With a budget of $150 to $200, I'd say a webcam is your best bet. They are compact while also being capable of taking HD images. Plus, you would more than likely have some money leftover to spend on other equipment or LEGO. The Logitech C920 is a great choice.

Another positive to using a webcam for brickfilming is that they are compatible with almost any frame capture program.  Heliumfrog is an older but very useful, free capture software. Also, BoatsAreRockable and Aiwa are both writing their own programs. You can check them out here: Boats Animator,
Heron Animation

Additionally, the BiM Free Software List is a helpful resource.

Last edited by Willow Tree (May 12, 2016 (10:28am))

Actually, all animations I've done to date have been created using an Iphone animation app. I do have an older webcam, so I downloaded Heron Animation to capture frames, but it couldn't export as .mov, so I have just been using the phone.
I would rather purchase a Nikon or Canon camera because I wouldn't have to be plugged into the laptop while I'm animating. I heard that Squid doesn't use an image capture software, so I'm curious how one would turn the pictures into a completed scene. Is there a computer software or something for this? I'm a Mac user.
Thanks for your help guys, and I apologize if I'm not being specific enough.

A couple things,
First; most point and shoot cameras do not have manual settings, so if you're looking at a point and shoot, make sure you do your research first, as manual settings (or an exposure/focus lock toggle) are an absolute must for animation. this is why a web cam or smart phone can sometimes be a better option.
Second; you shouldn't need any software to combine you pictures into a video file, I animate 'blind' (without animation software) all the time, and any decent editing software should be able to import the image files.  Just set your camera to the resolution you want to work with, (usually the smallest resolution that is bigger than you finished video size) then once your done animating, bring the files in to you editing software's timeline. For Windows Movie Maker and iMovie, select all the images, then set the duration and transform to the correct value, and you're good to go, if you need apply effects that only work on a video file, simply export and then re-import.

“But the enterprise in which I’m about to embark on is fraught with imminent peril.”

If you get a DSLR, and animate the traditional way without frame capture software, you will need image sequencing software to play the images at 15fps or whatever framerate you want. You cannot do this simply with iMovie. The shortest you can make a photo in iMovie is like 0.8 seconds, which is 1.25 fps. I use a video editor and compositor called Hitfilm Express, which has a feature which lets you import images as image sequences.

https://hitfilm.com

TwoGuysBrickfilms Youtube Channel

That isn't quite true, what version of iMovie are you using? I just tested with version 10.1.2 (the latest version) and was able to set the duration down to 0.1 sec which gives you 10fps.

that being said, Hitfilm 4 express is certainly a fantastic pice of software for free, and well worth looking into.

“But the enterprise in which I’m about to embark on is fraught with imminent peril.”

Agreed, Jasper. I normally film at 20 to 25 fps, so that wouldn't work. Hitfilm currently seems to be the best option, so I'm looking into that. I really appreciate all your advice.

jesse, a D7100/D7200 is way out of his price range. Also, it's pretty widely accepted (and not just on this website, but by the animation community at large) that Canon is a better brand for stop motion. There are several reasons, you'll find them if you browse around the forums a bit.

Youtube Channel