Time-Lapse Photography

Michigan-based photographer Vincent Brady spent five weeks in Iceland living out the back of a rental car to capture the ethereal footage found in his latest 360-degree time-lapse project “Aurora Panoramas Acoustic Borealis.” The video depicts Iceland in its full fantastic glory, with brightly colored auroras floating above fairytale landscapes. Set to an original mellow acoustic tune by long-time friend Brandon McCoy, this video makes for the perfect 4-minute weekend getaway.

Polish cinematographer Maciej Tomków’s “Treasures of Zakynthos” is a beautiful, award-winning time-lapse that highlights the titled Greek island. Going far beyond only filming for the final project, Tomków also took the time and care to create incredibly well-done behind-the-scenes videos that give a true sense of what production is like shooting epic time-lapses. If you’re passionate about photography or videography, you’re going to love these "Behind the Time-lapse" creations.

What happens when you take a group of best friends who are all talented photographers and cinematographers and give them a near unlimited budget? The greatest bachelor party of all time. A group of friends decided that they needed to give their best friend a truly epic send off before his wedding.  

The One Man Crew from Redrock Micro was a treat for small interview productions, whereby a fully automated slider could capture subtle camera moves and add tremendous production value. It wasn't without a few issues though, and for the last few years we had been hearing about a version 2 that would address these. Redrock has finally delivered.

Watch as LA based photographer Dan Marker-Moore shows us how he stitches hundreds of photos together to make one Time Slice image. Dan travelled Hong Kong and Shanghai to shoot the same landscapes at different times of the day.  This series of photos were then color corrected in Lightroom before a composite was created in After Effects. By lining up slices of the photographs, that had been offset in time / exposures, the photos create a sense of time-in-motion for each landscape.

There's no better way to start the week off than to watch a beautifully shot and composed time-lapse. Shane Black spent several months traveling through the U.S. and Canada teaching workshops and shooting this time-lapse. "Adventure is Calling" makes me want to get out of the house and explore how beautiful our planet is. Black spent about 4 months, traveled roughly 14,000 miles, and shot about 20,000 still for this inspiring 3 minute video. 

Brothers Will Pattiz and Jim Pattiz are on a mission to spread greater awareness to the treasures that reside within America’s National Parks through visually stunning imagery. The first results of which are 3 short films, with a staggering 49 more in the works. I interviewed half of the Pattiz brothers, Will, and learned a bit more about how they got involved in such an ambitious undertaking.

Last year Alexis Coram's Technicolor Alaska - a mesmerizing time lapse film of the Northern Lights - was shared on Fstoppers along with being showcased in National Geographic's Short Film Showcase of the year. This year, Coram has created a new masterpiece, "Awake." Coram traveled back to Alaska this past February for a long weekend in hopes to catch another glimpse of the Northern Lights.

In the last few years, us earth-bound humans have been blessed with stunning still images and breathtaking timelapses that were taken in outerspace. Veteran astronaut-photographer Don Pettit was at the recent SXSW event, and spoke about the challenges of capturing images in space.

Over five terabytes filmed over the course of two grueling years, A Taste Of Austria is comprised of over 600 time-lapse clips intricately woven together through creative clip transitions. Time-lapse movies often take themselves entirely too seriously, focusing on the dramatic through epic song choice and long drawn out pans. This short video incorporates creative use of sound coupled with quick and calculated cuts to give the viewer a sense of a fast-paced guided tour through the spectacular European countryside.

The latest time-lapse by astrophotographer Brian Spencer shows us the beauty within our galaxy by highlighting the bright stars paired with the beautiful nature found in New Mexico. Using a collection of sliders, cameras, and patience, Spencer was able to capture this beautiful time-lapse highlighting both the beautiful night sky of New Mexico, and the world we view it from.

Belgian photographer and filmmaker Matthew Vandeputte has taken his obsession of the sky Down Under and created a time-lapse film that was over a year in the making. From sunrises and stormy skies over the metropolis of Sydney, to the Milky Way dancing over the sleepy town of Mudgee, Vandeputte has traveled far and wide across his new home to capture Australian skies at their most vibrant and dramatic.

As photographers and filmmakers, sometimes the most incredible scenes we capture happen when we least expect them. Such was the case for 19-year-old talent Andrew Studer, when he ventured to downtown Portland, Oregon to shoot a sunset. The beautiful fog that engulfed the city after the sun went down convinced Studer to stick around, and the resulting time-lapse film is an incredible display of weather in the Northwest’s second most populated city.

Since February 2010, NASA has captured more than an image per second for over 1,800 days to string together this amazing time-lapse of our sun. This year marks the five-year anniversary of the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). To celebrate, NASA has publicly released this mesmerizing video of the sun's daily dance in sharp definition. This fascinating imagery has been released as public domain and can be downloaded for free in all its glory on NASA's website.

Rob Whitworth builds upon his previous experience from his innovative Barcelona "flow motion" time-lapse with this new production covering the business oasis, Dubai. In his latest piece, Whitworth makes it apparent that he has perfected his craft to create the most fascinating time-lapse we've seen so far. We asked him to comment on his process. And while we got some behind-the-scenes footage and images, Whitworth simply told us, "It's always fun to keep people guessing." So by all means, let's guess.

At only 24 years old, photographer and filmmaker Toby Harriman already has an impressive resume. From his vertigo inducing aerial photography to his "Modern Surf" series, Harriman has made quite a name for himself in his very short career. His latest time-lapse film not only adds to his impressive accomplishments, but may be his most impressive project yet.

That's 10K – as in your 4K monitor, but not really...because it's 10K. Yes, photographer Joe Capra created a stunning 10K time-lapse with a PhaseOne IQ180 that shoots images with a resolution of 10,328 x 7,760 pixels. While this video is clearly put together in a proof-of-concept style, the clips still astound. We can't expect anyone to be able to view this at a real 10K resolution (the video is edited to 1080p and zooms in to show the full resolution), but the least you can do is view it in HD in full screen, at which point it becomes a gratifying kind of dizzying.

From its pulse pounding opening scene of a photographer seemingly cheating death as a massive wave breaks on the rocks in front of him, Ben Canales and his partner, John Waller at Uncage The Soul Productions, have created a film that beautifully shows the unique and rugged Oregon Coast like you have never seen it before.

Last year a group of time-lapse photographers organized by Shiseido Ruiz produced a video of the New Year's Eve ball drop and other events in Times Square, New York City that made Vimeo's Staff Pick. This year, Ruiz and his crew decided to step up their game and headed back to the rooftops around Times Square to produce an even better one. In a feat of artistic and logistical achievement, The Timelapse Group managed to produce a stunning and truly unique film of the NYE festivities in Times Square that will make your jaw drop. In an interview with Fstoppers, Ruiz provides a look into what it takes to produce a time-lapse film of this magnitude.

Watch tiny people hustling around the larger than life landscape of Norway and Iceland in this delightful timelapse by DAMP Design's Martijn Doolaard. The quick speed and tilt-shift focus along with unique sound engineering create an alternative world set in the dramatic landscape of Norwegian fjords and hot springs. Recently chosen as a Vimeo Staff Pick, Doolaard's "The Little Nordics" is a must watch video short.

The calendar is about to turn over to 2015, and in my feeble mind I just assumed we were so advanced, that all of those new high-budget animation films were created by using elaborate CGI. I envisioned a team of computer animators sitting in a dark basement with endless empty cans of Red Bull strewn about, working around the clock to animate the scenes on screen in their elaborate and complex computer programs. Little did I know, old school manual, and tireless physical techniques are still used to this day.

When it comes to making video edits and sports demos of yourself, finding a friend to film can be the biggest challenge of all. With this second generation advancement of the SOLOSHOT you can film yourself in endless scenarios, photograph panning DSLR timelapse, and forego the need for a buddy on the beach.

SmugMug Filmmaker Anton Lorimer has an incredible way of telling us stories about photographers. He blew us away with Arctic Swell, his dramatic film that followed surf photographer Chris Burkard to the ends of the earth in search of the perfect wave. But in the latest film of this exceptional series, the ends of the earth wasn't quite far enough. Space seemed like a more fitting backyard.

Patrick and I have been in Iceland for 2 weeks with Elia Locardi filming our next tutorial on landscape/travel photography. We brought a truck-load of gear with us but our favorite piece has been our DJI phantom quadcopter. Here's a quick cut of our best drone footage in Iceland.

Keisuke Iwaya is an amateur Japanese astrophysicist. On July 20th, 2014, he sent a Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera into the Earth’s stratosphere from Obihiro, Japan for the first time ever. The video captures a time-lapse view of the amazing voyage into the heavens as well as some behind-the-scenes views of the lift off and finding it after its free fall back down. If you've ever day dreamed of flying around the planet like Superman as a kid, this video will rekindle that fantastic flame from your youth! – check it out!

Have you ever wondered what fashion trends will be in style, let’s say 20 years from now? Well some say the best way to predict the future is to look at the past, and this video does exactly that. "100 Years of Beauty in 1 Minute" illustrates hair and makeup styles from each decade, starting at 1910 straight through to 2010.

Chris Field shot this amazing time-lapse video, but that’s not all he did; he also generously shared with us the BTS video, which is a dream come true for anyone who wants to see how others do it. Chris spent three months of shooting and over 80GB of images and video. As you may realize, putting all that footage together is a process on its own. On his website, Chris shares with readers all of the ups & downs of such an elaborate time-lapse shoot. It is absolutely mind boggling all that went into creating this video. Chris spoke to Fstoppers about the process in great detail.

Winter has come and at full speed for parts of the US already. This is an amazing time-lapse of how that fluffy white snow is formed. It’s serenely mesmerizing, not unlike the feeling watching it quietly falling from the night sky.

Being a native of the Pacific Northwest, photographer and filmmaker Ben Canales of Uncage The Soul was deeply concerned about the rapid melting of the Sandy Glacier Ice Cave. Wanting to create widespread awareness for this issue, Ben and his team spent over a year filming in the cave system. The resulting film is both visually beautiful as well as eye opening. 

While a great image of the Milky Way can be awe inspiring in and of itself, it becomes something else entirely when you add some motion. In just 20 minutes, you will have all the information needed to go out and shoot a time-lapse yourself. Whether or not you are willing to spend countless hours alone in the darkness however...

Watching this magical time-lapse video - of the Annual Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta shot by Knate Myers -  I couldn't wipe the silly smile off my face. The stunning colors and compositions captivate. If you ask me, Knate completely succeeded in providing the best seats in the house for anyone who didn’t get to attend this magnificent event. I am certainly adding it to my bucket-list of things to do and see.

Sean Goebel might only do photography in his spare time while working on his PhD in Astronomy, but that hasn't stopped him from licensing work to the likes of Canon, the Discovery Channel, and others. A quick watch of his timelapse works, including Epochs and Mauna Kea Heavens and it is easy to see why. His latest timelapse project is included here, along with a brief look into its creation.

With hopes of saving at-risk environments and capturing them before they are gone forever, a team of 15 timelapse artists have decided to join forces and create a feature film. Eric Hines, Michael Shainblum, Drew Geraci, and Joe Capra are just a few of the names on the "CodeX" roster. They are crowdfunding to try and make this project a reality, and I spoke with team member Ben Canales on why this project matters.

Chicago based photographer and timelapser Eric Hines returns with a brilliant follow-up to his acclaimed Cityscape Chicago timelapse released over a year ago with the debut of Cityscape Chicago II. His first timelapse won him a Vimeo Staff Pick along with nearly 1 million views and part 2 surely doesn't disappoint. 

Making a timelapse stand out is getting more and more difficult. I love that making them has become much easier and more approachable, but with hundreds being produced every day it can be hard to filter through to find the really great ones. This "layer timelapse" by Julian Tryba goes in a totally different direction than most lapses, ignoring the general perception of time.

Have you ever seen a photo of a unique place, but could never find exactly where it was located? For years, Justin Majeczky was aware of the existence of the Fly Geyser, but only after research and some smooth talking was he able to locate and document this unique phenomena.

If you've never seen the Milky Way in the skies in any rural part of the world, you have been robbed of one of the most magnificent visions on this planet. I grew up in the southern part of Israel, which is a desert called The Negev. All the kids from my block would gather every summer night, lie down on the ground and just stare at the skies for hours on end. I didn't realize how lucky I was to grow up in that desert. 

If you haven't been to Norway this video by Rustad Media will have you booking your plane tickets. This video is the work of a 5 month adventure, shot from a 15,000 km (almost 10,000 miles) long road trip. In addition to video, tens of thousands of images were taken along the way. This journey covered all of Norway’s 19 counties, from the far south to the Russian border in the Northeast.

It seems like everyone and their accountants have known someone who had the inside scoop on the details surrounding the highly anticipated GoPro 4. Every week, Facebook feeds would explode with the latest outlandish rumors,  getting even the most tepid of us excited. Well, these latest rumors may in fact be the real deal. 

Oregon based photographer and filmmaker Ben Canales decided to take his shiny new iPhone 6 Plus to the Eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains to create a short film to show off the power of the new pop tart sized phablet. The resulting footage is great, but is Ben in fear of losing some business to iPhone cinematographers?

The state of California is simply unmatched when it comes to beautiful, picturesque imagery in the United States. As the birthplace and home of timelapse photographer Hal Bergman, it was his goal to compile as much of the visual wonders California has to offer in to a tight four-minutes time. His newest video, aptly titled “California,” combines four years of filming in to a marvelous treat for the eyes that any citizen of the world can appreciate. Beyond the video, Hal also speaks to Fstoppers about the behind-the-scenes work and equipment used in the making.

For those of us who didn't get to make it out to Black Rock Desert this week for the annual Burning Man Festival , we can now enjoy the experience virtually, thanks to the incredible new film Lake Of Dreams by Roy Two Thousand. Combining time-lapse, hyperlapse, and standard video, Roy, along with his second shooters, August Winkelman and Connor McNeill, give us a 7 minutes jaw dropping short film that will feel so real, you will be cleaning the sand out of your teeth for the rest of the afternoon.

The team over at Dubai 360 shared with us a rather unique view of the world. In the video above, you'll get to watch a full day's revolution of the Earth directly above the Dubai International Airport. You'll see airplanes fly in and soar off, you'll watch them taxi into their various gates and you'll see it all from a spectacular 4K panoramic "little planet" downward view! The team mentions that Terminal 3 actually serves as an hour hand on an imaginary clock with midnight at the top and midday at the bottom, allowing you to know the time of day each frame was taken!

First-person cameras, such as the ubiquitous GoPro, have been filming hours of footage from their owner’s journeys for years now. These lengthy uncut videos don’t hold much interest to most people, but a team of Microsoft Researchers are aiming to change that by using some remarkable technology they hope to release as part of an upcoming app.

You’ll feel inspired after watching Gavin Heffernan’s (Sunchaser Pictures) stunning time lapse video KINGS, taken in Kings Canyon and Sequoia national park in California. Star trails, the Milky Way and meteors paired with a dramatic soundtrack produce a truly epic and magical visual. 

In short, no it is not. But a few minor dealbreakers are all that stand between leaving this camera on the shelf, and making it best digital camera in its class.

After nearly a month of capturing video, stills, and timelapse media with the Panasonic GH4, I laughed, I cried, and I almost threw it off a mountain. At times it was a joy to shoot with, and other times it wouldn’t even power on with a full battery. I’ll give you a complete, unbiased rundown in my full review, complete with video samples.

Created for the creative, MIOPS is a promising new accessory used to easily trigger your camera or flash unit for high-speed photography scenarios. The MIOPS team have launched a Kickstarter to acquire funding for their new high-tech device in which they declare is “not the first trigger in the market, but it is going to be the best.”

His client list reads like a who's-who in iconic businesses: Pearl Vision, American Standard, Shell Oil, Virgin Galactic, AOL, Wells Fargo, Salesforce, Red Bull, Minute Maid, Costco, and Allstate. He has even photographed celebrities like Kevin Spacey, Richard Branson, and Al Gore. No doubt you've seen the remarkable work of Chris Crisman in the past, but photographers want to know how does he do it? What does his studio look like? What equipment does he use?

It's extremely easy to produce mundane timelapses, which is why amazing work like "Barcelona GO!" produced by filmmaker Rob Whitworth gets me so jazzed. This timelapse/hyperlapse done in "flow-motion" (what Rob calls his fast-moving short films) is simply stunning. 

The combination of two visually striking methods resulted in this surreal video by Vincent Brady. After checking the video, read on for some more information on the rig Vincent used to shoot with, and some insight on the programs he used to painstakingly stitch his images together for the final timelapse video.