Time Lapse Photography, Cameras and Software
High Speed Movie How to With Camcorders, Webcams and Still Cameras
Oct 8, 2009
Sped-up movies of blooming flowers and clouds flying across the sky, are easy to make with today's cameras. They can be created
- automatically by many video camcorders
- automatically by some still cameras
- manually by all still cameras
- automatically by all webcams
All that is needed is a camera, a tripod and the right software.
How Time Lapse Photography Works
Time lapse photography speeds up motion by recording at slow speed.
Video plays at:
- 24 fps (frames or photos per second) in the cinema theater.
- 30 fps on American NTSC analog TV.
- 25 fps on PAL analog TV.
- Various frame rates from 10 to 30 fps, on digital cameras and camcorders.
By taking photos at a slow rate and playing them back at normal speed, the recorded events are sped up:
- Taking one photo every second and playing it back at 24 fps, compresses 24 seconds into 1 second, and creates a 24 times speed up.
- Taking one photo every minute and playing it back at 24 fps, compresses 24 minutes into 1 second (speed up = 24 x 60 = 1,440x).
- Taking one photo every hour and playing it back at 24 fps, compresses 24 hours into 1 second (speed up = 24 x 60 x 60 = 86,400x).
- Taking one photo every day and playing it back at 24 fps, compresses 24 days into 1 second, or one year into 15 seconds (speed up = 24 x 60 x 60 x 24 = 2,073,600x).
Time Lapse Photography on Video Camcorders
Time lapse photography with a camcorder is the easiest way to make time lapse movies because the camcorder generates a standard movie file (AVI or MPEG format). A camcorder with an "interval recording" feature is needed. Many can record for a few seconds, not just one frame, after a delay of a few minutes or hours.
Time Lapse Photography with a Still Camera
For still cameras, the time lapse function is called an intervalometer. It is available in advanced digital SLRs, and less commonly in compact cameras. It is often used with a remote control, with the intervalometer being in the remote control and not the camera.
Digital SLRs have a mechanical shutter. Their rated lifespan is typically 50,000 to 100,000 frames. As hundreds or thousands of frames are taken for each time lapse movie, the shutter can be quickly worn out. This makes using digital SLRs for time lapse photography an expensive proposition.
If an intervalometer function is not available, the shutter release can be tripped manually. A kitchen timer can be used to time the delays. Though tedious, it can be done. It's a cheap way to experiment with time lapse photography, before spending money on a time lapse camera.
To make the final movie, the JPEG photo file needs to be converted to a AVI or MPEG movie file. An Internet search can be made ("convert JPEG to MPEG") to find suitable software.
Time Lapse Photography with a Web Camera
Using a webcam is another way to make time lapse movies. Microsoft's Webcam Timershot for Windows is free, as is Gawker for Mac OS X.
Timershot takes multiple JPEG photos, just like a still camera. They must be stitched together to make an MPEG file using other software. The default Timershot setting is to overwrite the original photo. To take multiple photos, the "Save a new copy of this file every time a picture is taken" option has to be selected.
Gawker creates movies directly from the Apple iSight webcam, so no conversion is required.
DIY Home Time Lapse Photography for Fun
Time lapse photography is fun and dramatic, capable of turning a simple car ride through the city into a stunning special effects shot. With digital cameras, the "film" is free. All that is needed is time and effort to experiment.
The most dramatic time lapse sequences are those that span days, months or years. Unfortunately this means that the camera will be tied up for that length of time. Having a second camera dedicated for time lapse photography is one way to solve this problem.
 |
