Stop-Motion Animation

Stop-motion animation is simply the act of creating a scene or character and taking lots of different photos of this scene or actor. However, in each different photo there should be a slight movement. For example, to move a character's hand you would take pictures of each different stage of the hand moving as opposed to just the start and finish result. Once you have taken all your pictures and created your story or scene, you then have to play all the different photos in quick succession of eachother or in a continuous flow (depending on whether you want a continuous animation or just a short scene). This then stimulates the brain and causes you to remember the last image and track the movement from that last image. Which in turn tricks you to believe that the image is actually moving. The more images you use the greater the animation should be, as there will be less gaps between each sequence and the movement should be smoother.

There are different methods or (in other words) different materials that one can use to create a stop-motion animation. Some examples of how one could create one is by using the method of:

 

Clay animation (or Claymation) - This (as you can probably work out) is using clay to create figurines or background sets to create an animation in the ways described above. 'Wallace and Gromit' is a prime example of how effective Claymation stop-motion can be.

Silhouette Animation - This is the use of character's or background's Silhouettes or shadows. One way you could do this is to use: a light, opaque card cut-outs and transparent paper and create an animation using the techniques described in the first paragraph of this post. 'The Magic Horse' is a prime example of how effective Silhouette stop-motion animation can be.

     

Puppet animation - This again is just a variation of materials used. This is the use of puppets to create a scene/story. The 'Fantastic Mr Fox' is a prime example of how effective Puppet made stop-motion animation can be.

 





These methods listed above are but a few of the many examples of creating a stop-motion animation. Effectively these are just the gateway in which one can step into and create an animation. MAAC (2013) states: "The limitless possibilities of using models and settings are dependent on the animator’s imagination. If your idea is good, then the medium is just a platform to give it a visual presentation." What the organisation MAAC is effectively stating here is: The creator has the control. There are countless ways or methods/mediums to use to create a successful and working animation, but how you do it, is completely down to your vision, inventive mind and imagination.

Some Advantages of Stop-Motion Animation: 

• Encourages Creativity.
• Encourages one to use their imagination.
• (In a simplified way), It could be implemented within learning inside schools as an activity. 
• Reasonably easy thing to do; although at the same time, can be extremely difficult to do well!! 
• Can be fun to create or watch.
• Creates Life.
• Attracts attention.

Some Disadvantages of Stop-Motion Animation

• Can take a long time to create, depending on the methods you use.
• Need the right equipment.
• It can distract from the main point of the activity or presentation etc.
• Can be hard to do well
• Can be costly if you want to do it well.

References:

Maya Acadamy of Advanced cinematics. (2013). Stop Motion Animation: Another Approach to Animation. Available: http://www.maacindia.com/blog/index.php/stop-motion-animation-another-approach-to-animation/. Last accessed 16/10/2014.