video into a new composition where I added adjustment layers for color corrections, noise/grain, more lighting, audio, and effects. All these steps were taken to ensure the final product was a seamless video that would effectively showcase the festival's different aspects.