TURN YOUR RASPBERRY PI INTO A STOP-MOTION MOVIE STUDIO

1. CONNECT THE CAMERA MODULE

Hooking up the Camera module requires the correct cable for your Raspberry Pi computer. For Model A and B boards, the standard cable that ships with the Camera module is adequate. However, for the Pi Zero, a narrower cable is needed. Slot the cable into the port with the shiny side facing away from the Ethernet port (or facing up on the Pi Zero).

2. ENABLE THE CAMERA MODULE

When you boot your Pi, you need to enable the camera. On the desktop, do this via “Menu > Preferences > Raspberry Pi Configuration.” Select “Interfaces,” then select the “Enabled” button for the camera, then click “OK.” Alternatively, open a terminal and use the raspi-config app. Select “Interfacing Options,” then “Camera.” Choose “Enable,” then “OK.” Restart.

3. CONNECT A SHUTTER BUTTON

The complicated part of this project isn’t all that tough, really. If you want to use the PiCam script, you need a shutter—an on-off (dual-state) plunger button connected to the Raspberry Pi at pins 6 and 11. Once connected to the GPIO, and with the script running, the button takes a single shot from the camera on each press.

4. START SHOOTING FRAMES

It’s one thing to just plunge the button to make your movie, another to get the shots right. With the camera securely placed, and the characters and background in place, begin the tiring job of taking shot after shot to build the scene. Find safe shortcuts. Repeat shots wherever possible, and use as few characters, props, and other elements as possible.

5. CREATE A MOVIE WITH AVCONV

The completed movie appears as a collection of stills in the destination folder. A flick-book effect can be enjoyed by scrolling through the photos in your file manager’s preview panel. Using avconv to convert the photos into a movie is simple, but time-consuming for longer projects. Be sure to set the right FPS to get the best results first time.

6. ADD AUDIO WITH YOUTUBE

Stop-motion animation is sound-free by default. While it might be fun to let the movie play out in total silence, you have a few options to add sound. One is to load the finished video into a movie-editing app and add some custom audio with a mic. The other is to add music to the audio in YouTube when you upload it, using its Creator Studio.