Flock

Flock turns an object into a flock of birds. Every spot of the surface becomes a small bird carrying that spot's colour. As a front passes, the birds hop off, flap their wings and fly away in curving streams, speeding up until they are gone. Reversed, they fly back head first and settle into place as the surface re-forms.

How it works

The birds are real lit 3D shapes, not flat dots, and they always face the way they fly. They can leave out and up, to the left, to the right or straight up. With Disappear off, the default when you keep it on an object, the surface is gone and the birds stay perched where it was, holding the object's shape, fluttering now and then and turning their heads.

Settings

- Birds: how many, 1,400 by default and up to 12,000. - Bird size: bigger birds for a bold silhouette, smaller ones for a dense cloud. - Fly: the direction they leave in. - Speed: how fast they fly away. - Take-off order: which part of the object lifts off first. Top to bottom by default. - Edge colour: the line along the front where the birds take off. - Duration: 3.4 seconds.

Use it for

Nature and freedom themes, a logo that flies apart, a poetic exit for a sculpture, a brand mark that flies home on click. For a whole sky of birds, see the Murmuration effect; for a softer way out, Petal peel.