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Timelapse video capture gives the viewer a great viewing experience when it is done correctly. What makes this shooting technique different? When you watch a quality Timelapse video, you will immediately notice the answer to this question. Videos with this technique intensify the perception of time, so to speak, and have a profound effect on you.
Magic of Time-lapse: Timelapse Video
Watching the timelapse video is delightful; but what about it?… Don’t worry; not as hard as you think. You can easily shoot creative Timelapse videos by paying attention to some tricks. If you are curious about the subtleties of the shooting process, we can start with some technical issues.
First, to make a general definition; Timelapse is a shooting technique that allows time-lapse videos to emerge. The beauty of this technique is to capture hours, days, weeks, even months and years to fit a short time. The aesthetic images of time flowing rapidly change the atmosphere of documentary or fictional videos.
Timelapse videos can be shot even with smartphones today. Nevertheless, we recommend that you shoot with professional or semi-professional equipment, where you can get much better results. Shooting in RAW format with this type of equipment also allows you to make more extensive editing on the computer.
At this point, you can think: Let’s shoot videos in a normal way and then speed up; why do we deal with photography? ” This method is simple, but it can’t compete with Timelapse videos made with quality photos. With the video acceleration method, you can not only have the high resolution offered by photo frames but also have to deal with data storage and camera heating.
Nature’s long-lasting glorious changes take on an impressive visuality with Timelapse videos.
Bring Videos to Life with Timelapse Technique
Timelapse videos are often used to describe long-term changes. You may have noticed that Timelapse videos are used to show inter-day transitions or day-to-night transitions in movies or series. Nature’s long-lasting glorious changes take on an impressive visuality with Timelapse videos. The opening of flowers, the movement of the clouds and even the seasonal colors of the leaves become completely different from Timelapse shoot.
This technique is also effective for videos where you want to show the fast bustle of city life. You will surely also come across Timelapse videos that show the aesthetic process of the construction of various buildings.
Timelapse videos, offering impressive images, are indispensable for city or country promotions. Timelapse videos that show the movement of stars in the night sky or the change of people over long periods also appear on social media in abundance.
Even if you don’t want extreme professionalism, having a basic knowledge of photography makes it easy to create quality works.
Critical Turn: Selection of Shooting Equipment
Timelapse is a challenge that requires patience and attention. Even if you don’t want extreme professionalism, having a basic knowledge of photography makes it easy to create quality works.
The new generation of DSLRs is very useful for Timelapse shooting. You can choose the DSLR model that best suits your needs from the cameras on Amazon. Especially the models with built-in spacer, save you a lot of trouble.
If your machine doesn’t have this function, it’s fine. A timer remote control called an intervalometer, also meets your needs. This allows you to make intermittent shots.
One of the indispensable elements of timelapse video shooting is the tripod. Since the camera needs to be stable, you can choose a heavy and sturdy tripod that won’t move easily.
We came to the math part
During the Timelapse video shooting process, some mathematics is involved. Do not be afraid; These are not very demanding calculations… You will only find the time and the number of frames, that’s it.
Every 25 frames taken in a normal video correspond to 1 second. You can use this information for the calculations required for timelapse shooting.
For example, if Timelapse video is shot at one frame per second, it means 60 frames per minute. In one hour, it corresponds to 3600 squares. The duration of one hour of shooting in the field is 36 seconds (3600/25) 144 seconds. This means a 2.4 minute Timelapse video will appear in 144 seconds. It’s that simple. If you do this before your shoot, you can have an efficient Timelapse experience for your purpose.
A good determination of the transition speed is also an important factor affecting the aesthetic structure of the resulting video.
For example, two-frame shots per second may be appropriate for cloud transitions; Long intervals are also preferred for season passes or the construction process. You should set these intervals, taking into account the actual time to shoot.
Keep in mind that if you want to describe a city’s transition from day to night, you may need a few hours of shooting. Preliminary preparation is also very important in timelapse video shooting. It is useful to write this in a corner of your mind.
Don’t Leave Important Decisions to the Machine
We do not recommend automatic mode for timelapse footage because the camera uses different values in each frame, which causes flickers. If you want to shoot quality Timelapse videos; you should put your hand under the stone and adjust the shutter speed, aperture, and ISO settings manually.
If you’ve already embarked on Timelapse shooting, we can assume you have basic photography knowledge. However, we would like to give you little tips.
For example, a maximum value of 800 during the day may be appropriate for the ISO setting. At night Timelapse, the ISO value should be much higher.
You must also adjust the white balance manually. You can also make various changes to RAW files after shooting.
One of the important points to consider for timelapse video shooting is the frameset. When determining the frame, you should measure all details thoroughly; because there is no turning back and you cannot change the angle you choose later.
Wide-angle lenses are generally preferred for timelapse shooting, and lens focus is manually adjusted to prevent the camera from refocusing with each shot.
Sit back and enjoy your masterpiece
Do not turn your head to a large number of photo frames obtained with Timelapse video capture. You can easily convert these frames to video with various computer software.
There are tons of alternatives for this stage which can be defined as the post-production stage of the work. You can choose from a variety of paid or free programs, and edit your photos.
When you watch your Timelapse video that is finished with editing and share it with your loved ones, you will see that this challenging process is more than worth it.