Best Way To Shoot Stop Motion On Hd100? at DVinfo.net

Scott Harper · March 26th, 2007, 02:19 AM

I have to shoot some stop motion and was wondering if anyone knows how best to accomplish frame by frame shooting with the HD100? I believe DV Rack is only available for PC's and I have a non-Intel Mac powerbook.

Fabrice Hoffmann · March 26th, 2007, 06:01 AM

I use this software with dv camera :
http://www.istopmotion.com

But the pro/HD version is overpriced, and i don't know if it can handle hdv.

Joshua Frye · March 26th, 2007, 07:52 AM

I've been longing to do stopmotion as well. In HD. That software seems WAY to costly to do simple stopmotion. Theres got to be an effective way of doing this that isnt $350+....

Greg Boston · March 26th, 2007, 07:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joshua Frye

I've been longing to do stopmotion as well. In HD. That software seems WAY to costly to do simple stopmotion. Theres got to be an effective way of doing this that isnt $350+....

Yes there is. It's called a digital still camera. You'll get HD resolution, and you'll be able to do 1 frame at a time.

-gb-

Joshua Frye · March 26th, 2007, 08:02 AM

I've done that before and achieved superior results. I'm just wondering how it would be possible economically using an HD100 (just like the original poster).

Joshua Clarke · March 26th, 2007, 09:33 AM

A very cheap and dubious solution I once used on a project in film school, albeit with an Arriflex M 16mm, was to shoot in short bursts and trim the clips down to single frames in my NLE.

Jack Walker · March 26th, 2007, 11:35 AM

DV Rack does stop motion. And from what I can tell it also does stop motion for HDV. However, contacting them or users should give you information on the exact format and cameras supported.

Scott Harper · March 26th, 2007, 11:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jack Walker

DV Rack does stop motion. And from what I can tell it also does stop motion for HDV. However, contacting them or users should give you information on the exact format and cameras supported.

The problem with DV Rack is it isn't supported with non-intel macs.

Tim Dashwood · March 26th, 2007, 01:54 PM

I use my Nikon D70 for stop motion because I can do very long exposures per frame. The Nikon Capture software lets you set the interval, iris, shutter, etc., and capture directly to a Mac/PC laptop.

Stephan Ahonen · March 26th, 2007, 02:34 PM

Thirded for using a DSLR.

1) It's smaller, so you can fit into those tiny miniature sets.
2) Better lenses. Primes instead of zooms. You can even use macro lenses that get you right into the tiniest details of your miniatures.
3) Better picture control. Instead of having to deal with the shutter speeds the video camera gives you and have to use noisy gain for light sensitivity and compromise on iris for exposure, set your DSLR at 100 ISO for clean pictures, set aperture for depth of field and use shutter for exposure.

Use the right tool for the job instead of trying to deal with tools intended for other applications. IIRC, Corpse Bride was shot on a Canon 20D. I also saw an interesting bit on the special effects for "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" where they did the minecart scenes by rolling a small SLR film camera through a miniature mine tunnel.

Sean Adair · March 26th, 2007, 07:15 PM

forthed ?! for DSLR
actually one of mine is on the front page here:
http://alwayshd.com/
(empire state building time lapse)
The other option using your camera, which is practical for shorter time between exposures is simply shooting normaly in 24p, then speeding up the footage by an even integer. What is nice at night is to shoot at the slowest exposure, then toss all the duplicated frames (eg at 1/6sec then speed up 400%)
I notice our Philip Bloom has a few timelapse examples on this site too....

Brian Duke · March 26th, 2007, 07:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tim Dashwood

I use my Nikon D70 for stop motion because I can do very long exposures per frame. The Nikon Capture software lets you set the interval, iris, shutter, etc., and capture directly to a Mac/PC laptop.

Tim,

How do you deal with matching stuff with the HD100 footage if you used special files like your bleachbypass.

PS, I sent you an email. Been trying to figure out how to upload the footage for you. Duke

Scott Harper · March 26th, 2007, 08:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tim Dashwood

I use my Nikon D70 for stop motion because I can do very long exposures per frame. The Nikon Capture software lets you set the interval, iris, shutter, etc., and capture directly to a Mac/PC laptop.

Okay I've tried the D70 route with Nikon Capture 4 then imported a test sequence in FCP but each shot lasts for 10 seconds, which is obviously too long. How do I shorten all 120 shots to the right length without changing each ones duration one at a time? There must be an easier way than this!

Craig Parkes · March 26th, 2007, 08:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scott Harper

Okay I've tried the D70 route with Nikon Capture 4 then imported a test sequence in FCP but each shot lasts for 10 seconds, which is obviously too long. How do I shorten all 120 shots to the right length without changing each ones duration one at a time? There must be an easier way than this!

There's a setting in FCP that determines the length of imported picture files. I can't remember where exactly it is as I'm not at my FCP computer at the moment, but it's definitely there.

Sean Adair · March 26th, 2007, 09:11 PM

DSLR workflow:
Don't use FCP! Use Aftereffects, and import them together as a series. Each picture is one frame.

March 26th, 2007, 02:19 AM	#1
Scott Harper Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Vancouver BC Posts: 119	Best Way To Shoot Stop Motion On Hd100? I have to shoot some stop motion and was wondering if anyone knows how best to accomplish frame by frame shooting with the HD100? I believe DV Rack is only available for PC's and I have a non-Intel Mac powerbook. Last edited by Scott Harper; March 26th, 2007 at 02:49 AM.

March 26th, 2007, 09:33 AM	#6
Joshua Clarke Regular Crew Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Philadelphia, PA Posts: 88	A very cheap and dubious solution I once used on a project in film school, albeit with an Arriflex M 16mm, was to shoot in short bursts and trim the clips down to single frames in my NLE. __________________ Section 1 Films

March 26th, 2007, 01:54 PM	#9
Tim Dashwood Wrangler Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Toronto, ON, Canada Posts: 3,637	I use my Nikon D70 for stop motion because I can do very long exposures per frame. The Nikon Capture software lets you set the interval, iris, shutter, etc., and capture directly to a Mac/PC laptop. __________________ Tim Dashwood

March 26th, 2007, 07:15 PM	#11
Sean Adair Major Player Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: New York, NY Posts: 463	forthed ?! for DSLR actually one of mine is on the front page here: http://alwayshd.com/ (empire state building time lapse) The other option using your camera, which is practical for shorter time between exposures is simply shooting normaly in 24p, then speeding up the footage by an even integer. What is nice at night is to shoot at the slowest exposure, then toss all the duplicated frames (eg at 1/6sec then speed up 400%) I notice our Philip Bloom has a few timelapse examples on this site too.... __________________ Sean Adair - NYC - www.adairproductions.com JVC GY-HM-700 with 17x5 lens, MacPro 3.2ghz 8-core, 18gb. (JVC HD200 4 sale soon)

March 26th, 2007, 09:11 PM	#15
Sean Adair Major Player Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: New York, NY Posts: 463	DSLR workflow: Don't use FCP! Use Aftereffects, and import them together as a series. Each picture is one frame. __________________ Sean Adair - NYC - www.adairproductions.com JVC GY-HM-700 with 17x5 lens, MacPro 3.2ghz 8-core, 18gb. (JVC HD200 4 sale soon)

March 26th, 2007, 06:01 AM	#2
Fabrice Hoffmann Regular Crew Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Grenoble - France / Figueres - Spain Posts: 61	I use this software with dv camera : http://www.istopmotion.com But the pro/HD version is overpriced, and i don't know if it can handle hdv.

March 26th, 2007, 07:52 AM	#3
Joshua Frye New Boot Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Johnson City Tenn. Posts: 15	I've been longing to do stopmotion as well. In HD. That software seems WAY to costly to do simple stopmotion. Theres got to be an effective way of doing this that isnt $350+....

March 26th, 2007, 08:02 AM	#5
Joshua Frye New Boot Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Johnson City Tenn. Posts: 15	I've done that before and achieved superior results. I'm just wondering how it would be possible economically using an HD100 (just like the original poster).

March 26th, 2007, 11:35 AM	#7
Jack Walker Trustee Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Burbank Posts: 1,811	DV Rack does stop motion. And from what I can tell it also does stop motion for HDV. However, contacting them or users should give you information on the exact format and cameras supported.

March 26th, 2007, 02:34 PM	#10
Stephan Ahonen Major Player Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 512	Thirded for using a DSLR. 1) It's smaller, so you can fit into those tiny miniature sets. 2) Better lenses. Primes instead of zooms. You can even use macro lenses that get you right into the tiniest details of your miniatures. 3) Better picture control. Instead of having to deal with the shutter speeds the video camera gives you and have to use noisy gain for light sensitivity and compromise on iris for exposure, set your DSLR at 100 ISO for clean pictures, set aperture for depth of field and use shutter for exposure. Use the right tool for the job instead of trying to deal with tools intended for other applications. IIRC, Corpse Bride was shot on a Canon 20D. I also saw an interesting bit on the special effects for "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" where they did the minecart scenes by rolling a small SLR film camera through a miniature mine tunnel.