Kids + Clay + Camera = Awesome

Last week I shared the girls time lapse photography project, with the Smiley, Melty Snowman. It was so much fun watching the ice men slowly melt on screen. It literally would not have been possible without our super awesome Hue Animation Studios Stop Motion Camera. As I said last week, we won the camera through a giveaway on Red Ted Art last fall. This camera was easy to set up and simple to use. It is designed so that kids can make their own movies...and mine did!

The kit comes with the camera, which is on the end of a flexible arm that can either be plugged directly into your computer's USB port or can be plugged into the weighted base. The kit also includes a USB cord, a set up disk and a user manual. We also checked out Hue Animation's website for tips and tricks, very helpful. Once we loaded the camera onto our laptop the girls got down to creating the story boards for their movies.

I realized that we would need a background for our movies. I made ours from a scrap piece of foam board. 

I cut one side of the paper on the foam board. This leaves the other side attached and allows the board to bend. I then created an arm taped to the back of the board. 

With the characters made, it was time to set up the opening scene. We started with incredibly basic films. I think the girls did an amazing job. This is the movie my 5 (almost 6) year old made.

The bottom line is that the girls loved making these movies. Every step along the way was educational. The girls had to plan, write, draw, use their imaginations and then have the patience to record their movies. The plans are already in the works for their next movies. They are really starting to understand the potential of this camera. Thanks Red Ted Art and Hue Animation.