How Do I Make Reaction-Diffusion Patterns Without TouchDesigner?
Open BeamTracer Performer, add WATER and choose DIFFUSION. Select STRIPES, start with DOTS or TEXT, then choose PATTERN ONLY and set two colors. The pattern grows as it plays. You can render an MP4 or WebM in the browser without building a TouchDesigner node network.
The first ten seconds show a dense field grown from dots. The second shot starts from FLOW. Both use Stripes; changing the seed changes the arrangement. These are silent previews of native BeamTracer renders.
Hi, I'm Trina with BeamTracer.com. Those winding paths you see in reaction-diffusion tutorials have a useful property: they keep developing after the starting shape has appeared. A word can become a maze, or a regular dot grid can lose its symmetry. That makes this a useful background for a music video, projection or title sequence.
How do I make the full-frame gold pattern?
Use WATER → DIFFUSION with STRIPES and a small DOTS seed. A dense starting grid gives the growth more places to begin. Let the circles develop into connected paths before choosing the section to render.
- Open BeamTracer Performer and open FX Rack.
- Choose your visualizer or load a video under VISUAL SOURCE.
- Add WATER and set STYLE to DIFFUSION.
- Expand PATTERN and select STRIPES.
- Expand SEED, select DOTS, set SEED SIZE to 0.035 and SEED AMOUNT to 0.80.
- Expand PATTERN OUTPUT, select PATTERN ONLY, and set LOW COLOR to
#06151dand HIGH COLOR to#f6ca75. - Open RENDER, choose MP4 · H.264 or WEBM · VP9, render a short range and choose SAVE VIDEO.
Stripes, Dots, Seed Size 0.035 and Seed Amount 0.80. Feed Offset and Kill Offset stay at 0; Reset is Off. This study shows seconds 8 to 18 of the growth, rendered at 1080p and 30 FPS.
SEED SIZE changes the spacing of the dots as well as their size. Small values put more starting points across the frame. Increase it for fewer, more isolated groups. SEED AMOUNT changes the seed's strength. Keep the other settings fixed while comparing those controls so you can see what each contributes.
Give the pattern time
The first frame is the starting condition. Let the pattern grow before judging the result. When using RENDER A SHORT RANGE, earlier frames prepare the effect history, so a later start can show an established field.
How do I grow the pattern from a word?
Choose SEED FROM → TEXT and enter a word in SEED TEXT. The letters supply the starting shape, then the pattern develops around and through them. Use a short word if you want viewers to recognize it before it changes.
Text: FLOW, Stripes, Seed Size 0.30 and Seed Amount 0.65. Low Color #15102a, High Color #6bead0, Pattern Only. The clip begins at the word and keeps the growth continuous.
SEED TEXT accepts up to 24 characters. SEED SIZE changes the word's footprint. A longer phrase will be harder to read as the growth fills its counters and joins neighboring letters, so save full sentences for a separate text layer.
For a logo, use SEED FROM → PICTURE with light artwork on a dark background. SEED THRESHOLD chooses which bright regions become seeds. Start with a clean silhouette; fine lettering can merge into the surrounding growth. If the artwork is dark on a light background, place INVERT before WATER.
How do I get a less regular arrangement?
Choose ORGANIC under SEED FROM to begin with scattered shapes. Keep STRIPES for winding connected paths, then give the field time to spread. The result develops from uneven starting points instead of the repeating dot layout.
Organic seed, Stripes, Feed Offset 0, Kill Offset 0 and the same dark teal/gold colors. This later eight-second study follows the field after 18 seconds of growth.
The other PATTERN choices are SPOTS, CORAL and ORIGINAL. Change the pattern before adjusting FEED OFFSET or KILL OFFSET. Those offsets affect how the growth develops; a small change can produce a different balance between isolated areas and connected paths.
If the field fades
Extreme Feed Offset or Kill Offset settings can make the pattern disappear. Return both to 0, then change SEED VERSION to restart from a fresh seed. Use MIX 0 when you need to inspect the untreated input.
How do I put the pattern over footage or restart it on a beat?
Choose PICTURE + PATTERN under PATTERN OUTPUT, then adjust PATTERN BLEND. This keeps the video visible beneath the colored growth. PATTERN ONLY fills the output with the field; PICTURE returns to the picture treatment.
Under SEED → RESET, OFF lets the field develop. ON HIT restarts it when you trigger WATER's HIT. ON BEAT restarts on detected beats. Frequent resets favor young seeds; leave Reset Off when you want an established maze to keep moving. Start Play audio or load your own track when using beat resets.
For a title background, choose colors with enough separation for the pattern, then place the lettering where the movement will not compete with it. Keep a slower, uninterrupted version as well as a reset-driven one. They serve different moments in a performance.
What is the shortcut compared with a TouchDesigner tutorial?
BeamTracer puts pattern selection, seed authoring, colors and rendering in the FX Rack. You can try those decisions directly while the field plays. It covers this pattern workflow; it does not expose TouchDesigner's general node network or every feedback variation a creator might build.
For a reference, noones img's Reaction-diffusion in 20 seconds demonstrates a compact TouchDesigner route and variations of a dense winding field. The Derivative tutorial listing links that lesson. The examples here use BeamTracer's own seed and pattern controls, with different colors and starting shapes.
The FX Rack image-effects guide covers the remaining seed options. Open Performer and grow a pattern →