You can create short animated GIFs with the MEMENTO, perfect for sharing in text chats!
The Fancy Camera CircuitPython program will record a 15 frame, 240x176 pixel GIF* of about two seconds in duration each time you press and release the shutter button.
Be sure the MEMENTO is powered off. The display should be dark and no LED lights visible from the top of the camera.
Place a microSD card into the microSD card slot.
Power on the camera.
Press and release Right button to pick the Mode menu in the lower right of the display (by default it says JPEG).
Press and release the Up button to cycle between modes to get to GIF mode.
The resolution is no longer displayed. That's ok (as GIF making is fixed at 240x176 pixels).
Now, you can frame your shot. Press and release the shutter button to record a two-second GIF animation. The GIF is saved automatically to the SD card.
There is no on-camera preview after you've taken the shot, so you'll need to put the SD card in your computer's SD card reader to view the results.
You can also still use the long-press focus technique to get a nice sharp focus on your subject.
Note: this will be a two-second long GIF, so don’t try to shoot anything too elaborate!
The default GIF is created without effects applied, but you can get creative by picking built-in effects before shooting a GIF.
Press the right button to highlight the effect menu item, by default it is the Normal effect. Press up/down to cycle between the effects:
- Normal image mode (color)
- Invert
- B&W (grayscale)
- Reddish
- Greenish
- Bluish
- Sepia (yellow tones)
- Solarize (invert)
Then, shoot your GIF by pressing the shutter button as usual.
You can also add some NeoPixel lighting to your GIFs if you have the MEMENTO Camera Enclosure kit attached and connected using the short the JST cable (shown above on the left).
Using the four rear buttons in the diamond configuration, press the Right button until LED LV is highlighted, then press Up to pick a pre-set lighting level.
Press the Right button again to highlight LED CLR, then press the Up button to pick a pre-set color.
Here's an example of a weird guy with some magenta lighting that look particularly strange.
Post Processing
You can also use GIF editing tools (online or applications) to further edit your GIFs. Here's an example of creating a looping version of the basketball animation by doubling and re-ordering the frames:
* Pronounced GHIF as in. "Good grief, give me a break, go get some peanut butter for your graphics if you wanna say 'JIF'."
Don't @ me bro.
Page last edited March 26, 2024
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