Comparing VEX to VOPs - Whirlpool
In an attempt to explore VEX, I managed to compare it with its popular version (VOPs) and saw some very different results. The main underlying idea was to understand the merits and demerits of each and study their application of them in different situations.
We will start by exploring the VOP Network:
In this network, I have manipulated the position data before plugging it into the turbulent noise thereby creating a warping effect. To control rotation we will need to use Quaternions as they carry the Angle as well as the Direction data as a "Vector4". However Position is a Vector3 type of data therefore we must convert it to a Vector4, this can be multiplied by the Quaternion to control rotation. To create an interesting swirl we must blend the Original Position and the New Rotated position. This can be done using a simple radial ramp map which can be plugged into the bias input of the Color Mix VOP. This data is finally ready to be plugged into the Turbulent Noise which will cause it to rotate inwards and be used as a Displacement Map.
Using additional formulas you can provide the user with controls for Overall Rotation, Scaling, amplitude, Ramping, Height etc.
The same logic can be applied to VEX:
In Conclusion: The major issue I was facing was, making the VEX Whirlpool look a bit more organic. VOPS provide a multitude of noise patterns that are difficult to achieve in VEX, if anybody is aware of a method to have the same number of noise patterns available in both VOPs as well VEX please do shoot me a message and I would love to explore it. Hope somebody can take this experiment further and come up with interesting results.
