Interval/Time Lapse at DVinfo.net

Kevin Dooley · December 11th, 2006, 10:22 AM

I'm heading out soon to shoot a time lapse of the sky going from noonish until after sunset. I'll need it to look smooth when it's all said and done...

I've never shot any time lapse stuff, without wasting several days shooting to get just the right settings, has anyone found settings that may or may not work better in this instance?

Mike Schrengohst · December 11th, 2006, 12:23 PM

Hello Kevin,
Set your iris on manual.....
Focus on manual....
Of course if you start at noon that should be
the brightest part of the day.
Here in Texas the wind will be the biggest problem....
Try to find a windbreak and a sturdy tripod is essential....
Also power.....Going from 12:00-6:00 will be a problem
going battery power....
Need a solid power source....
OIS should be OFF.
With the HVX 1080 30p will be your best bet....
Give you more to play with.....
e-mail with any other questions....

Kevin Dooley · December 11th, 2006, 12:28 PM

Yeah, we're working on figuring out power... possibly an inverter on the car, we're not sure. The windbreak hopefully won't be a problem as we're looking to get a hill and/or hilly area as the "backdrop".

Mostly what I was hoping to get advice on would be the Interveral settings... would 1 fps be good? Should I do more or less?

Brian Sargent · December 11th, 2006, 01:52 PM

I think you can only do Time Lapse in Video/1080. I have shot some stuff which came out pretty well, but I wanted a seamless bright day into night shot. Use the ND filter, but be sure to come back around sunset and flip it off as dusk arrives. One weekend I tried to hang around all day like a yo-yo and adjust the iris manually. It moved just enough to ruin the whole shoot.
It was really windy and I did not have the tripod weighted w/sandbags either which would certainly help. The there is no getting around needing to have the ND filter on and off though -unless you've got some expensive matt box and you can just pull the filters away.

Brian Sargent · December 11th, 2006, 02:00 PM

I shot 3 days w/a 4g card at 1 frame every 30 sec and had plenty of room left on the card. People were just mesmerized by the footage and wanted it to last longer so I changed it to 1 frame every 10secs. I think every 24hrs took like 3min to view. I would say it makes a difference how much coverage you need for your shot but cloud movement was pronounced for either interval. It was the change in light that got all the positive response.

December 11th, 2006, 10:22 AM	#1
Kevin Dooley Major Player Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Fort Worth, TX Posts: 414	Interval/Time Lapse I'm heading out soon to shoot a time lapse of the sky going from noonish until after sunset. I'll need it to look smooth when it's all said and done... I've never shot any time lapse stuff, without wasting several days shooting to get just the right settings, has anyone found settings that may or may not work better in this instance? __________________ Kevin Dooley Media Director, Pantego Bible Church

December 11th, 2006, 12:23 PM	#2
Mike Schrengohst Major Player Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 355	Hello Kevin, Set your iris on manual..... Focus on manual.... Of course if you start at noon that should be the brightest part of the day. Here in Texas the wind will be the biggest problem.... Try to find a windbreak and a sturdy tripod is essential.... Also power.....Going from 12:00-6:00 will be a problem going battery power.... Need a solid power source.... OIS should be OFF. With the HVX 1080 30p will be your best bet.... Give you more to play with..... e-mail with any other questions.... __________________ Mike Schrengohst dvd.pro@verizon.net

December 11th, 2006, 12:28 PM	#3
Kevin Dooley Major Player Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Fort Worth, TX Posts: 414	Yeah, we're working on figuring out power... possibly an inverter on the car, we're not sure. The windbreak hopefully won't be a problem as we're looking to get a hill and/or hilly area as the "backdrop". Mostly what I was hoping to get advice on would be the Interveral settings... would 1 fps be good? Should I do more or less? __________________ Kevin Dooley Media Director, Pantego Bible Church

December 11th, 2006, 02:00 PM	#5
Brian Sargent Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: New York, NY Posts: 69	I shot 3 days w/a 4g card at 1 frame every 30 sec and had plenty of room left on the card. People were just mesmerized by the footage and wanted it to last longer so I changed it to 1 frame every 10secs. I think every 24hrs took like 3min to view. I would say it makes a difference how much coverage you need for your shot but cloud movement was pronounced for either interval. It was the change in light that got all the positive response. Last edited by Brian Sargent; December 11th, 2006 at 02:35 PM.

December 11th, 2006, 01:52 PM	#4
Brian Sargent Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: New York, NY Posts: 69	I think you can only do Time Lapse in Video/1080. I have shot some stuff which came out pretty well, but I wanted a seamless bright day into night shot. Use the ND filter, but be sure to come back around sunset and flip it off as dusk arrives. One weekend I tried to hang around all day like a yo-yo and adjust the iris manually. It moved just enough to ruin the whole shoot. It was really windy and I did not have the tripod weighted w/sandbags either which would certainly help. The there is no getting around needing to have the ND filter on and off though -unless you've got some expensive matt box and you can just pull the filters away.