How to make a time-lapse video


Time-lapse video

The easiest way to make a timelapse video is to purchase a camera that has this function. Some people call it a time-lapse maker. One of the cameras which has this feature is Canon Powershot G16.

Setup start time-lapse movie on Canon G16
Timelapse video on Canon G16 infographic

I take this camera with me everywhere. With this camera, I capture most of my travel images and time-lapses. Check out my Backpacking Cuba blog post.

Usually, I select the 120 minutes option when taking a timelapse. The best thing about it – no computer or specialised software needed.

Watch my 10 seconds timelapse below or check out my Portfolio:

Timelapse video of the night sky in Romania.

Another way to record a timelapse is by using your smartphone. In my case I am using an iPhone 11 Pro.

In the camera app, select time-lapse, choose the lens: 0.5 (wide), 1x (normal) or 2x (zoom), fix the phone on a tripod and press record. I did something similar during one of my flights to Bucharest, where after take off, I secured the phone against the window with the shades for about 3 hours and this is the result…

A more complicated way to make a time-lapse, but one can give you great results is by using a DSLR camera on a tripod. This is how I captured this time-lapse of St. Walburge’s Church in Preston, in 2009.

I used a Canon XTi (400D in EU) and a Sigma 70-300 mm lens on a cheap aluminium tripod I bought at a car boot sale. I set the camera to record a picture every 30 seconds with mirrow lock up on. In the end I took 120 pictures at 3888 x 2592 pixels each. In Adobe Premiere I imported each images as a 5 seconds still on a Full HD timeline, 1920 x 1080 pixels and exported as .mp4 video and this is the result…

Star trails

In order to take a star trail image the camera must stay still and the subject should be moving. Set the camera to the star trail setting and come back when it is finished. For example, while in Thassos Holiday I captured this image below with the same Canon G16 camera.

startrails in skala Rachoni, Thassos, Greece
Star trails in Thassos

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