Keywords: photographs, movement, flipbooks

References: Lomographic cameras, FlipBook at the American Museum of the Moving Image, Edward Muybridge

Date: November - December 2003

PHYSICAL COMPUTING

Motionpics

Description: a standing camera with a button to take the pictures, an infrared sensor to detect the presence of the users and a blinking red LED.

Aim: inspired by multiple lenses lomographic cameras, the aim was to capture the movement of people in front of the camera, to relieve the tension that cameras create in people being taken pictures and to surprise them with unexpected events. It is meant to be a fun experience.

Target: all kinds of people, especially entertaining for children. It could be part of a museum installation.

Materials: a cardboard box, an Sharp GP2Y0A02YK Infrared Ranger, an iSight webcam, a red jumbo LED, a red toggle switch, a metal stand, circuitry, a Macintosh computer.

Technology: BasicX-24 microcontroller and Director with the PhysicalBits Xtra for serial communication.

Physical interface: a blue box mounted on a stand and facing the user holds a red button (switch) that triggers the camera/program, a webcam that takes the stills, an infrared sensor that detects the distance of the user to the box and a red LED to provide visual feedback to the user. The circuit is hidden inside of the box, and the breadboard is hooked up serially to a computer next to the stand.

Operation: pressing the red button on the box, the computer beeps and the LED blinks indicating the user that the picture is going to be taken. Four stills are taken in less than a second and displayed on a stage created by Director. When the person stands very close to the camera, a mooing cow sound is played. This event surprises the user and changes his expression and attitude towards the picture, and also, when stills are printed out on the screen the fourth still displayed is a close up of a cow. Additionally, the message 'Are you feeling blue today?' is randomly displayed and stills appeared tinted.