Apophysis: Tricks of the Trade

Apophysis is a freestanding and freeware flame fractal generator originally created by Mark Townsend. According to Damien M. Jones and L. Kerry Mitchell in The Fractal Art Manifesto [link] “Generating fractals can be an artistic endeavor, a mathematical pursuit, or just a soothing diversion.” Whatever your reasons for wanting to create fractal art, using Apophysis will get you started. It may look intimidating when you first open it, but once you jump in and start using Apophysis, you will find that you can create beautiful fractal art almost right way.

Here are a few tips and tricks we have compiled to help every fractal artist from beginner to advanced users. A very big thank you to everyone who contributed to this article. After each one you will find the name and/or link to the source of the information.

Beginner Tips

~ You should begin your download of Apophysis with version 2.02 here at Apophysis.org: [link] this will install the complete package for Apophysis, then go to Sourceforge.net: [link] for the latest versions. Today, the latest version is 2.07beta, but v2.08beta will be released on 08/08/08! =Colliemom *Keeps

~ Plugins are simply variations that people other than the developers have created. Adding variation plugins is a simple matter of creating a folder called plugins and placing the .dll files in there. This folder is right below the .exe file (program files> apophysis folder> plugins). =Colliemom *Keeps *Fraxa

~If your fractals are coming out in a single color and you want to change them, one way is to go to the FLAME menu option and when the pull down shows up choose calculate color values or randomize color values to help spread the color through the flame. `cmptrwhz

~If you have changed any of the options in Apophysis and you want to return them to the original settings, there should be a script in your script folder called "Default Options", run that and it resets everything back to default. *FracFx

~When working with flames try using negative numbers (i.e.: -1), and/or very small numbers (.005 or smaller). The – (negative) only works to post a negative number if you use the key above the letters. The – (negative) on the numpad only works to select the transform. *one-tough-one =pantherwitch4982

~Very large or very small values for variables associated with variations can have interesting results. Also transform weights that are very large (you can go as high as 1000) or small can change certain fractals significantly. *BrainSplatter

~When using Apophysis 2.06 “3D Hack” don't forget to use pitch and perspective to enhance your fractal. *one-tough-one



~By default Apophysis generates 100 random flames when opened. That is a lot of flames! If you go to Options, Under the General tab (which is always where Options opens to) in the center you will see a place called Batch Size. This is where you set the number of flames generated in a random batch, 25 is a more manageable number. Once you change this number when you select Ctrl B (generates new random batch) or close and open Apo that is the number of random flames that will be generated. You can always go back and change it any time you want. Source: [link]



~When you select a random flame that seems likely to produce a good fractal use the adjust feature; go to the Rendering tab and really boost the brightness... it helps to see the possibilities better. :dev1articfox:

~If you have a "hole" in the middle of a flame you can sometimes close it by adding another transform with a high linear variation. =n8iveattitude1

~If you are trying to clean up a fractal try duplicating your triangle in the editor window. *one-tough-one

~ Zooming (3 or 4 sets of hash lines) in on X or Y corners of triangles and dragging the point around can produce interesting results and sometimes significant changes. *BrainSplatter

Intermediate to Advanced Tips

~Often you will see Apophysis users post their parameter files for others to share or tweak. These parameters look like a bunch of code. They always start with <flame name=...> and end with </flame>. Some of these parameters can be quite long. To view the flames these parameter files represent you must block (highlight) all the text starting from and including <flame name=...>

BLOCK Start Here<flame name="Springs" version="Apophysis 2.06c 3D hack" size="1440 960" center="0.0126163126243106 0.200616516739784" scale="288" zoom="0.408" cam_pitch="1.17286125734019" cam_yaw="-0.0122173047639603" oversample="2" filter="1" quality="4000" background="0 0 0" brightness="1.93913043478261" gamma="2.2" >
more code
more code
more code
</flame>BLOCK End Here

and ending with and including </flame>. Once you have it blocked/highlighted you can use Ctrl C or right click select Copy.

Next, open Apophysis if not already open and hit Ctrl V or from the menu select Edit, Paste and you will see Lapsed/Remaining indicators start counting. If nothing happens and the flame does not generate you most likely did not copy the parameters correctly. Try that again, be sure to leave no extra spaces before and after <flame name=> and </flame>. (**Artists who share parameters do so with the expectations that you will not claim the work as your own unless you significantly change it.) Link: [link]

~If, after installing plugins, Apophysis unexpectedly quits or you have other program issues and errors, one reason may be the variation plugins you have installed.

For Apophysis 2.07beta and Apophysis 2.03 3D Hack, because of a bug in the coding, the planned limit of 30 plugins is most typically 27. Although this is not absolute as some users are able to use from 28 to 33 plugins. The safe maximum for all users is best considered to be 27. With the planned release of 2.08 2D this limit will disappear. (the 3D Hack plugin limit of 27 will still apply).

Another important consideration is that some plugins don’t play nice with each other, for whatever the reason, some variations simply conflict and cause some unusual errors (the only fix for this issue is a 'one at a time' approach to adding your plugins). *Keeps =Colliemom

~There are multiple means by which you may manage your plugins. You can store extra plugins in a separate file and title it “~Plugins”, then when you want to use one or more simply drag them into your “ plugins” folder and reverse that to remove plugins not in use. Some people create folders with different sets of plugins and simply change the file names before starting Apophysis. Others create folder trees named for the plugins in them each with its own copy of Apophysis. *Keeps =Colliemom

~If you have already loaded Apophysis and you want to use a plugin variation that you don't have in the plugin folder you will have to close Apo, copy the plugin to the plugin folder, then restart Apo. *FracFx

~To save many flames in just one file open the 'Save Parameters' dialogue with Ctrl-S, click on the folder icon to open the 'Select Parameter File' dialogue then select an existing file or type in a new name. Click 'Save'. Back in the 'Save Parameters' dialogue, enter a suitable name in the 'Title' field. You have now created a .flame file with a single flame. Further instances of saving will default to this file, until you change it. *IDeviant

~If you ever get the error message “Unknown identifier or variable is not declared \'Calculate Colors\” when using...or rather trying to use some scripts, go to the Apophysis Wikispace: [link] and download the Functions.asc file. This is the most up-to-date functions.asc script. To use, copy the code, and paste it into the script editor window in Apo, after you've made sure to select a blank script. (The blank script option looks like a page on the right hand side of the editor window). Save the code as functions.asc. If the file already exists you may overwrite it. Next, open your options window, click the paths tab, and make sure your functions library is set to point to this functions.asc script. *LadyLyonnesse

~When using the post transform on a flame, use the arrows and controls in the Editor window under the triangle tab instead of moving it with your mouse, this will give you greater control over the transform and allow you to easily reverse changes that you don’t want. =pantherwitch4982

~Blur = x.xx is the same as bubble = x.xx and pre_blur = 1 giving you more than one-way to create a sphere. *Keeps

~To build density of a transform effect like a blur you can double it, but to not have that diminish the effects of the other transforms divide the weights by the number doubled. So 1 transform at 0.5 would be 2 transforms at 0.25 or 20 at 0.5/20 etc. Also, giving a transform even a rotation of 0.001 can skew the pixels enough to smooth a fill (same with the color or symmetry values). *Keeps

~ You can make colorful stripes in something like Paint or Gimp and use the smooth palatte option to create a gradient for use in Apo. It is also worthwhile to take photos of colourful scenes and plants on sunny days for Apophysis. You can use these gradients to make a fractal accompanying the photo presented on a larger background. *winklepickers

~If you are using Export Flame and need to stop the render for any reason, right click in the cmd.exe window and click Select All, this will "highlight the text lines and stop the rendering in progress, to restart the render just right click anywhere in the cmd.exe window. This does not free up the memory just kind of freezes it in place. Source: [link]

~Here are some interesting shortcut tricks to try in the Apophysis Editor window:
EDIT: These shortcuts worked in the Apophysis 2.02 version and may no longer work in newer versions. *Zueuk
1. To rotate a particular triangle/transform... select the transform that you wish to rotate from the Editor window Transform dropdown list, then try the following.

a. Hold down the ALT key and click on the selected triangle to rotate it CLOCKWISE by approximately 7 to 9 degrees

b. Hold down the CTRL and ALT keys and click on the selected triangle to rotate it ANTI_CLOCKWISE by approximately 7 to 9 degrees

2. To increase/decrease the size of a particular triangle/transform... select the transform as above, then try the following.

a. Hold down the SHIFT key and click on the selected triangle to INCREASE its size

b. Hold down the CTRL and SHIFT keys and click on the selected triangle to DECREASE its size
Source: [link]

~A final transform with the rectangles variation set to 1 will make a really cool checkerboard effect out of any fractal that doesn't already have a final transform. =LadyBlacksword

~A good proportion of the fields in Adjust and Editor dialogues support sliding and double-clicking in their title areas to change their values. Double-clicking defaults/toggles*. To use the title field as slider control, click and hold then drag to the right to increase and the left to decrease. *if option is set in Options, Editor, Double-click on variation. *IDeviant



Link to illustration: [link]

~Some fractals are hypersensitive to the smallest changes. This is not the time to manually drag, rotate and resize the transforms, wonderful though these features are. Use the drop-down boxes on the Triangle tab in the Editor. And don't be content with the values given, type in your own: 1, or even less, for the rotation; the 0.01 preset in the move is probably adequate for micro-movements; and 101, or as low as 100.1, in the resize. Probably the styles to which this applies most strongly are the julian/juliascope-based types, in combination with any of disc, rings2 and more latterly lazysusan, escher, droste and loonie. *IDeviant



Link to illustration: [link]

~By default, the colour symmetry is 0 for all transforms. It may take any value between -1 and 1. -1 corresponds to "this transform's colour does not contribute". Increasing the value towards 1 has the effect of distributing the entire gradient from around the transform. For high-weight transforms, values closer to 1 give best results. *IDeviant



Link to illustration: [link]

~Use the + / - keys on your numpad to identify the triangle you want (shown both at 5 in the image above and in the editor main window) to work with. Once you have done this click on the selection cursor button and you will ONLY manipulate the chosen
triangle and its control points. Saves lots of fiddling. Just enable cursor selection (by clicking the button again) when you are ready. ~2B2H

~Mac users don’t be discouraged, you can use Apophysis on your Mac. Choose the best way from the options below that fit your system and budget. Just go to the links below to read the specifics of each option.

ApoMac by *Hebejebelus
[link]


Apophysis-J 2.5 for Mac by ~herr-grinch
[link]


Purchase Parallels to run Windows on your Mac in a separate window. [link]

Use BootCamp to emulate a windows PC.
[link]
=Colliemom



Rendering

There seems to be quite a diversity of information about rendering, experimenting seems to be the best way to find what is best for your art.

~Setting the Quality of a render is really something you have to learn for yourself because there are a lot of factors to consider. The more grain you see in the preview window at a higher preview setting, the higher Quality you should use to render. (For normal use, a lower quality such as 15 in the preview window allows you to see your changes quicker.) `MichaelFaber

~Before you render an image, make it smaller using zoom in the camera tab, then enlarge it using the master scale on the rendering tab. Voila, shorter renders even for complex fractals. This works well for flames that don't have the greatest amount of detailed lines... it reduces the quality somewhat, so use with care. ~Siminart

~You can get the same quality of an 18-hour render out of a 3-4 hour one with oversample set at 2 in the render settings. ~DeepChrome

~One way to speed up render times, increase the scale (effectively 'zooming' ) and decrease the zoom. Quality settings will by necessity have to increase to compensate however the decrease in render time is significant particularly if zoom is -2 or less. *BrainSplatter

~ When rendering, leave zoom set to zero and change the scale. I adjust the quality as needed for each fractal. Some fractals are more efficient to render so you don't need a quality as high. It takes some trial, error and sometimes experimentation to get a good feel for it. If your render times have decreased, then you haven't compensated the quality enough. When the render times are the same, then the quality will be equivalent.

Here's why:
Scale: Magnifies the fractal. Because of the way flame fractals are rendered (the "chaos game") you see more graininess (lower quality) when you increase the scale and see less graininess when you decrease the scale.

Zoom: Magnifies the fractal but automatically adjusts the number of iterations and therefore changing the rendering time (and the visible quality). `JoelFaber


Tutorials

The best way to learn how to use Apophysis is to start with a basic tutorial. There are many excellent tutorials on Deviantart, but here are a few good places to start.

Apophysis Guide Part 1 by ~yanachan
[link]


Apophysis Guide Part 2 by ~yanachan
[link]


Apophysis Guide Part 3 by ~yanachan
[link]


Apo3D Hack Basic tutorial by ~nemopaice
[link]


Grad. Installation Directions by `ClaireJones
[link]


Beginner Apophysis 3d Tutorial by =emilymhanson
[link]


Apophysis Guide v.2.1 by `ClaireJones
[link]


Apophysis basic tutorial by ~SfinxMagnum
[link]


Finally, no matter what level of Apophysis user you are, Fractal Art continues to amaze people. There is always one more thing to learn, one more way to create a fractal, or one more resource to use. Here on DA, clearly we have an abundance of resources and people available to help at any time. Happy Fractalling!

Compiled by Colliemom (with proofreading from =pantherwitch4982 and *magnusti78 )