Make an Object Float in Claymation

In claymation movies, characters often, for example, throw a ball or jump in the air. If each frame must be shot individually with slight movements between pictures, how do the clay models float in the air? One method is to "green-screen" an object in during editing, but that may feel a bit like "cheating", because you are not making the movie frame-by-frame. This article will show you how to be able to use strings to suspend an object and then airbrush them out afterward.

Steps

  1. Take a picture of only the background you want to use. Do not move the camera or alter the lighting! If the camera does move, you will either have to retake the pictures or risk having an obviously doctored final result.
  2. Place the object that you want to appear to float in the shot. To make it float, you can place it on a block, suspend it from strings, etc. Take another picture.
  3. Download an advanced Create Custom Gift Wrap Using Photo Editing Software such as Adobe PhotoShop, Paint.NET, or GIMP and start it up. (Photoshop is professional software, but costs hundreds of dollars; Paint.NET and GIMP are free and powerful enough for most non-commercial work.)
    Download Paint.NET here: http://getpaint.net
    Download GIMP 2.6 here: http://www.gimp.org/downloads/.
    Download a free Photoshop trial here: http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop/family/. Click on any version and then click on the free trial button.

GIMP

  1. Open your background as a layer by clicking File and then Open as layer... Locate your picture and open it.
  2. Open your second picture also by clicking File and then Open as Layer... Opening pictures as layers in GIMP allows you to set the transparency of an image to see through to the image on the layer below it.
  3. Apply a mask by right-clicking anywhere on the picture, hovering over Layers, hovering over Masks, and clicking Apply Layer Mask. If not already selected, click the radio bubble next to White and click Add. A layer mask allows you to set the transparency of areas of a layer.
  4. You will automatically begin editing the layer mask. If, for some reason you don't, right click anywhere on the image, hover over Layers, hover over Masks, and click on Edit Mask. Paint over the block, string, or whatever you used to suspend the object. Make sure to use black, as this will make the image transparent.
  5. Merge the layers. Right-click anywhere on the picture, hover over Layers, and click Merge Down. Until now, the image that you saw was actually two images, one on top of the other. Now that you have merged it, you can save it as one image.
  6. Save Work if Your Hard Drive Is Full. Click File (in the top-left corner), Save As..., and export your picture. You can then save it as a JPEG under your desired file name.
  7. If you are making a movie, make many of these pictures while moving the block or strings slightly each time. It will take a lot of editing, but it will be worth it!

Adobe Photoshop

  1. Select File > Open or File > Browse in Bridge and open your background image.
  2. Select File > Place and select your intended foreground image.
  3. Press Enter on your keyboard to Accept the placement of the new image into your photo.
  4. Create a new layer mask and open the foreground image.
  5. Now paint with black ink onto your layer mask, and the background image will show through!
  6. Erase the strings, block, or whatever you used to suspend the object by simply painting over whatever you please.

Other Software

  1. Make sure that your software supports layers and transparency.
  2. Open up your background first, and then your foreground. Make sure that they have been opened as layers and that your background is actually set as the background layer.
  3. Set the transparency of the areas of the foreground that you do not want to appear in the final result. For example, the block or the strings.
  4. Merge the layers, if necessary, and save the result!
  5. If you have iMovie turn on advanced tools in Preferences, select your green screened object, then your background. Magic!

Tips

  • Between pictures, make sure that the camera does not move and the Choose Lighting for a Small Production does not change!
  • Relax. Making an entire movie like this takes patience.
  • If you plan on having a lot of different frames of the same object floating (like if you wanted to show someone jumping) you should take all the pictures you will need first, then edit them all together later.

Things You'll Need

  • A clay figure (or any object that you want to suspend)
  • Strings, a block, or anything that will hold an object in the air
  • A digital camera
  • Photo editing software

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