UI Screenshots

View the screenshots below to see what the settings for this function look like within the Randomill panel.

Overview & Description

Oscillation is the idea of bouncing back and forth between two things over time. For example, a sound wave oscillates between troughs and crests. In this case, Randomill can be used to iterate over multiple objects in a selection and move them by values that bounce between two numbers of your choice.

Example Settings and Result:

For example, lets say you have 10 squares lined up next to each other with the leftmost square being the top object in the layer stack. All squares are at (X, 0). So they differ in horizontal positions, but vertically, their position is 0pts. If you oscillate the Y position of this set of squares from 0pts to 10pts over 3 steps, you would get this result:

Square 01: 0 points vertical movement.
Square 02: 3.333 points vertical movement.
Square 03: 6.666 points vertical movement.
Square 04: 10 points vertical movement.
Square 05: 6.666 points vertical movement.
Square 06: 3.333 points vertical movement.
Square 07: 0 points vertical movement.
Square 08: 3.333 points vertical movement.
Square 09: 6.666 points vertical movement.
Square 10: 10 points vertical movement.

The first square’s position was moved by the From value, and took 3 Steps to get to the To value. Another 3 steps were needed to get back to the From value.

Independently move objects horizontally or vertically.

Since object position consists of an X value and a Y value, you can set different parameters for both axes of position. This can result in some really interesting and complex patterns.

Usage in Adobe Illustrator & Sample Art

Oscillating various properties of objects is great when working with dense, uniform object groups. For instance, a grid of squares can have their positions modified in an oscillatory manner to create really interesting wave like effects. Combined with other Randomill functions like color shifting or scale randomization, the position oscillation function can be a great addition to your creative toolbox.

A dark grey circle with a blue outline in the top-right of a blank square canvas.

Scales (Before)

Functions: Duplication (Grid) + Position (Oscillate) + Stroke Width (Oscillate) + Stroke Color (Blend)

A scale-like pattern of circles that all overlap each other as they move from left to right and downwards through the image.

Scales (After)

This scale-like pattern can be accomplished by duplicating the initial circle into an overlapping grid by setting the horizontal and vertical margins to be negative. Each circle's position can then be oscillated both vertically and horizontally to achieve the wave-like structure of the overall design. Finally, by oscillating the stroke width, and blending the stroke color from dark blue to light blue repeatedly (using the Stroke Color Blend function), you would end up with this final result.

Related Functions