Browsing Tags Timelapse

HDR timelapse test

Posted on September 17, 2011 by Brent Pierce

Earlier this week I spent golden hour at The National Ranching Heritage Center to get a quick timelapse of the sunset. While setting up, I was feeling adventurous, and figured I would try something I knew nothing about, high dynamic range imaging (HDRI or just HDR). This is the result of the test.

The camera setting was in manual. You usually want to use Aperture Priority when shooting sunrises/sunsets, but I was not sure how that would effect the HDR, so I left it on manual. I took 3 exposures for each image using the bracketing feature on my Canon 60D. One picture OVER-exposed by 2 stops, one correctly-exposed, and one UNDER-exposed by 2 stops.

+ 2 stops

+/- 0 stops

- 2 stops

Merged all exposures into one HDR image

I tone-mapped in Photomatix Pro, which is a phenomenal application for merging photos into 1 tone-mapped image. You can also create an HDR image with just one single RAW file, but it does not produce as good results as the bracketing feature. I adjusted the parameters until it looked perfect, then I batched the rest of my photos. It’s super easy. Almost too easy. This application is definitely worth the money if you are looking into getting into HDR.

Again, this was just a test. I noticed that as the sun went down and my images got darker, the shadows in the HDR images were very grainy and unusable (see image below. Notice how crappy the shadows are on the steer.) That’s why it may be smart to use aperture priority instead of full manual, but then you get into other problems such as flickering.

Alot of grain in the shadows of the steer

This quick test showed me how awesome HDR is. I see tons of potential in shooting timelapses like this. But, like everything, it CAN be over done and lose it’s effect. It also showed me how easy it is to marge bracketed photos with Photomatix. Seriously, try it. I cranked the below images out in about 90 seconds. Bracketed with +/- 3 stops.

+/- 3 stops. Processed quickly in Photomatix.

+/- 2 stops. Processed quickly in Photomatix.

DSLR intervalometer for $20

Posted on July 22, 2011 by Brent Pierce

Everyone loves doing timelapse photography, right? One of the main reasons someone would not dive into the timelapse world, is the fact that name brand intervalometers, or “timer remotes,” are way too overpriced. Well, lucky for us, there’s a “knock-off” timer remote on Ebay that does everything you would need it to do. I personally own the Canon 60D version, and I recommend this to anyone that asks about purchasing an intervalometer.

This timer remote comes in at roughly $20 and is very simple to use. There are 4 main setting that are available:

SELF TIMER: (Labeled as “SELF”) A timer countdown to a shutter release. Example: set a 10 second timer so you can run in on a family photo.
INTERVALOMETER: (Labeled as “INT.”) A recurring timer that releases the shutter in desired intervals. Most common setting for timelapse photography.
LONG EXPOSURE: (Labeled as “LONG”) Controls the shutter speed if not controlled in camera. This setting goes beyond the maximum 30 second exposure in most cameras.
FRAME: (Labeled as “FRAMES”) Set a desired amount of shots.

You can combine any of the 4 setting with each other. For instance, If you want to start a timelapse in 6 hours, have it take 60 photos that are 15 seconds apart, then you would have your settings like this:

SELF: 6:00:00
INT.: 0:00:15
FRAMES: 60

This would be useful for setting a sunrise timelapse if you don’t want to wake up early. The intervalometer will wake the camera up from it’s timeout-sleep when it starts the shutter releases, so no need to worry about wasting battery. There is also a simple shutter release button that will take a picture. You can lock the remote by holding down the “light” button for 5 seconds. Unlock it the same way. Good to know, especially if the camera is setup around alot of nosy people. You can reset ALL of the settings back to zero by pressing “mode/light/side button” simultaneously.

This timer remote is seriously a steal at this price. It’s on Ebay, by the seller “LinkDelight.” They have various models listed. The corresponding camera models are listed in the title of each listing, so make sure you get the right one for your camera. Some versions of the timer have a few different camera models that they work with, so don’t let that throw you off.

This thing is very simple to use. In fact, I did the below astro-timelapse with this timer remote.