I am trying to get the smoke trail/death eaters flying/ smoke monster look. After experimenting a bit, I ended up with this.
It's not as good as it can be, since there are shadows and reflections missing, and the fluid simulation should be much more detailed (but that would take time and resources that I don't have).
Anyhow, felt like posting it here.

Watch in HD, and rate if you want to!

LBvczYrFJR4

Also, the frame rate is crap, but I had to slow it down. A two second long video was TOO short.

Have you looked into Particle Illusion? The effect your looking for is in one of the libraries for it....

I think Iknow what you are tlking about, but I wanted to do the whole thing from scratch

there are shadows and reflections missing, and the fluid simulation should be much more detailed

Tbh, didn't really notice those.

However, when the cloud is in the distance at the very start... it doesn't look like a cloud at all. More like a solid gel or blob oozing through the air.

It looks great once it gets a lot closer, though, and has had a chance to disperse out.

Are you using one single animation for the whole sequence?

looks good so far!
Was this done in AE?

Looks good to me.

But if you want it to be really Death Eaterish then it should be a.) faster and b.) looser, rather than travelling in a fairly compact unit, try and spray bits of the smoke out like frayed tassels.

It could be a little more weathered. It's too potent at the moment.

Looks good, though.

+1 that it should be faster

I kind of see what steve is saying, too. Maybe play with the death rates a little? Or start the effect earlier, off-comp so that it's already spreading out more when it enters the frame.

it's a little too dark. appears to be darker than the darkest black levels anywhere else in the plate, which throws the composite off.

it's a little too dark. appears to be darker than the darkest black levels anywhere else in the plate, which throws the composite off.

I agree. I thought that too.

Looks pretty cool.