Xbox Kinect ...

Today we discovered how kinect is part of our stop frame project. They are both forms of animation and thus are linked. Kinetic motion can be used to animate objects or people within games like they do on the Xbox.


We were asked to venture down to the studio and were presented with a tv, xbox, a kinetic sensor and a variety of games that we were to try out. We were given the freedom to pick and play the games we wanted to so we could see for ourselves how kinetic motion can be used for animation. We also discovered how kinect can be used in everyday life, Jobs and Education.

Whilst we experimented with some of the games we had available, we recorded the session on a flip camcorder to document everything we had done in the time we had. These recordings are presented below so you can get an insight into how the session went:

Microsoft Kinect navigates the universe.

Xbox Kinect in the hospital operating room

Control your 3D application with Kinect

Mary Poppins Based Studio Stop Frame Experiment ...

I like how this stop frame has come out. It is and individual idea similar to the first video i researched, in that it involves a person laying down with a fabric background. I do think though that it can be improved with audio being added to it perhaps and maybe a bit more planning on the composition of each individual frame to make it more realistic and flow better.

Stop Motion Experiment 1.wmv

This is the outcome of one of my stop motion experiments. I like how the video shows the action/ motion of leaves being chucked up into the air. However, i do believe this video can be improved or made better by trying to show towards the end the leaves falling back to the ground again.

Editing In Final Cut Pro . . .

In order to edit your images into a video you need to open final cut pro as shown below:

You now need to import your images into final cut pro so that you can begin editing them into a video. To do so click on File --> Import --> Folder

You will be presented with this window where you need to find the folder containing your images. Once you find it select the folder and click choose as shown below:

Your images will now be imported into final cut pro and listed as shown below. Now in order to edit them they needed to dragged onto the timeline. To do this you need to highlight all the images you want to use and drag them onto the time line.

Once you have done this you will want to edit the duration of each clip so that the stop frame video runs smoothly. The quickest way you can do this is to highlight all the images on your timeline, hold the shift key on your keyboard and right click on the timeline. It will bring up a little pop up menu as show below in which you will need to select 'Duration'.

You will be presented with a window as shown below. This is where you need to change the duration of your clips. Once you have the desired time click on 'OK' and this will then change the duration of each image. 

If you need to rotate your footage to a portrait perspective then you will first need to merge all your images into one clip. To do so you need to highlight all your images on the timeline, as done so before, and then select Sequence --> Nest Item(s) ... as shown below:

This will then bring up this window in which you need to just click 'OK'. This will then merge all the clips into one.

No onto rotating the video. To do so you need to first click on the little [ ] button which will bring up a small drop down menu in which you will need to click on wireframe as shown below:

Now you can resize and rotate the video as you wish ...

Once your happy with the outcome you need to select the [ ] buttn again and select 'Image'.

If you now have a red line on your timeline you will need to Render All. To do so select Sequence 

First off you need to import your images taken. 

To do this you need to select Sequence --> Render All --> Both ... as shown above.

Studio Stop Motion Contact Sheet

Today we worked in the studio, creating a stop frame video with props and fabrics. As a group we came up with the idea of a person from the group floating in the air like 'Mary Poppins' with a suitcase. We then developed the idea onto it getting gusty and her belongings falling out of the suitcase. 

In total, it took us 46 shots to capture the whole scenario. We will now go onto putting the shots together to create a video next week. Claudia, from our group, kindly volunteered to be 'Mary' and wore red cloth around her neck like a scarf and had an umbrella and a carry case as props.

For the shoot we used the following pieces of equipment:

1. Canon 5D

2. Cambo camera stand

3. Soft box wafers / striplight wafer

4. Sync lead

5. Bowens Radio triggers

6. Bowens 500w lighting

7. Canon 24-105mm zoom lens

here come the guns

This, i believe, is a very clever idea. It is definitely do-able, however, it is an extremely time consuming project. If i had a few weeks extra to create this i would probably attempt it but under the circumstances and time left to complete the project, it isn't a possibility.

M&M stop motion

I think this is the most do-able video for me as it is quite a simple idea. Although it will be very time consuming to do this, as it is something i can do almost anywhere it will definitely be a consideration for my final stop motion video.

Domino Stop Motion

I love this video, it is very creative and do-able if you have a large amount of dominoes at hand. I wouldn't be able to use dominoes in this type of stop motion but i will look into possibly creating a stop motion using other objects such as skittles or coins etc.

Stop Motion Sand Sculpture

 

I liked how this stop motion showed the process of something being made. However, it isn't a possibility for me to make a stop motion of this scale as it very time consuming and i don't believe it will be viable to attempt something of this scale just yet.