Category Archives: Timelapse

My first compilation so any feedback would be much appreciated. I am really enjoying shooting timelapse and experimenting with all the possibilities beyond a static cloudscape which is as far as my imagination could take me initially.   I am all ears to any advice. Thank you.
1. Botany Bay sunset. I was testing shooting in Av mode and how much flickering I would get. I was pleased to see it come out well. It probably had to do with my metering which was done off the clear sky. Sorry about the length.
2. Sax player at Circular Quay in Sydney. That is the Harbour Bridge in the background. You might have heard of it. This was shot with my S90 on a little gorillapod which is pretty much useless as you can see from the movement. Any small wind produces shake. I’ve lost a few sequences to this shake. Also learned that it’s hard to get good fps with this camera and the fast movement of the people makes anything above 10fps look silly. I exported it at 25fps and slowed it down in Premier Pro.
3. Ferries at Circular Quay. Again shot on S90, exported at 25fps and slowed down a bit. I did this more for pacing for the music. I don’t like the quality at all. I have since started using my 5D and to hell with the shutter count.
4. You can’t live in Sydney and ignore the Opera House. Still the S90 from my very first day out shooting timelapse. Good memories if not great images.
5. A local park on a lovely day. This is from my second day out shooting timelapse. I used a proper tripod here with the S90 and it shows. It appears that the S90 does have it’s strengths and used in the right places can produce good images.
6. Hyde Park in Sydney’s CBD. Experimenting here and kind of failing but I did learn and figured out a way to improve this type of a sequence. We’ll leave that for the next compilation. The kids were great and they let me take some group photos of them afterwards.
7. A timelapse groupie. No kidding. I was shooting sequence #8 when this young lady starts talking to me. I explained what I was doing and after a few minutes chatting we started making out.  Now, as the dedicated (or is it obsessed?) photographer that I am, my mind was still on my timelapse while this is going on. I asked her if she wanted to shoot one of us and without further ado…
8. Darling Harbour. This place is full of colour and people. I was distracted a touch so I didn’t get to shoot more. Will have to go back one night.
9. I was just practising shutter dragging here. I liked the mix of streets even though the rest of the scenery is kind of boring.
10. This was my first night timelapse. I was experimenting with shutter drag for the first time and seeing what works and what doesn’t. Obviously this one didn’t come out that great. Still some nice colours though after the rain had fallen. Would look even better if there was more water on the road. Noted for next time.
11. The start of the famous Oxford Street where the Mardi Gras is held each year. I would love to be able to get up on one of the hotel rooftops around here. If anyone has access, I would love to hear from you.
The music I used is from a wonderful composer called Yann Tiersen. This particular song, Le moulin, is from the Le fabuleux destin d’Amélie Poulain (Amelie) (2001) French film. A wonderful film if you have not seen it. Yann Tiersen also composed the very famous Comptine d’un autre été: l’après midi which has been used by many photographers for their slide shows and timelapse compilations. I might even do one when I have worthy footage.