Timelapse Questions, and some C&C pls.

KevinPutman · Apr 27, 2011

So I went out to the lake (again) and tried taking a timelapse picture of the sunset.
I didn't think I could hold down my shutter button for the entire time (i was sitting at an akward angle) so I tried taking about 10 pictures (on continuous mode), at 30 second intervals..but I found looking through the pictures that the clouds moved quite a bit surprisingly.
I just had my camera on the ground (I really need to get a tripod).

I was shooting in full manual on
100
8.0
1/10
What would you recommend if I wanted to make a time lapse video?

_________________________
Here's a few shots I got, C&C?
I tried implementing the things I learned in my other thread ^-^

1 How tall is your sunset?

2 I think the rock makes a good subject, although it's kinda dark..help on this one?

3 Now this one..I'm not sure about it. meh

4 I think I did a good job of getting the subject, and the background in focus?

480sparky · Apr 27, 2011

Not sure what taking 10 shots 30 seconds apart accomplishes.

KevinPutman · Apr 27, 2011

480sparky said:
Not sure what taking 10 shots 30 seconds apart accomplishes.

I was going to put them all together ito a video, make a timelapse,
but thought 30 seconds in between wouldn't make that drastic of a difference. But the clouds moved a couple millimeters (in the pictures) between that time.

Juanka · Apr 27, 2011

Wouldnt the water look all over the place with no cohesion from pic to pic with that time in intervals?

KevinPutman · Apr 27, 2011

Juanka said:
Wouldnt the water look all over the place with no cohesion from pic to pic with that time in intervals?

Yeah, that was my mistake. Same with the clouds. I'll go back some other time and just do straight continuous for the entire time..
need to get myself a tripod...and some tape to hold down the shutter button.

C&C on the pictures please?

WesternGuy · Apr 28, 2011

KevinPutman said:
Yeah, that was my mistake. Same with the clouds. I'll go back some other time and just do straight continuous for the entire time..
need to get myself a tripod...and some tape to hold down the shutter button.

C&C on the pictures please?

Kevin, if you get a shutter release cable, most of them will allow you to "lock" the shutter open when you put the shutter setting on "Bulb" (yes, tape is cheaper, but it can also get messy and sticky). This way you won't need to hold the shutter with your finger - if you use mirror lockup as well, then you should not get any vibration affects from holding the shutter button with your finger in your final image. You will, of course, definitely need a tripod to do this properly. Hope this helps.

Cheers,

WesternGuy

Geaux · Apr 28, 2011

Out of your shots, #4 is the strongest, but still suffers from a common mistake. You clipped off all the branches of the subject.

All of the others suffer from composition issues and don't do anything for me.

iNick · Apr 28, 2011

not digging these too much sorry. not sure what rock you're referring to in #2, the rest are boring and not composed very well. #3 is underexposed and im not sure where my eye is supposed to look, is it the sunset? the railing? idk.

Bitter Jeweler · Apr 28, 2011

Timelapse is more effective with more shots at a shorter time interval, if you are trying to make video. Video runs at 30 frames per second. Yes, the Canon CHDK firmware hack has an option for doing just that.

KevinPutman · Apr 28, 2011

Bitter Jeweler said:
Timelapse is more effective with more shots at a shorter time interval, if you are trying to make video. Video runs at 30 frames per second. Yes, the Canon CHDK firmware hack has an option for doing just that.

o0
time to play arounnnd.

Light Guru · Apr 28, 2011

First off I think you really should have make two different posts. One for your photos and one for your questions on time lapse.

For time lapse you NEED to get a intevelometer. And check out this tutorial on how to create them.

Time-Lapse Tutorial &lsaquo; digitalartwork

KevinPutman · Apr 28, 2011

Muaha! I made myself a remote trigger for the camera. It's called a laptop!
All I have to do is plug in my camera via usb to the laptop, while CHDK is running, and the camera is set to Continuous, and it just starts taking pictures. ^-^

As for the intevelometer..I think for now I'll have to manage without one, since I don't quite have that much money to spend on one. Although the CHDK software has a script for a "custom timer" so that should work the same..
Although I'm curious..
wouldn't it work to just have it going on Continuous mode? At say 1/2 shutter speed?

So It'd put out about 30 shots a minute?

Bitter Jeweler · Apr 28, 2011

Yes, but your shutterspeed would be whatever the scene calls for, for correct exposure.

...and: UBASIC/Scripts: Ultra Intervalometer - CHDK Wiki

Stradawhovious · Apr 28, 2011

I you're looking to get a true time lapse of a sunset, you should be taking pictures at a set interval.... either 5, 10, 20 or 30 seconds apart (the closer the shots, the more fluid your timelapse will look), shoot in manual with your exposure set for the first frame (assuming its the lightest frame, and the restwill be darker). If you shoot in auto, S, A or P the camera will adjust for exposure and all of your pictures will come out the came brightness with different image quality.

You also need to take hundreds of pictures. Last time I did a time lapse it was over a thousand pictures, and the time lapse movie was only 2 minutes.

BTW, a tripod is essential.

What kind of camera are you using? Mine has a setting to automatically take pictures at set intervals. I can set it anf forget it. Come back 7 hours later and viola.

KevinPutman · Apr 28, 2011

Stradawhovious said:
I you're looking to get a true time lapse of a sunset, you should be taking pictures at a set interval.... either 5, 10, 20 or 30 seconds apart (the closer the shots, the more fluid your timelapse will look), shoot in manual with your exposure set for the first frame (assuming its the lightest frame, and the restwill be darker). If you shoot in auto, S, A or P the camera will adjust for exposure and all of your pictures will come out the came brightness with different image quality.

You also need to take hundreds of pictures. Last time I did a time lapse it was over a thousand pictures, and the time lapse movie was only 2 minutes.

BTW, a tripod is essential.

What kind of camera are you using? Mine has a setting to automatically take pictures at set intervals. I can set it anf forget it. Come back 7 hours later and viola.

I set my camera on Continuous mode, basically picture after picture as fast as my camera would take it. I believe that the fastest speed between pictures was 1.5 seconds. So even on continuous I'm getting almost a 2 second interval between each picture..
As I stated in the OP, I went out yesterday and gave it a try. Set to manual, exposure set for the first image, and as you said, it got darker. It would have come out perfect, but I would take 10 pictures, then wait 30 seconds, then take another 10. Just because I had to hold the shutter down the entire time.
So I just need a tripod. I have the remote shutter set with my computer ,so that works out fine.
I'll shoot in manual,
ISO 80, F8, 1/10, then just have it go continuous. So that will give me about 30-40 pictures a minute. Maybe a 30-40 minute session. So right around 1000 pictures.

I'm using the Canon Powershot S5 IS, if I use CHDK it has an time interval setting, but I think I'll just stick with continuous.