Assignment #7 - Stop Motion

My Stop Motion Animation

Stop Motion from Sajia Rahman on Vimeo.

In order to create the stop motion video, I took a total of 178 pictures. There was two videos I was really inspired by, the Candy Stop Animation, and the Whiteboard stop animation. After doing some research, I decided I would use the whiteboard animation as an inspiration since I really liked that idea the most. In order to carry out this project, I use a big whiteboard which I already had at home. I went and bought some whiteboard markers and candies. I set the whiteboard on the floor, and had a stool to support my arms while I took one picture after another from a birds-eye view. I also used a lamp to project some light, since I found that the light helped place focus on the drawings, and since I took the pictures during night time, the light helped brighten the area. Next, I started to draw bit by bit the image I wanted to create. Once I was done, I followed the steps in class, and used Windows Live Movie Maker and re-organized my images. For most of the images, I had to work backwards. Meaning I drew the final image first, and then slowly started erasing the image. When I re-organized my images, I changed the position of the pictures.

One very valuable thing I learned during this project was patience. I didn’t realize it takes a lot of patience, time and creativity to create a really good stop motion video. In the end, I really wish I took more time in adding for pictures or creating a storyline but since I did my stop motion without planning a storyline ahead of time, I couldn’t really think of anything on the spot. I also wish I had a camera stand because I think it would have made a big difference and would have prevented my camera from moving a lot. Besides, the previous difficulties, I didn’t really encounter any problems. I needed to keep my arms stable to the best of my ability so I used a stool, however since I was taking the images alone, I found it a bit hard to stop in between each shot. However, I still liked my end result. It looked cool to see how many images put together could create video, and this made me appreciate even more the people who create stop animation videos. I definitely think I will be making another one soon, and this time I can make a few adjustments and learn from my mistakes. My stop motion video is 21 seconds long with a 0.09 second transition between each shot.

Assignment #7 - Part 1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgHHoeoDoVw&feature=related

I really liked this stop motion animation in particular because of the simplicity of the video. The way inanimate objects appear to be moving really fascinates me. Looking at various stop motion animation, I realize that I want to create a stop motion video using a simple background and different types of candies like Smarties, Skittles and M&Ms. I'm also interested in possibly using a whiteboard and markers along with the candies to create a video. Another element that I really liked about the video, was the music that the person used in his/her stop motion video. By choosing the right song, a certain mood was created, so I hope to do the same in my video. As  for a general idea for my own stop motion video, I am not completely sure, however I think I would like to incorporate the theme of peace at the end of my video.

Assignment #6 - Panoramic Photography

Panoramic 1 



I took this image at the Angrignon station while I was waiting at my bus stop 109. I took 23 pictures in total. I found it interesting how Photoshop Elements was able to stitch all the pictures together and form this Panoramic Image. There were many buses and people moving around so I was slightly hesitant at first that my final image wouldn't turn out nicely. My nodal point, as I mentioned above was my bus stop 109, and I made sure to stay perfectly still as I could, while moving the camera horizontally from left to right. 

Panoramic 2 

This image was taken at the Westmount Square during class time. I took 45 images in total and my nodal point (access point) was a couple of feet away in front of the building in the image. Instead of moving horizontally, I moved my camera vertically from the bottom to top. I really like how the image turned out because the building looks like it's towering above you. 

Steps: 1

1) I made sure to set my lens at wide angle. 

2) I started with an ISO of 200, at wide angle and played with the ISO setting depending on where I was taking the images. 

3) I focused on staying as still as I could and making sure I was at a nodal point. (access point)

Steps: 2-Stitching My Panoramic 

1) I uploaded my images from my camera onto my USB key ahead of class time.

2) During class time, I created a new folder on Desktop and named it "Source Files".

3) I then, copy/pasted the photos from my USB key to my "Source Files" folder. Since all my images were in the right order and weren't up side down, I didn't need to edit any of the images. 

4) I opened Photoshop Elements (PSE) and clicked File, New, and Photomerge Panorama. 

5) I then selected "Auto" under "Layout" in the pop-up window.

6) Next, I selected "Browse", Desktop and clicked "Source Files". By clicking the first image and holding the "shift" key and then selecting the last image, I was able to import all my images. 

7) Then Photoshop created my Panoramic Image. 

8) I fixed up the Panoramic Images, by using PSE and then saved the images onto my USB key.

9) I then upload the two Panoramic Images onto my blog. I thought that I would have to upload my pictures the long way by using Picasa, but I was able to upload them directly from my USB!