What Equipment do I need for Stop Motion Animation with iKITMovie? 

A PC Running Windows XP or Vista or Windows 7 or 8

  with either a

USB Webcamera

or

A Digital Still Camera

or

A Camcorder

Networked Environments such as school networks must use Folder redirection ( contact support for details)

Click on any of the subjects above to get more detail..

A PC with Windows XP/Vista/7/8  is needed for iKITMovie?

 Windows XP or Vista or Windows 7 or Windows 8 ( Standard 32 Bit or 64 Bit )

2.33 GHz  or higher CPU ( main processor chip )         ( how to check your PC specifications )

2 GB + meg    RAM   ( Memory )

20 Gig hard drive space   ( Storage )

Microsoft Directx 9.0c or more recent.

128mb video memory

Screen Reolution 1024x768 recommended

Latest Service Pack for your operating system.

What  Cameras - Click here

How do I use a Webcam with iKITMovie?

Using a webcam is an easy way to make stop motion animation with iKITMovie. Simply plug in your Webcam and you can start making movies immediately.

 Advantages of using a Webcam are

• Inexpensive

• Can easily fit into sets near to your characters

• Directly attached to your PC so a live view is seen instantly in iKITMovie

• Onionskinning can be used because the image is live

 Read here to find out more information about using a webcam with iKIT.

Some advice on webcams

• Use a good quality webcam.

• Cheap webcams will give poor results and make for unsatisfying animation.

• Steady your webcam using sticky tack or a cradle made from toy bricks.

• Always install the drivers software that comes with your webcam.

How do I use a Digital Still camera with iKITMovie?

Firstly you take all the snapshots for your project and then you import the images in to iKITMovie.

Digital Still Cameras can connect to PC's but only to allow the transfer of images from the camera to the computer.

NOTE -  Digital Still cameras do NOT supply a "live" image when conneted to your PC...as you would see when connecting a webcam.

Those that do not connect directly to a PC will have SD ( Memory cards ) that allow the transfer of the images to the PC.

To use a Digital still camera you must first take the snapshots you wish to animate as JPEG's (all modern digital still cameras can take jpegs's)and then copy them to your computer. Then you can import the captured images into iKITMovie.

iKITMovie 1.7 or above will automatically resize your images when you import them to whatever size you choose. When importing the images you should choose 640x480 or 800x600 or 960x720. iKIT will prompt you for this information in list format during import.

When you start a new project you will be given the option to "Import Images" as shown below.

You can import images at the beginning of a new project by choosing the "Import Images" option.

You will then be asked to choose the image size. A drop down menu will prompt you for the sizes available.

Or you can import images while in the project at any time.  You can also import them to any point in the time line ..ie.

at the end of the current sequence of images ..before the currently select image etc.

 99% of Camcorders will have an output port for sending its video signal and playback images (from tape etc) to a TV screen.

We can use this feature to connect it to a PC's USB port..

However you will need an

Adaptor

to connect the cables from your Camcorder to a USB port on your PC.

Once connected to your PC you can use iKITMovie to make stop motion animation.

  There are a number of such adaptors available on the market. We have tested the most inexpensive and popular model from EZCAP 116 as shown below.

 They are available to purchase on Amazon/ Ebay and some local hifi stores.