Magic Particles

[John Martin]

without a plugin? no it can’t be done to look even similar to that. I do know how to achieve it with a couple of paid plugins, i can record a free tutorial for you if you want!

[Bahadir Bitirim]

I appreciate if you can.

Thank you.

[Mads Nybo jørgensen]

Hey Bahadir,

A part from buying it from Envato (if that is an AE template?), there is no easy fix.

But:

BorisFX offers Particle Illusion for free:
https://vfx.borisfx.com/free-particle-illusion
Small Print: “Particle
Illusion Pro Trial is a standalone application the never expires the
only limitation is the inability to import background layers.”

Blender 3D – is free, and have stacks of courses/tutorials.
EDIT: Sorry, only just re-read your post regarding Blender, hereby acknowledged that you are considering it.
Here is on example:
https://blenderartists.org/t/create-disintegration-effect-with-extra-nodes-geometry-nodes/1542670
PACKT, for the next 48 hours, they have one of their super sales on eBooks – the more you buy, the lower the price (I got over £300 worth of eBooks and video for £32 yesterday).
Search on Blender:
https://www.packtpub.com/en-us/search?q=blender&country=us&language=en
Suggested Reading list:
Learn Blender Simulations the Right Way:
Create attractive and realistic animations with Mantaflow, rigid and
soft bodies, and Dynamic Paint:
https://www.packtpub.com/en-us/product/learn-blender-simulations-the-right-way-9781803240169
And:
https://www.packtpub.com/en-us/product/taking-blender-to-the-next-level-9781803243825
https://www.packtpub.com/en-us/product/procedural-3d-modeling-using-geometry-nodes-in-blender-9781804616079

Unreal Engine starts from fee, and have also got loads of particle tutorials, one example:
https://youtu.be/pzIORuULNfo?si=ROYQW1FMlTcDoY5j

Unity also starts for free, with plenty of particles to go around:
https://learn.unity.com/tutorial/introduction-to-particle-systems

Although only BorisFX will offer you AE plugins, you are spoiled for choice.

Hope that this helps you?

Atb
Mads

vfx.borisfx.com

Free Particle Illusion

Try the free Particle Illusion standalone application! Quickly create photorealistic particle effects to use for motion graphics, visual effects, titles, and lower thirds.

[John Martin]

Here is the tutorial, i hope that helps getting you in the right direction! You need to install the trial or the full version of a magic plugin called “Trapcode Form” 🔥

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1wVVq5fxlwfxtqGgjF0dZ_C8WsWhPSqrG/view?usp=sharing

[Mads Nybo jørgensen]

Hey John,

Great tutorial, thank you.

I used to have a perpetual licence for trapcode.
Still might have it somewhere.
But the sales department at Maxon didn’t really care for my custom, so now it is no longe C4D, Trapcode, and recently Autograph.
But instead Blender and other apps, as they won’t charge me the kind of money that I was willing to pay Maxon.
And, they don’t have a sales department that turns up 3-weeks late with the question “What do you want?”, when you’ve already told them three times.

I seem to remember a time when Maxon was in the £ 2,000.00 bracket, not it seems like it has dropped below the £ 1,000.00 – could be a promotion, or a permanent state of affairs up against Adobe and other A.I. generative services, general headwinds in the industry with many vfx companies closing or just their own sales department not performing.

For the record, I used to love Red Giant and C4D, even had one Red Giant plug-in save me recently on a job. But these days not really interested, until I am.

As you correctly suggest, there is a free trial, and one can also subscribe on a monthly basis. With a great tutorial like yours, Bahadir is already over half-way there.

Atb
Mads

[Moira Elefson]

Hi Bahadir,

You’re not alone—this type of animation can definitely be tricky to recreate without third-party plugins, but it’s absolutely possible to achieve a similar look in After Effects using built-in tools (just takes some layering and patience).

The key to that “wave-like particle motion” is combining Fractal Noise or Turbulent Displace with Particle World or CC Particle Systems II — both are native to AE. You’ll need to animate the emitter and play with velocity and gravity to get that flowing trail effect. Adding a subtle Turbulent Displace to the layer can give you the organic swirl you’re after.

Since you already tried with Fractal Noise, you’re halfway there. Try precomposing your fractal shape and using it as a displacement map or mask for a particle layer. Also experiment with time remapping and motion blur to smooth out the motion.

If you’re familiar with Blender, that’s a solid plan B. Blender’s particle system with force fields could give you very fluid results — plus it’s free and much more flexible for 3D motion.

Keep pushing, you’re close! These kinds of effects often come from trial and error. And don’t worry, your post is totally fine — searching “particles” always turns into a black hole! 😊

Good luck!