Stop Motion Videos and Animations

Stop motion is a filmmaking and animation technique that actually predates movies. Single frames or photos are combined in series to create a moving picture. It’s the same concept as traditional filmmaking, except rather than capturing 24 or 30 images per second like a video, stop motion captures anywhere from 1 to 12 frames per second.

Modern stop motion is primarily used in animated films or for short videos on social media and YouTube. One of the most popular use cases are animated cooking and recipe videos, where viewers can see food cooked in front of their eyes like an animated film. Other popular categories include stop motion animated videos with lego toys, stop motion timelapses of clouds or buildings, and stop motion fashion videos.

Stop motion only requires the use of a camera, a subject to film, and a lot of patience. In this scenario, it is better to use a stills camera over a video camera, and you will have more control of each individual image. Stills cameras also have better remote triggers to take photos in case the camera is in a tough to reach position. You can make stop motion videos on your phone or with any type of camera, from hobbyist to professional. Place your subject where it should start in the video, then take a photo. Slightly move your subject, then take another photo. Repeat this process until the subject completes the move you want it to make. The more photos of smaller movements, the better looking your stop motion video will be.

The look of a stop motion video all depends on the subject and the motion. Stop motion can look creepy when subjects don’t properly move from one position to the next. There can be an unnatural movement between frames, or there might be too few photos in between movements that make the movement feel scary. Good stop motion uses a lot of subtle movement with a camera that doesn’t move or shake. Any unnecessary movement can ruin the illusion and make the video feel creepy.

There are quite a few different types of stop motion. One of the oldest is shadow puppet stop motion, which would later evolve and inspire the use of claymation and modular puppets. For character drive stop motion, other popular formats use paper cut outs, lego, toys, and action figures. You can also use human subjects in stop motion, which is often used in advertisements and commercials shot in a top down manner. For stop motion videos without characters, common subjects include food, clothing, arts and craft supplies, drawings, and cash money.