The youtube tutorial linked above focuses on using Flip Fluids and explains how to cache out the simulation so it runs smoother when working in the software. I have decided to follow this tutorial as it is a simple starting point to learn how particle fluids may work, keeping in mind that I want to develop the skill into more intricate fluid particle simulations.
The first step was to place a sphere object into the viewport and select ‘flip fluid from object’ to apply to the sphere. This created the current image I have below
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The following step is to create a ‘ground plane’ so that the particles have something to collide with when playing the simulation. Something I have learnt from creating a ground plane is the difference between the grid object and the plane. The grid object doesn’t automatically have any qualities applied to it, meaning that when I press play, my particles will fall through the ground. Whereas when adding a ground plane, the static collision qualities are already applied, meaning I do not need to add any more to the object.
In the image below I have changed the value of the particle separation from 0.1 to 0.01, which means that when the fluid falls, the particles stay closer together which creates a more natural effect. However, this also slows down the viewport simulation a considerable amount due to having more particles to calculate and cache out.
As this is an experiment, the only thing that needed to be added to this was a background plane and adding a light and camera in order to see it in the render viewport.
First Fluid Render:
Personally this was the simplest simulation to develop, however on thing that needs changing (if I come back to it) would be the values of the background plane, as when the fluid hits the ground it passes through the grid in the background, making the simulation less organic.
When going back into this simulation, the few things I needed to change were simple, and I did not require any assistance to do them, as I have become more acquainted with the tools in the software. I changed the background from a grid to a ground plane collision. This means that the attributes that allow the water to collide are already preset, the only thing I had to change was the positioning, so that it could form a background. I also changed the colour palette in order to see the fluid clearer on the simulation. I turned the water slightly bluer, and the ground white. Once I added a distant light, these colours were much more visible.
Second Fluid Experiment:
Frames Rendered: 140
Render Time: 48 hours