_{DIGITAL VIDEO PRODUCTION} Create Explosive Visuals _{By Chris Kenworthy}
Real movie explosions are dangerous, expensive, and usually unnecessary. You can
create a convincing explosion with well-lit water, and add it to your footage later.
You need to choose a good sound effect to make this work well; check the internet.

You will need: A large, clean mirror, camera, towels, black balloon.

 

¹ The balloon used in this example is red, but you should use a black balloon. A black balloon won’t show up in the finished shot, ensuring that only the brightly lit water is visible. To create the illusion of a powerful explosion, fill the balloon halfway with water, and then add enough air to fill it up until it is close to bursting. This combination of air and water yields a good explosion, but you can experiment with other ratios.

² To create this effect, you need to work in a dark, enclosed space. Lean the mirror against a wall or over a box, at a 45-degree angle to the floor. Suspend When you stand in front of the mirror, you should be able the balloon over the mirror. Your movie light should to see the balloon. (It shows up clearly in this example _{be positioned off to the side, aimed at the balloon.} because the balloon is red.) You’ll find it easier to line up _{your camera on the balloon if you tape a brightly colored} ^{Keep the light far enough away that it won’t be} piece of paper to it. Remove it when you’re ready to shoot. splashed when the balloon explodes.

 

³ Zoom in on the mirror so that nothing is visible except the balloon. Use the zoom rather than moving the camera forward to avoid any risk of getting water on the camera.

Photography courtesy of Chris Kenworthy

⁴ Now pop the balloon. Use black tape to attach a sharp nail or tack to a black stick, which won’t be visible when you move it into frame. Start shooting and pop your balloon. When it pops, brightly lit water will explode toward the camera.

⁵ In your editing software, layer the explosion footage over the object you want to blow up. Use a Color Correction filter to shift the colors toward yellow. If the object is moving, click the Keyframe button and drag the explosion layer so that it matches the movement of the object. Keep explosion shots brief, and cut them in with crowd reactions or people running away.

Excerpted from Digital Video Production Cookbook, ISBN 0596100310 (O’Reilly Media, Inc.).