Time Lapse: How to Compress Time

As a videographer, I always try to tell a story effectively. I have found that one of the most effective storytelling tools in video production is time lapse.

With time lapse, you can compress a long, static event into a short, engaging clip. An effective use of a time lapse is a party like the one in the following clip, where people mingle but don’t do anything too interesting to capture as a video clip. As a single video shot, this would be about as interesting as watching grass grow. However, when compressed to around 3-5 seconds, the clip is engaging and tells a story without boring the viewer.

When doing a time lapse there are a few things to consider. First of all, what do we want to focus on? The image we want the viewer to fix on must either be fixed or progress/rewind slowly. On the other hand, figures or characters that are moving will be moving fast and that’s why we want to blur them. In this type of video production, this is achieved by using motion blur using a slow shutter speed. The shutter speed in the aforementioned video clip was set to 1/3 of a second and we get a ghost effect of people. Hence, the viewer perceives the activity but focuses on the aesthetics of the room and the people who are still or move slowly.

Another important element to consider is movement. As discussed above, repetitive motions, such as people mingling, need to be blended out. However, if we want to add drama to the video, we can SLOWLY move the camera to the focus point.

Or we can SLOWLY move around the subject like here. The movement must be just above the threshold of being noticed because this type of movement is effective if it is felt rather than seen.

The slow and dramatic movement of the camera over a time lapse is achieved through the use of a mechanized slider. The slider gradually moves the camera from the start point to the end point each time a photo is taken.

As a videographer and filmmaker, I don’t always set up a traditional time lapse where the camera takes an image for a set period of time. Sometimes I will film a long video clip knowing that I will manipulate time. For example, I’ll speed up a gimbal video clip to make the scene more dynamic. One advantage of this video production technique is that I can slow down the clip at a specific moment to highlight something interesting.

There are also some very sophisticated time-lapse techniques where the movement of the slider or the speed of the time-lapse changes over time. These types of time lapses require careful planning and tools like a computerized app that can control sliders or video production dollies.

In short, a time lapse is a video production technique that can show something boring in a new, fun and engaging way. And yes, it can even make watching grass grow exciting!