rriggs Posted October 26, 2008 Posted October 26, 2008 (edited) Inspired by the couple of great tutorials on the forum, I downloaded SMA and had a got at a short simple Lego animation. I need to work on the speed the minifigs move and the lighting but I am quite happy with this clip as a first try. I am in the process of coming up with a longer story for my next one! Any other criticism or advise always gratefully received! The clip (7 seconds only) is here: Lego Animation Clip Cheers Rog Edited October 26, 2008 by rriggs Quote
bub166 Posted October 26, 2008 Posted October 26, 2008 It is pretty cool, but like you said, it is a little fast. I had to watch it twice to see what was going on. But it was smooth, and if it was slower, might even be pretty funny. Quote
Skinny Boy Posted October 26, 2008 Posted October 26, 2008 Wow! A lot can happen in 7 seconds. What camera are you using? I can't seem to get SMA to connect to any of mine. Quote
Captain Zuloo Posted October 26, 2008 Posted October 26, 2008 Wow! A lot can happen in 7 seconds. What camera are you using? I can't seem to get SMA to connect to any of mine. Try clicking on options, then source then choose your camera from the dropdown menu. Be sure to plug in the camera before opening SMA. I'm glad my tutorials could be of use. But, if you wait a little while, there will be tutorials for editing and special effects. So work out the speed issue - see the walking at 15fps tutorial, and then we'll teach you how to make your movie really sing. Quote
rriggs Posted October 26, 2008 Author Posted October 26, 2008 (edited) I really do appreciate the tutorials. I would probably never even tried this had it not been for them. I will be looking out for the next instalments! In the meantime, do you know of any editing software or techniques that you can use to slow down a clip you have already made? I recorded my short clip at 15fps but would interested in having a play about with different frame speeds. Is there anyway of just changing the frame speed on an axisting clip - Say to 10fps? I know it will get jerkier but I would like to see how much. As for my camera, I use a really cheap (you can tell from the quality of the clip!) webcam that I found in a cupboard last week. Looks like a Logitech ball webcam but has no badges or names on it. XP just detected it and installed a generic driver. SMA worked with it straight away. If I get really hooked on this (very likely ) I will invest in a better camera! Cheers Rog Edited October 26, 2008 by rriggs Quote
Captain Zuloo Posted October 26, 2008 Posted October 26, 2008 Well you proabaly will get hooked. However, I would recommend reshooting the whole scene again at 15fps and moving the characters more slowly. I find it nothing short of annoying to watch a really jerky stop-motion film. So no, there is no software to slow down video that will do the job. But I'm glad you appreciate the tutorials! Quote
SupremeCommmanderGrievous Posted October 27, 2008 Posted October 27, 2008 Very nice, although I agree it needs to be slowed down a bit, although your animation is nice, what FPS did you film at? Quote
rriggs Posted October 27, 2008 Author Posted October 27, 2008 Very nice, although I agree it needs to be slowed down a bit, although your animation is nice, what FPS did you film at? 15fps. I'm going to redo it and try and slow it down a bit. I (hopefully!) have a day off on Thursday so will give it a go then. Watch this space! Cheers Rog Quote
rriggs Posted November 22, 2008 Author Posted November 22, 2008 It took me longer than I expected but this is my first weekend off since getting my new webcam and sorting out the lighting and I have just finished my second attempt at Lego animation. Same basic story (advance apologies to the Lego policeman in question! ) but with some additional characters to go with the better webcam and better lighting. I have also worked hard on the speed of the animation and it seems to be an improvement overall. Still a couple of little errors that I need to practice on but I guess that's part of the fun! http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=jYhWHdIUx5U Criticism and comments always gratefully received! Cheers Rog Quote
djo Posted November 22, 2008 Posted November 22, 2008 the speed is better in the second video. quite smooth. i saw hand picking something in the movie. the story idea is not bad for short movie. silent movie. Quote
rriggs Posted November 22, 2008 Author Posted November 22, 2008 the speed is better in the second video.quite smooth. Thank you! i saw hand picking something in the movie. That was one of my little mistakes. Just downloading some editing software to remove that frame silent movie. I'm trying to get just one thing right at a time.... Cheers Rog Quote
Captain Zuloo Posted November 23, 2008 Posted November 23, 2008 Well done! And don't worry about audio, tutorials on that are coming soon... Just one piece of advice, in order to get rid of that flickering, wear dark clothes and return to the exact same position each frame. Quote
ShaddowCroc Posted November 23, 2008 Posted November 23, 2008 That was pretty cool. I like how you were able to give the illusion of something happening, without it really happening. (Like the trash man going inside the dump truck.) Quote
Eskallon Posted November 23, 2008 Posted November 23, 2008 cool animation however everything happened a bit too fast but once3 you perfect that all should be great Quote
Dennimator Posted November 23, 2008 Posted November 23, 2008 Your movie looks very good for a second try! The cars move in perfect speed, but the minifigs are moving a little too fast. Also, the ambulance´s side windows reflected your movements, so as Captain Zuloo said, try to wear dark clothes and return to the same position each time you take a picture. That hand can easily be removed, as you said. It may be hard to learn how to put audio in the movie, but you can learn that and a lot of other things here, on www.brickfilms.com . There are a lot of useful tutorials of (almost) everything you need to know. Quote
rriggs Posted November 23, 2008 Author Posted November 23, 2008 (edited) Thanks for the feedback guys. I did try hard to eliminate the flickering but got carried away on a lot of the frames hitting the capture button before sitting right back in my chair. Also, the hand thing was just stupid! Lesson learned though! Any recommendation for software for editing movies? Cheers Rog Edited November 23, 2008 by rriggs Quote
Captain Zuloo Posted November 23, 2008 Posted November 23, 2008 Hmmm. Software for editing... There are many programs out there, it just depends on how much you want to spend. I use Sony Vegas Movie Studio (great program because it has special effects such as chroma keying inbuilt), but that can exceed $120 AUD. There are heaps out there only a Google search away, butI would highly recommend Vegas. Quote
Skinny Boy Posted November 23, 2008 Posted November 23, 2008 That was one great video. You should think about sending that to TLC, as an advertisement for the city sets and the SW sets :pir-skull: Great job Quote
rriggs Posted November 23, 2008 Author Posted November 23, 2008 (edited) Hmmm. Software for editing...There are many programs out there, it just depends on how much you want to spend. I use Sony Vegas Movie Studio (great program because it has special effects such as chroma keying inbuilt), but that can exceed $120 AUD. There are heaps out there only a Google search away, butI would highly recommend Vegas. Just dowloaded MS Movie Maker to get started with (I like the price ) and have added a title screen and "The End" plus I've removed my hand. Now I've got something to edit my next goal is to sort out the lighting once and for all and to try different camera angles. And, thanks Dennimator for the link to the Brickfilms site! Cheers Rog Edited November 23, 2008 by rriggs Quote
Dennimator Posted November 23, 2008 Posted November 23, 2008 And, thanks Dennimator for the link to the Brickfilms site! You´re welcome! Quote
WhiteHexagon Posted November 28, 2008 Posted November 28, 2008 cool, very inspirational. Makes me want to go out and buy a camera! I've seen plenty of brick movies before, but never really thought it was that easy to get into, and it's nice seeing your learning curve and fast progression. You seem to have a natural talent though because even your first 7s shot seemed to have a good amount of story line! well done! Quote
KimT Posted November 28, 2008 Posted November 28, 2008 Great work. I like the long version the best. Especially the dump truck emptying the trashbin is a hilarious part. Quote
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