App makes time lapse photography easy for iPhone

iPhone TimeLapse Test from digitalurban on Vimeo.

Here's a fun application. TimeLapse [App Store link] uses your iPhone's camera to take photos at regular intervals. You can have one photo snapped as infrequently as every 24 hours, or as often as every 10 seconds, which is about as fast as it can snap and store a photo. After you've collected all of your photos (I told it to stop after 300), you can easily dump them into iMovie or QuickTime Pro and make a simple time lapse movie. Neat!

You can set a delay before it takes a shot, which means you can also use TimeLapse as a timer to allow the photographer to get in the frame. Additionally, it could work as a rudimentary surveillance camera. While it's running, a display lists when it started, the time of the last picture taken and the approximate time of when it will stop.

Here are a couple of things I learned while briefly playing with it this afternoon. First, mute your iPhone before beginning or you'll have to hear the camera's "capture" noise over and over again, which is kind of annoying. Also, enable Airplane Mode or an incoming call will interrupt your photoshoot.

For $0.99US, TimeLapse is fun.

[Via Digital Urban]

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Source: http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewSoftwa…

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iPhone TimeLapse Test from digitalurban on Vimeo. Here's a fun application. TimeLapse [App Store link] uses your iPhone's camera to take...

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smak

Would be better if the app actually made a movie instead of just taking 10000 pictures for you to figure out later.

lame.

February 05 2009 at 6:28 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Philip S.

This would be really nice to use in combination with PhotoSynth. Just walk around a place holding the phone very still as you walk, and put all the images in. Bam!, a full 3D tour of wherever you are.

February 05 2009 at 12:35 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Kostas

"After you've collected all of your photos (I told it to stop after 300), you can easily dump them into iMovie or QuickTime Pro and make a simple time lapse movie. Neat!"

How exactly do you "easily dump them into iMovie"? Just wondering...

February 05 2009 at 7:15 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

nvidia2008

Very nice and interesting. Not very good weather though :)

February 05 2009 at 2:59 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

Tom

I don't think iMovie 08 can do a time lapse video. I know iMovie 6 could, and I'm not sure about 09

February 05 2009 at 12:20 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

JKT

This idea seems cool but I'm pretty much tethered to my iPhone since I got it 6 months ago. I use it for so many things that leaving it to take a few hours of movie shots just ain't gonna happen. :-)

February 05 2009 at 12:12 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

deucethreat

don't you hate it when color bars fly in front of your camera during a time lapse? That always happens! ;)

February 04 2009 at 4:45 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

sodapop

Cool app. Now if only I can find an app that will make the Apple AV Cable for the iPhone useful. Right now it only plays iTUnes on the tv. It doesnt even allow me to show my pictures :(

February 04 2009 at 3:39 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

1 reply to sodapop's comment

exnewt

There's at least 2 Apps for jailbroken iPhones that put a lot more out thru the AV cables...

February 04 2009 at 9:07 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

brian

This is neat, and as a practical note for those who don't know, iMovie can do time-lapse movies as well. (Not sure where it is in 8 or 9, but it was in 6.) Works with an attached camera or iSight. And since a laptop or camera on a tripod is stable and not taking phone calls, it's a little easier than standing perfectly still with your phone. :-)
http://www.creativetechs.com/iq/create_timelapse_videos_with_imovie_hd_6.html

February 04 2009 at 2:41 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply

jmetts

Giving it a shot right now while at work "working". Gonna timelapse my office. Boring and cool.

February 04 2009 at 2:21 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Reply