A look at the principles behind getting a strong, snappy act of violence into your stop motion animation.
Please see my other tutorials on how to make a puppet, as well as other stop motion subjects.
Software: Dragonframe. iStopmotion (Mac only) is a good frame-capturing app for the price. I understand MonkeyJam is a good free option for Windows. If you have a favorite stop motion app, please tell us about it in the comments.
Camera: This is my first tutorial using a DSLR. I could finally afford one. But if you're not there yet, a good option is a camcorder that can run a live video signal to your computer. For best results, set the camcorder to fully manual to prevent focus and white balance flicker.
Shopping for Puppet-Making:
Clay (Van Aken, Sculpy III), armature wire, cotton batting to build up puppet: Arts/craft store like Hobby Lobby or amazon.com. Last time I was at Michael’s Craft Store, they carried CraftSmart plasticine clay. I have found this brand to crack more than Van Aken while animating.
Armature kit: stopmotionstore.com
Puppet clothes (Barbie/Ken clothes: Toy store, ebay, amazon.com
16-gauge aluminum armature wire (from an art store or Amazon, not the hardware store)
Epoxy putty (Hardware store)
Pre-wrap (Sporting good or drug store)
Cotton batting or foam (quilting supplies from craft or sewing store)
For the head, aluminum foil or wood ball (craft store)
Just about everything here can be found on Amazon if you don't have all these kinds of stores in your area. You can also get animation supplies from stopmotionstore.com.
