GIF (graphics interchange format) images contain a series of bitmaps which are shown one after another in a serial order giving an illusion of animation. We have recently published an article on the free online GIFPAL service using which you can create your own GIF animations easily. But if you are overwhelmed with the huge array of options in the GIFPAL, then you might want to use Psykogif. Psykogif is another free online service using which you can create GIF animations of pictures taken using your webcam.
You must have a webcam attached to your computer before you can create animated GIF images using Psykogif. Psykogif is an Adobe Flash application that runs inside your web browser. When you visit the Psykogif website, it would ask you to allow access to your webcam. You should allow the access, select to remember the settings and then click on the Close button as shown in the picture below :
After this just start taking snapshots of yourself, your friend or anything you want by clicking on the camera button under the photo frame in Psykogif. You should take more than one snapshots from your webcam. You can take upto a maximum of six snapshots. Then you can click on the play button to have a preview of the animated GIF. You can remove any snapshot by clicking on the cross in its top corner. If you want to start all over again, then just click on the bin icon on the left.
Finally, you can save your animation by clicking on the Save Offline or the Save Online button on the right side. The offline button allows you to download and save the GIF image to your computer. Using the online button you can save the animation online in the Psykogif galleries.
Psykogif is a quick and easy to use online GIF creation tool. Anybody who has a webcam can use it to create GIF animations which are great to share with friends or to be used as avtar images in online forums. So if you want to have some fun creating your own GIF animations, then you can visit the Psykogif site at http://www.psykogif.com/.