What is a 'particles appear' effect?

Particles Appear is a very popular and versatile interactive effect for floor and wall projection and window displays. The effect is considered a type of 'trail', in that a trail of animated images appear when touch or movement is detected.

Great ways to use the Particles Appear template

Retail:

• Display a logo or brand in a playful way
• Add experiential elements inside a store
• Entertain customers waiting in line

Education & Health:

• Encourage active play
• Create a themed experience for a clinic or school
• Support creativity and imaginative play (i.e. create custom nature trails, space environments, and sensory experiences).

Events:

• Add a beautiful themed effect to a wedding aisle or entryway
• Create an interactive dance floor
• Encourage social image and video sharing (this effect is extremely Instagram friendly)

How to prepare your images

All images should be saved as png files. Background, Mask and Logo images should be made with the final resolution and aspect ratio of your installation display in mind.

The Mask, Idle, Logo, and Particle images should be saved as png with an alpha channel (transparent background). We recommend that particle images be no larger than 300px square, but this is your choice.

Video backgrounds work best if they are MP4/H264 compression, and they should be rendered to match the resolution and aspect ratio of your installation display. Videos that are a seamless loop under 60s in length will perform best.

We recommend that videos be under 500MBs for smooth performance. The limit for all assets combined is 1GB, but each template produces a slightly different size by default based on the template itself and the other assets included.

If you want to add background audio to your effect, you can add looped audio to the video.

How to use the Particles Appear template

Download the graphics used in this tutorial

We recommend connecting your final installation display to your computer as a second monitor so you can preview your final app on the intended display. If you have a full LUMOplay installation connected to your computer (including a display and a camera), you will be able to test your app as you build it.

1. Open LUMOplay, select Motion Maker from the left menu, and click Create next to the Particles Appear template.

2. When the template launches, give your app a name and click anywhere on the grey bar marked Overlays to open the first menu. (NOTE: the tools may look different on your computer, particularly if you are using multiple monitors.)

3. Click the folder icon underneath each item to choose the appropriate image. All overlay images are optional. The Idle image will appear on the screen when no one is interacting. It can be used as a call-to-action (i.e. Move to Play) or to display a message or logo when no one is playing.

4. If you'd like to make your projected image a custom shape, you can upload a Mask image. In the image below, the Mask image is a frame of leaves that is transparent in the middle. The Mask image sits on top of everything else except the Idle Image. You can also add a Logo image.

5. Open the Background menu and click the folder icon to choose your background image or video.

6. Open the Particles menu and click the folder icon to add your particle images. Use the sliders to adjust the particle size and behaviour. Remember to test your changes as you go. If you don't have a touchscreen or interactive projection system connected to your design machine, you can use your mouse to test the particle behaviour as you make changes.

7. Open the Idle Particles menu. The Idle Particles can be used to create an eye-catching motion when your display is not in use. You can turn it off or adjust the timeout (the amount of time that must pass before the particles appear) and spawn speed (how fast particles appear). When you're finished, click Save and close the template by clicking the X or hitting esc. Don't forget to give your app a name!

NOTE: If you forget to name your app, or if you accidentally close it before you're finished, it will automatically be saved to the Drafts section in LUMOplay's Motion Maker, so you can edit it again.

Publishing your Particles Appear app

Playmaker: When you're ready to publish your app to your account, click Publish and confirm. You will not be able to edit the app after it's been published.

Wait for your app to upload.

You will find your app in the APPS list in your LUMOplay software. If you can't find it right away, use the search field to look for it by name. It will be available to every license in your account.

Playground & Free: Upload your app to save a copy to the LUMOplay server. You will be able to continue editing your app until you purchase it.

Each time you upload your app, you will be given an option to purchase it or upgrade to LUMO Playmaker and publish an unlimited number of Motion Maker apps.

When you're ready to purchase your app, you can click Purchase and you will be redirected to LUMOplay.com and prompted to log in. When you're logged in, you will be taken directly to the cart page to purchase your app.

Once the app has been purchased, it will appear in your APPS list in your LUMOplay software, and you will be able to search for it by name.

Still have questions? Contact us!