Time Lapse

Time Lapse is the animation of a sequence of photos or videos taken at regularly spaced intervals to show the progression of a long period of time in a short film. The technique is to use the photos in the same method as a regular animation of around 12-24fps. Short time lapses can be done by speeding up a regular paced video, though longer time lapses use photographs. The typical time lapse to use video would be the speeding up of people in a busy environment, possibly the movements of traffic, or the speeded up drawing/editing of a picture.

The decision to use video and the size of the interval between shots is entirely dependant upon how much of the shot will change in that time and how long you plan to show in the time lapse. For the blooming of a flower, intervals can last anywhere between 5 minutes at a time and 15; for the progression of a day, anywhere between 5 and 30 minutes; for a lifetime in time lapse, it could be a day, a week, a month or even a year.