What are /r/timelapse's favorite Products & Services?

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Is it possible to make this your profession? How hard is it to get started?

Does your location matter? (ie Being in Australia I may have access to excellent night skies but not many clients).

What would a lapser charge for footage? would it be a $/minute of footage, or flat rate per project?

Favourite lens? is the 16-35 wide enough?

and finally, how the hell do you handle flicker? I've been trying out Magic Lantern for the past few months trying to get a smooth day to night transition using its built in bulb ramping, but it's still really hard to get that smooth transition. Do you do it in post-production? LRTimelapse? Manually? MSUDeflicker? little bramper? It's seriously the most difficult thing I've come across and it doesn't seem like there's a decent solution. https://vimeo.com/45783281 was my first attempt since getting my stage one dolly a few weeks ago, and while it did OK, I feel it could have still been smoother.

Thanks!

All images of this time-lapse have been taken with a fixed camera on a tripod. Orion was slowly setting, as plainly shown here.

The idea of this time-lapse is to shift each images to maintain the stars in the center on the initial frame, at the center of each frame i.e. the entire movie. Because the stars did not go through the same region of the lens over time, the deformation of the lens are put into evidence.

An interesting side effect is to reveal 4 geo-stationnary satellites that appear as straight lines on the celestial equator. These would also have been revealed by tracking the stars with an equatorial mount, but the lens deformation would not have shown.

Equipment: Canon 5D MkII, Canon 16-35 F/2.8L, TC-80N3

Tools used: php, bash, imagemagik, normcrosscorr, StarStaX, Time Lapse Assembler.

Not sure what device you're on. For Android, I ended up using "Automate"

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.llamalab.automate

It's not the easiest thing to use, but I needed some additional scheduling type stuff (ie: take a photo every 30 seconds between the hours of 7am and 7pm).

Try Astro or Radian.

This was shot in sRAW just to test out the script that the ML developer has created - it worked really well compared to the version that wasn't run through the script (https://vimeo.com/48991947). Now that I have (or the ML developer has) figured out the technical part I can get to work making more lapses :D

Not that I'm aware of.

You can use Time-Lapse Tool, but it does not support RAW files. And if you are shooting RAW, you should probably consider investing in at least Lightroom and LRTimelapse, which is really the best way to process TL sequences. You can get away with using VSDC Video Editor for editing rendered video from LRTimelapse without the need for Premiere or After Effects, but there are no free TL rendering apps out there that I've ever heard of that support RAW.

Here is my latest one. All the shots in this were on nearly full moon nights. I used the same 15 second exposure on each shot, before during and after it was up because I like being able to identify constellations, different stars and planets, etc.
I up shorter ones like test shots here on youtube somewhat regularly, too.

I bought this one on Amazon. It’s pretty versatile. Turns any kinda way. It holds my iPhone 11 in an otter box so that’s Selfie Stick Tripod, UBeesize 51" Extendable Tripod Stand with Bluetooth Remote for iPhone & Android Phone, Heavy Duty Aluminum, Lightweight https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07NWC3L95/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_ND6RF0VJZ9REFVDEBDAF?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

https://onedrive.live.com/?cid=E37AB5EC27B9F28B&id=E37AB5EC27B9F28B%211039&parId=root&o=OneUp

Here is an attempt at fixing the colours and exposure via photoshop and straightening out the horizon...not sure why it is so blurry whenever i upload to anywhere

What is the theme here? Calling it a film implies that there is a story to be told. Otherwise, it's just a montage of pretty imagery.

That said, they're really good looking. I'm a fan of the wide color range in the sunset stuff.

I made this one last year with a consistent theme: https://vimeo.com/77232595

It was filmed over several months in my free time. Some of the locations took an additional visit to get it right. Go out without all of your gear and scout some locations. Then come back and shoot.

Yeah, do everything you can to avoid camera shake. (like kicking the tripod)

Try something like Panolapse to slowly pan the frame from L-to-R or R-to-L or even a slow zoom (Ken Burns style).

I also like to fade-in from black at the beginning and fade-out to black at the end.

Here's my latest timelapse: https://vimeo.com/97786919

• Virtually no camera shake; smooth thruout.
• Slow slide from right to left and left to right.
• Fade to/from black at the beginning and end

The only thing I could have fixed on this was using manual settings to avoid flicker when the lighting changed. Also, I could have used a de-flicker tool in post-production, but it wouldn't have fixed the sky getting blown out when there was cloud cover.

I'm still a noob when it comes to reddit, now there's a link included!

The samples I've used are from a blog called "beachfrontbroll", which you can find through this link: http://www.beachfrontbroll.com/ I recommend anyone who's into video production or photography to take a look on the blog! I also used a few clips from a timelapse video called "Tempus fugit", which you can watch through following link: https://vimeo.com/80210235 I've included 3 timelapse videos of my own in it as well, you'll notice which ones by the bad quality! ;)

My very first timelapse was on a train bridge looking at a city. Its what got me into shooting them. I had to trigger the camera with a cable release, 16mm. No, I'm not that old, it was a class on shooting 16mm in the '90's.

Shooting from bridges, you usually get to see the bridge move. With stone towers though, guess you're not getting any motion. Do trains go over? Here in NYC, most of the bridges take trains.. and wow do they move!

If you do this again (please do this again), you can get a clamp so you don't have to deal with those tripod legs. Here's one.

The pattern of wind on the water, combined with the shadows from the clouds is very unique. Love seeing the boats. Such a wonderful city. I was there when I was 13, and remember the botanical garden next to the opera house.

Thanks again for posting this.

Hello, maybe you would like to check out a time-lapse app called Velocity Lapse that I just launched into early access on Google Play. It does indeed save each image individually so maybe it would work for you.

If you try it, please let me know your feedback. Thank you :)

Thanks, here's the vary first one I made. Saved in wrong format, and jacked up the exposure so all the clouds are blown out.

I learned a lot from it, I'll make one today if I get some interesting clouds or something going on around the house.

Any suggestions on subjects?

Hi there, I recently completed a time/hyperlapse of London. You can see it here: https://vimeo.com/91869269 You defiantly need a tripod, in terms of post processing, definitely buy Final Cut Pro X(for the actual film making. You'll also need Lightroom to enhance any photos and if you are planning a hyperlapse you must have Adobe After Affects for the stabilising. I leave about 8 seconds between shots for a hyperlapse, simply to prepare for the shot. Again I'm no expert but these are the basics.

The primary difference is Rasberry is an actual computer so it can do quite a bit more by itself whereas arduino by itself is just a microcontroller which is essentially a programmable chip that only runs whatever you program it to do.

This website has a good comparison: http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/arduino-vs-raspberry-pi-which-is-the-mini-computer-for-you/

I used LRTimelapse to help create my first two videos. I really enjoyed using it and have no complaints. I used it in conjunction with Lightroom and then brought each sequence in to Premier Pro to make the final video. I'm pretty sure there is a free version of LRtimelapse that you can download to check it out before you purchase the full version.

• https://vimeo.com/74327358
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=grAz87CdefI

That's pretty cool! I supported Astro when it was on Kickstarter but they haven't delivered yet... Reportedly shipping soon though. I might get a Michron in the meantime :)

I built my own for under $300 (I'm a HS student too) I'm going to do a build diary and an indiegogo for the controller pretty soon. Its a little clunkier than the DP one but it works fantastically

https://vimeo.com/48121021

If you're interested in doing one I could do some early consulting. Even sell you one of my beta controllers if you want.

Make sure your camera is set fully manual. Turn off autofocus and image stabilization as those will cause the image to shake. If the aperture on your camera only closes when a photo is taken, you might end up with some minor flicker which can usually be fixed in post. Setting the aperture wide open may reduce the flicker.

As said before, never use auto exposure as the exposure will be different every time.

For changes in light a useful tool for Canon DSLRs is Magic Lantern, which supports bulb ramping. Using a low-contrast setting (I recommend Technicolor Cinestyle) can be useful for bringing out detail in lower-lit areas in which you would normally use detail (If you are shooting RAW this will make little difference) with small changes in lighting.

Thanks!

Back then (this is in 2010 - 2011) it was a 7D with one of those Canon remote clickers. Nothing fancy, just a camera on a tripod. Lenses include the Canon 50mm f1.4 and a Canon 10-22mm EFS lens.

I backed the kickstarter of this thing some time ago, should be coming out soon. Not necessarily because of the rotation, mostly for it's exposure ramping.

Which camera did you use? The 5mp or 8mp one? You should try Vdub, if you are on Linux maybe try and see if it works under wine. You have a lot of compression artifacts.

Take a look at virtualdub and the plug-in deshaker.

Google that program and plug-in + timelapse and you'll find plenty of tutorials. Plus, it all free.

Thanks for the response! fantastic answers to all of the above. I'd ask how to get sponsored by DP, but i'm sure the answer is 'keep releasing good videos' :)

Unclicking the lens from the body, is that pressing the lens release button and rotating it a little so it's not locked in? i'm unfamiliar with the technique.

I've had some success with https://vimeo.com/26083323 technique for removing flicker, it sounds very similar to what you do.

Oh here's another one: Sony Vegas? Premiere pro? what's the favourite editing software for you? I like vegas because it's cheaper/easy but premiere has been growing on me.

Also, where do you source your music?

Thanks again!

Shot with a Sony a6000 + Sony SEL50F18, using the timelapse app of the camera itself (for the curious, settings were one shot each 3 seconds, f/5.6, can't remember the shutter speed, sorry).

Music is Jerome Faria - Release, under Creative Commons.

Trying not to stray too far from your original budget, the Panasonic Lumix TZ70 does Timelapse too - about £170 on Amazon at the moment, dont think this has motion activated recording though. Amazon

I'm not too familiar with trail cameras or motion activated cameras to be honest so probably can't offer much advice on them!

2 items may be of help: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07M9QNS3L

https://www.amazon.com/AILUN-Rotatable-Adjustable-Compatible-Camcorder/dp/B072KNBV21

Attach the pole mount high up along the window so that you can still use the window as normal like if you open it on hot days and stuff like that.

Or, you can use a webcam that has a tripod mount hole on it with that pole mount and use a always on computer and appropriate software to get your shots.

But, if you are dead set on using a phone, get a small battery backup box for in case you lose power for an extended period longer than the phone battery can support.

If your phone or whatever camera you decide on has silver or chromed accents, use black electric tape to cover them up so they dont reflect against the glass.

There is this company Brinno that makes small dedicated units just for this purpose:

https://www.amazon.com/Brinno-BCC200-Accessories-Construction-Resistant/dp/B01B2NCHYA

They have a few different versions at different price points. I have yet to buy one, but I probably will within the next month.

Use an app like Intervalometer and set a long interval, then use video editing software like Premiere Pro or After Effects to import the image sequence as a footage, which will set each frame to be one picture.

Condensing 6-7 weeks into a 30 second video is going to look chaotic in the final product without good stabilization and a static background, which would be difficult considering how many day/night transitions there would be.

I bought this four years ago: Eyelead Professional Camera Sensor Cleaning Kit. Three cameras later it still works amazingly well.

I use one of those mini tripods with my compact camera and it works great. Depending on your camera and lens girth, you could have a more compact and pocketable solution using a solid "cheese plate" (like THIS or THIS) in place of the double ball joint.

This is what I ended up going with for my D3200: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00N3JQW7U/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_ofwnBbYX8WV1B

So far the only drawback compared to others is that it can only do 399 pictures at a time where others can do 999. Some also have an option that just keep going. I've only started doing timelapses maybe a month and a half ago, so for a starter it works really well.

This is one that I made made with the remote: https://youtu.be/ika3GkGjaZE

This was shot on a Canon 5d Mark II with a Tokina 16-28mm f/2.8. These were taken at 16mm, f/2.8, 25 seconds (I think). There are 250 photos in this sequence.

I used an iOptron SkyTracker Pro on a tripod for the tracking. The stars aren't supposed to move that much, but my camera set up weighs more than the recommended weight for the mount and I didn't have a counterweight. I used a cheap intervalometer.

Thanks for the kind words!

Each species was different but these shots are between 5 hours and several days. Some flowers opened and closed each day several times, while others took several days to bloom, then wilted after only opening once. The Paperwhite from bulb to bloom was over 2 weeks.

I used a few Tricolor E27 (5 Bulb 45W 5500K) https://www.amazon.com/Photography-Lighting-Multi-Holder-Tricolor-Digital/dp/B00BV2W4GY

Or a Diva Ring https://www.amazon.com/Diva-Ring-Light-Nova-18/dp/B00B64G2A6/

Or some combination of those. I found the Tricolors gave a little more consistent light shot to shot. Although both had some issues I had to fix in post. I suspect I really need a voltage regulator to fix that problem.

I don't really know anything about cameras. We decided that we are going to use a 60 second interval time for the time lapse. Let me get you up to speed with where I am at. We have completely thrown out the idea of using anything made by Brinno. We like the Hero5 sessions made by GoPro for it's built in time lapse functionality and simplicity. We figure if we get a large enough storage card we can set it to record at the beginning of the week then stop it at the end. We would have to edit out the time we are not working, but considering the camera is going to be outside in the winter the durability of this camera also makes it attractive. What do you think?

I've done a tiny tiny bit in C++, but I'm reasonable at basic electronics. If I got like the Arduino Uno Starter Kit would that have enough components to do something fairly similar? I also watched your custom slider video, if I took the components from The Crawler and re did it to work on a slider could I end up with a slider that could do cinematic pan and tilts, but slow enough for timelapse? And using a different program this could then be used at normal speed as well, as you did? Sorry for the barrage, I know relatively little about this, but if I can make something that does both then that'd be pretty ideal.

I meant that those car battery charger things usually have a car power port. Like this one: http://www.amazon.com/Clore-Jump-N-Carry-12-Volt-Starter-Compliant/dp/B00CMP3Z1C/ref=sr_1_4?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1429565920&sr=1-4