qStopMotion
qstopmotion.org
What it is
qStopMotion is a free application for making stop-motion movies from pictures captured with a camera or imported from a hard drive. Projects are organized into scenes, takes, and individual frames. When a camera supports it, the application can show a live picture; earlier pictures can be overlaid to help track movement between frames. It can capture pictures from webcams, digital cameras, and cameras, and import frames made outside the program. Finished projects can be exported as video clips with selectable formats and frame rates. The manual describes opening frames in GIMP to add effects, with saved changes detected automatically. On Linux, supported SLR cameras can be controlled through gphoto2. qStopMotion is available for Linux, macOS, and Windows. Linux packages are listed for Debian, Ubuntu LTS, Fedora, CentOS, and RaspberryOS; Windows downloads include a 64-bit installer and portable ZIP application. The software is licensed under the GNU General Public License. The site says it is under development and carries no warranty to the extent permitted by law.
Spec sheet
- Purpose
- qStopMotion creates stop-motion animation movies from pictures imported from a camera or a hard drive.Read 1 Oct 2026 · qstopmotion.org
- Privacy
- The website privacy policy says personal-data processing follows the GDPR and applicable country-specific data-protection rules.Read 1 Oct 2026 · qstopmotion.org
- License
- The software is licensed under the GNU General Public License.Read 1 Oct 2026 · qstopmotion.org
- Camera control
- On Linux, qStopMotion uses the gphoto2 standard interface to control supported SLR cameras.Read 1 Oct 2026 · qstopmotion.org
- Camera pipeline
- qStopMotion uses GStreamer to buffer camera images and FFmpeg to generate video clips.Read 1 Oct 2026 · qstopmotion.org
- Capture devices
- It can capture pictures from webcams, digital cameras and cameras.Read 1 Oct 2026 · qstopmotion.org
- Dependencies
- Building on Linux requires Qt 5.2.1 or newer, video4linux2, gphoto2, FFmpeg and guvcview.Read 1 Oct 2026 · qstopmotion.org
- GIMP integration
- The manual describes launching GIMP to add effects to frames, with qStopMotion detecting saved changes automatically.Read 1 Oct 2026 · qstopmotion.org
- Image import
- Existing frames captured without qStopMotion can be imported into a stop-motion project.Read 1 Oct 2026 · qstopmotion.org
- Linux packages
- Download packages are listed for Debian, Ubuntu LTS, Fedora, CentOS and RaspberryOS.Read 1 Oct 2026 · qstopmotion.org
- Live view
- The application can display the camera’s live picture when the camera supports it.Read 1 Oct 2026 · qstopmotion.org
- Onion skinning
- The live picture can overlay previous pictures as a shade to track movement between settings.Read 1 Oct 2026 · qstopmotion.org
- Project structure
- Projects are organized into scenes, takes and individual frames.Read 1 Oct 2026 · qstopmotion.org
- Video export
- Projects can be exported as video clips with selectable video formats and frame rates.Read 1 Oct 2026 · qstopmotion.org
- Warranty
- The site states that qStopMotion is under development and comes with no warranty to the extent permitted by law.Read 1 Oct 2026 · qstopmotion.org
- Windows formats
- Windows downloads include a 64-bit installer and a 64-bit portable ZIP application.Read 1 Oct 2026 · qstopmotion.org
Plans and prices
qStopMotion Free free application · open source · no warranty Read 1 Oct 2026 · qstopmotion.org
Strong points and limits
Strong points
- Projects are organized into scenes, takes, and frames.
- Can import images captured outside the application.
- Exports video clips with selectable formats and frame rates.
- Saved GIMP changes are detected automatically.
- Available for Linux, macOS, and Windows.
Limits
- Live view depends on camera support.
- Linux builds require several listed dependencies.
- The site states the software carries no warranty.
Who it suits
qStopMotion suits people creating frame-by-frame animations who want camera capture, imported images, and video export. It may also suit Linux users working with supported SLR cameras.
Verdict
qStopMotion provides a structured workflow from capturing or importing frames to exporting video. Its development status and no-warranty notice are worth noting before use.
Where Specifiction places it
- Stop Motion Software#18 of 297.6
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