Hi Guys,
Its been a long time coming but finally it's here. We have launched our new stop motion animation website called StopMotionCentral.com
It has expanded from our old site to cover not only brickfilms or legomation (LEGO Animations) but also clay animation ( claymation ), 3D animation and 2D animation.
We have extended our free trial stop motion aimation software listings also.
We have more stop motion animation tutorials and more reviews of stop motion software.
Back soon.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
If you are a first-time animator, or are just starting out, this book is a good place to start. It provides a good overview of the animation process, with plenty of pictures and examples. It covers equipment, lighting, techniques, models, sets, and performance. It also covers the history of animation. In depth. In great depth. In fact, about one-third of the book is dedicated to the history of animation. That's all well and good, but I was really wanting (and expecting) quite a bit more in some of the other areas. For example, the section on models and model making gives several examples of Aardman models, and briefly describes the processes involved in making them. Although there are many helpful hints in these pages, I would have liked an in-depth description for at least one of the models. I want to know what tools I need, what supplies I need, and step-by-step instructions for building a simple model with a wireframe skeleton. Unfortunately, the pages that described that were replaced by 50 pages of history. If you are interested in animation, and need a place to start, 'Creating 3d Animation' is great for beginners. On the other hand, if you are looking for answers to the many problems that face 3d animators, you may be disappointed.
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Stop Motion Animation Site now up!
I have just finished a website for stop motion animation fans called http://www.StopMotionCentral.com/ Click here to visit it..
On the site we also have a good tutorial section for those new to this hobby. We review stop motion animation software packages that are out there to help you to choose the one that is right for you. This site is to promote the making of these short animations. The good thing about animating with Lego characters is that they are ready to use..you don't have to make characters out of clay or fiber glass..no armatures needed. Also if you have any Lego lying around you have a ready made set. We hope you enjoy it and come back regularly to check out new videos and features on the site.
The legomation charts shown on the site on the left panel are a good place to start if you want to get a good idea what this is all about. Don't be intimidated by the experienced legomation chart entries. These guys are good but they got this good with practice. It would not take anyone long to get up to speed. We will give some tips and tricks on how to easily animate your Lego men or bricks in the tutorial section.
On the site we also have a good tutorial section for those new to this hobby. We review stop motion animation software packages that are out there to help you to choose the one that is right for you. This site is to promote the making of these short animations. The good thing about animating with Lego characters is that they are ready to use..you don't have to make characters out of clay or fiber glass..no armatures needed. Also if you have any Lego lying around you have a ready made set. We hope you enjoy it and come back regularly to check out new videos and features on the site.
The legomation charts shown on the site on the left panel are a good place to start if you want to get a good idea what this is all about. Don't be intimidated by the experienced legomation chart entries. These guys are good but they got this good with practice. It would not take anyone long to get up to speed. We will give some tips and tricks on how to easily animate your Lego men or bricks in the tutorial section.
Legomation A Definition
Commonly, brickfilms are made using stop motion animation techniques, but other forms of film production are also used, such as computer-generated imagery, Macromedia Flash, or live action. Brickfilms also usually use the art of MOC (My Own Creation) development, giving each film a different feel depending on individual building styles.
For brickfilm makers, the most common approach is to use a minifigure as an actor against a set or a backdrop made from bricks. While limited in their range of movement and expression, many brickfilm makers still manage to get a wide variety of emotions from their mini Lego actors. Some films, such as Marc Beurteaux's "Robota" and David Pagano's "Little Guys!" are unique in that the characters featured are not minifigures but are in fact larger models made out of bricks.
Commonly, brickfilms are made using stop motion animation techniques, but other forms of film production are also used, such as computer-generated imagery, Macromedia Flash, or live action. Brickfilms also usually use the art of MOC (My Own Creation) development, giving each film a different feel depending on individual building styles.
For brickfilm makers, the most common approach is to use a minifigure as an actor against a set or a backdrop made from bricks. While limited in their range of movement and expression, many brickfilm makers still manage to get a wide variety of emotions from their mini Lego actors. Some films, such as Marc Beurteaux's "Robota" and David Pagano's "Little Guys!" are unique in that the characters featured are not minifigures but are in fact larger models made out of bricks.
Here you can see a simple animation set I made for testing my stop motion skills ! (lol) This is a simple set I use for quick animations. I have two webcams in this shot one Logitech Pro 5000 and a New logitech Quickcam Pro for notebooks. You really need a manual zoom for stop motion animation which the Pro 5000 has. But the Notebook Pro version shown here has a very good glass "Zeiss" lens so I like to use it. It does have digital zoom which you can use from its software control on your PC. I don't have a light in this set as it's near a south facing window with plenty of light. And as I don't use this set for longer animations I don't have to worry about the light changing over time.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Stop Motion Animation Blog
My first blog..blog virgin! Everyone else is doin' it so why shouldn't I?
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