The Heimdall - Inspired by recent Houdini learning, and norse mythology, I set out to explore the interaction between light and texture with this render. 

Heimdall - "In Norse mythology, Heimdallr is a god who possesses the resounding horn Gjallarhorn, owns the golden-maned horse Gulltoppr, is called the whitest of the gods, has gold teeth, and is the son of Nine Mothers (who may represent personified waves). Heimdallr is attested as possessing foreknowledge, keen eyesight and hearing, and keeps watch for invaders and the onset of Ragnarök while drinking fine mead in his dwelling Himinbjörg, located where the burning rainbow bridge Bifröst meets the sky. Heimdallr is said to be the originator of social classes among humanity and once regained Freyja's treasured possession Brísingamen while doing battle in the shape of a seal with Loki. Heimdallr and Loki are foretold to kill one another during the events of Ragnarök. Heimdallr is additionally referred to as Rig, Hallinskiði, Gullintanni, and Vindlér or Vindhlér." - Wikkipedia 

After Many iterations I settled on a bit of a more turbulent/chaotic dispersion as the velocity decreases, giving the smoke a bit more of a water vapor feel. 

This smoke simulation was created in Cinema 4D using Turbulence FD's Fluid Simulation, and rendered in Redshift. 

Here you can see what the native form of the simulation looks like inside Cinema 4D. In order to make the smoke come out from between the teeth, an emitter was shifted down in Y to line up with the jawline. It was equally important to allow the smoke to envelope the entire skull, so three additional small emitters were employed to create a more art directed look. 

Inspired by the endless walls of skulls and bones in the Paris Catacombs I had the pleasure of exploring in 2017, this wall of skulls was an exploration into using Redshifts Proxy workflow. One mesh was used, and a matrix object was referenced for placement. Environment/volumetric fog was introduced to help give a sense of depth and atmosphere to the rendered image.

Inspired by skull tattoo art, and south america composition, this set of earthy skull renders is the brightest of the bunch. I wanted to push the volume lighting in this scene to better understand how light fills volumes.

I have also been messing around with advection in Houdini.