Stop-Motion Puppet Sculpting: A Manual of Foam Injection, Build-Up, and Finishing Techniques

I am getting into stop motion and like bought this book for some pointers. However it is very specific to materials and technique and I needed something broader. I wouldn't make the investment in materials for what is practically professional quality animation. I did find the book well written, clear and well illustrated ( Kindle edition) ; perhaps a little too brief. I certainly don't regret purchasing it.

This book is pricey but the information it contains is very hard to get elsewhere. Its for a person who wants to make professional level figures for stop motion animation, maybe advanced hobbyists who are pretty serious about it.There are three major sections to the book:1. how to to sculpting of figures in clays2. How to take these clay sculptures and turn them into foam injected puppets3. How to do the foam build up method over an armature to create a puppet.This is a fifty dollar investment so I will give you more about these things.Parts 1 and 2 are all about sculpting a clay figure then casting a plaster mold around it. Once that mold is done you put the armature in and cast the foam into it. This whole process is pretty involved and you have to take care of a lot of details. But, if you get this all down you will create some amazing puppets. I tried this whole process but could never get it right. That's my failing not the book. I ended up moving on to the process in section 3....In section 3 you create an armature then build up pieces of foam around it. This makes the musculature and shape of the figure. Then you coat it with materials and latex rubber to give it a skin. I did all this and successfully created my puppet (2 foot dragon)So, The book is good, shows the processes but you have got to be serious about the making of animation puppets.

This is an older book but one of the best

So bad. Bad quality images and no real info you can’t learn from googling stop motion animation! Waste of trees.

good

I would probably be more forgiving if this book were less than half the price it is, but since this is nearly a $50 investment I have slightly higher expectations.As an earlier reviewer noted, this book is 74 pages in length (including an index and glossary). If it weren't bound, this book could have been stapled together. I don't have a problem with a short book if it is packed with unique, focused insight into a topic, but unfortunately in my opinion this book only achieves this on a shallow level.This is a book focusing on a specialized technique by an industry professional. I would expect it to contain a wealth of insight reinforced by a number of examples outlining different levels of complexity and various challenges facing foam puppet builders. Instead this book offers one simplistic example of sculpting a figure on a wire armature. It then takes the reader through a single example of the steps to create a foam injection puppet and an example of the foam build up technique. In about 25 pages the author covers sculpting, mold making, foam mixing, injecting, baking, removing the cast and painting. It feels more like an instruction pamphlet than a resource on the topic. I would have liked to see multiple examples illustrating varying levels of complexity. How would the author have dealt with a 4-legged puppet?After reading this book (in about an evening) I'm left with many basic questions, such as materials appropriate or to be avoided in armatures for foam injection, issues surrounding undercuts in puppet sculptures, poses puppet sculptures need to be in for an injection mold, and there's practically nothing on feet anchors, a topic I believe there must be enough information out there to fill a few pages. I also completely agree with a complaint from a previous reviewer. Most of the illustrative photos in the book are low resolution, pixilated and muddy. Nowhere near the quality of the beautiful colour photo on the cover. In my opinion there is no excuse for this in a published book, especially at this price.For the price of this book you could get a number of books focused on various aspects touched on in this book. For mold making I recommend The Prop Builder's Molding & Casting Handbook, by Thurston James ($13.59). I also recommend Stop Motion: Craft Skills for Model Animation (Focal Press Visual Effects and Animation) by Susannah Shaw ($23.07 )which looks at foam injection puppets (in almost as much depth) plus other puppet building techniques along with information on lighting, animation and set building, for less than half of this book's price.Also, a word of warning for those of us who thought we could create foam injection puppets at home. The author states that standard ovens in our kitchen don't generate a consistent enough heat and special curing ovens that have fans to circulate heat are required to bake foam. He also notes that curing foam releases toxic fumes, something you probably don't want in your kitchen. So homemade foam injection puppets seem to be out of the question.

This product was delivered extremely fast. The book is amazing

This book has one of the best explainations of the foam build up technique for puppet fabrication that I have seen. Lots of photos and a good section on material suppliers. The book also covers the foam injection method in the same detail with lots of photos. If you are building stop motion puppets, this book is a must for your collection.