Creating Timelapse

[Alaska Country]

From my standpoint, I would have never thought that image sequence is the same as timelapse. Thus you are not alone in trying to locate that function.

In your testing, also consider a camera clone in BI. Set the 2nd camera (clone) at some other rate than 60 seconds per image and place those files in BI in a separate folder. One issue would be to not overload the computer's processing ability with additional image data. However, there is time to try and experiment and see what works best for this scenario. Have not tested this, so if used please report back.

Enjoy the total eclipse . Way too far north to see this one......

 

[gwminor48]

@Alaska Country That did it! Thank you so much! Now I can play around with the time and other settings. I've considered a clone, I'm not sure how much of a load an occasional jpeg is but it might be worth it, especially if I end up doing timelapse on more than one camera. I did put the jpegs in a separate folder, just need to set it so they don't get deleted. From what I am reading it looks like the eclipse will be 2 hours, 59 minutes so at one jpeg per minute that would be 159 jpegs. And like you said, I just hope for a nice clear day.

 

[Alaska Country]

Glad that it is working for you.

In some test have used 1000 images and it works well. It all depends on your desired outcome. The nice part of Shutter Encoder is that one can keep on reusing the same images and just change the settings.

Try setting up BI for 10 seconds and do your test with the sun. Then the length of the MP4 can be controlled by your selected FPS in Shutter Encoder.

If your looking directly at the sun with the camera make sure to use the proper amount of filtering. Perhaps a ND filter or two if looking for color or try an arc welding filter from the welding supply shop. Perhaps a number 9 or 10 would be adequate. However, these are mostly green and would work well when using your eyes, but would be more or less monochromatic for camera use.

The other consideration is when the sun is at totality the camera with the filter may not have enough light for a good image without extra gain. These may be some clues on setup procedure on the net in regard to astronomy photography sites, timelaspe or other sites that deal with eclipse imaging.

This 2021 Solar Eclipse Timelapse Was Made from 50,000 Photos

The result is incredibly smooth.

petapixel.com

How to Shoot Solar-Eclipse Images & Videos

A composite image of totality, shot from Svalbard in 2015.

eclipse.aas.org

Solar Eclipse Timelapse Photography: How-to guide

As twilight advances across the sky, there is a sense of the extraordinary about to unfold—an event that has stirred human fascination for millennia: a solar eclipse. And in the age of technology, the awe-inspiring celestial performance is an invitation to photographers and stargazers alike to...

absoluteeclipse.com

The definitive guide to not messing up your solar eclipse timelapse

The definitive guide to not messing up your solar eclipse timelapse

www.diyphotography.net

 

[gwminor48]

The nice part of Shutter Encoder is that one can keep on reusing the same images and just change the settings

Yes I like that. I will copy the jpegs to a different PC and back up in case anything goes awry at some point while I'm tinkering. I don't believe I will be able to do any shots directly of the sun but I need to order some glasses for viewing.

 

[looney2ns]

So, why are you not using BI to create the time lapse, just curious.

 

[gwminor48]

I'm not sure I have figured out how. I see the alt/timelapse option. I also see where that cannot be used with direct to disk. Shutter Encoder seems to have a lot of options for controlling things. If others have tried BI and used it I would like to hear their input.

 

[looney2ns]

I'm not sure I have figured out how. I see the alt/timelapse option. I also see where that cannot be used with direct to disk. Shutter Encoder seems to have a lot of options for controlling things. If others have tried BI and used it I would like to hear their input.

What version of BI are you using?
Methods are different in newer versions

 

[gwminor48]

I'm on 5.8.1.5

 

[pigottsm]

If you're on Windows and like playing with scripts, here's a .bat I use. (not my work - I found it a while ago. Would give credit to whoever wrote it if I knew who it was). Install ffmpeg if you don't have it and put it's path in the script. Make a temp dir. make a results dir under it. grab the block of date/time .jpgs you want and copy them to the temp dir. have the below txt saved in the same dir and a .bat file - name of your choosing. Mine's called make_vid.bat . Type that and off she goes. finished h.264 .mp4 will be in your results dir.

# echo off
# color a
set path=%path%;c:\users\administrator\downloads\ffmpeg-6.1.1-full_build\bin\
set a="*.jpg"
set b="result\video4.mp4"
set c=ffmpeg
set f=-c:v libx264 -r 15 -crf 20
set tmp="result\list.tmp"
for %%f in (%a%) do (@echo file 'file:%cd%\%%f' >> %tmp%)
%c% -y -f concat -safe 0 -i %tmp% %f% %b%
cd /d result
del /f /q list.tmp

 

[Alaska Country]

I'm not sure I have figured out how. I see the alt/timelapse option. I also see where that cannot be used with direct to disk. Shutter Encoder seems to have a lot of options for controlling things.

Made up a a time lapse using Blue Iris release 5.7.7.18.

The process is similar to exporting a video from BI.

1) Choose Set start frame and set end frame.

2) Then select convert export.

3) In the convert/export menu check time lapse. Change the default values if desired.

For the sample video, the speed multiplier is set at 80 with the Playback fps at 18.

4) Click on OK and the file will be processed.

Depending on the length of the selection, it could take a few minutes or longer for the process to complete. When BI is finished the file will be located in your selected file location. In my case the desktop.

My BI is setup to combine or cut video each to 1 hour. (i.e. one hour time blocks) If the desired video crosses over the 1 hour time frame then two time lapse selections will have to be made.

The example started at about 11:45. That clip starts at 11 am and ends at 12 noon. The second part of the desired time laps starts at noon and ends at 12:39. Thus the need for two time lapse files.

Any number of programs can be used to combined two mp4 video files. In this case, the two files were placed into Shutter Encoder and (merged) combined into one mp4 file.

The overall file size for 39 seconds of the completed time lapse is 145 megs out of BI. The merged file is again processed in Shutter Encoder set at VBR and set to use the H.264 output codec. The final file size is at 16.1 megs.

View attachment Cud_de_Sac.mp4

 

[gwminor48]

Made up a a time lapse using Blue Iris release 5.7.7.18.

The process is similar to exporting a video from BI.

1) Choose Set start frame and set end frame.

2) Then select convert export.

3) In the convert/export menu check time lapse. Change the default values if desired.

For the sample video, the speed multiplier is set at 80 with the Playback fps at 18.

4) Click on OK and the file will be processed.

Depending on the length of the selection, it could take a few minutes or longer for the process to complete. When BI is finished the file will be located in your selected file location. In my case the desktop.

My BI is setup to combine or cut video each to 1 hour. (i.e. one hour time blocks) If the desired video crosses over the 1 hour time frame then two time lapse selections will have to be made.

The example started at about 11:45. That clip starts at 11 am and ends at 12 noon. The second part of the desired time laps starts at noon and ends at 12:39. Thus the need for two time lapse files.

Any number of programs can be used to combined two mp4 video files. In this case, the two files were placed into Shutter Encoder and (merged) combined into one mp4 file.

The overall file size for 39 seconds of the completed time lapse is 145 megs out of BI. The merged file is again processed in Shutter Encoder set at VBR and set to use the H.264 output codec. The final file size is at 16.1 megs.

Thanks for that. I have my clips set at 4 hours and the eclipse here is from 12:23 to 3:02 so that will work out really well for me. I will probably do the shutter encoder method too. And with the BI method I can save the clip and try different timing. I think if I set my camera so IR doesn't come on it will be more effective.

 

[Alaska Country]

It was an interesting experiment to see how BI works for time lapse. It is another process for the tool box.

When using BI to create the time lapse, the video is taken from what is available on the hard drive IMO. If your BI settings are continuous + trigger then some of the images will not be of the same quality as if only using continuous. i.e. the desire for high resolution for all of the time lapse images. Thus it may be worth while to use only continuous for that eclipse period.

Another option, is to export your entire eclipse video file from BI and use Shutter Encoder. Did a quick trial and Shutter Encoder will take the entire video and speed it up depending on your image sequence fps settings. i.e. another option to try.

With your longer clip setting it will then not be necessary to merge any video files.

 

[gwminor48]

Thanks again! More info and options! I only record continuous + trigger on 1 insignificant camera, all other are continuous.

 

[Alaska Country]

Continuous is the best way to make sure the required detail is available. Here, only use cont + trigger as there is no need, at this time, to utilize additional storage.

Sounds like a fun project. Be sure to share the eclipse provided it is a clear sunny day.

 

[Alaska Country]

Here is an example of taking a 580 meg file that was converted in BI from and then into Shutter Encoder at 250 FPS. This is the first part of the video in post #30. Even at 250 FPS the images could use a higher FPS number to speed up the action. It is slower than what BI provides. However SE is limited at a max of 250 FPS.

View attachment Shutter_encoder_250_FPS.mp4














One important fact is that the BI BVR video files are large. For 50 minutes of video, a converted file from BI is in the range of 2900 megs. However, this is very dependent on camera settings plus if BI is set for continuous or continuous + trigger.

There is a free program that will convert BVR files into a mp4. It is called Handbrake and is available from the following URL. This would be an alternative for using the BI built in converter. Drop the BVR file into the program, change some settings if desired and produce a mp4 video.

HandBrake: Open Source Video Transcoder

HandBrake is an open-source, GPL-licensed, multiplatform, multithreaded video transcoder.

handbrake.fr

It does require the use of Microsoft .NET Core and if not installed, the program will provide a link and instructions for installation. There are other program features and usage instructions on the site.

HandBrake Documentation — Quick start

 

[gwminor48]

OK, no fantastic scenery here, no sun views, just what my cameras see. It was a mostly cloudy day and the cameras didn't seem to pick up on the subtle change in light that our eyes see so it seemed like a waste of time to show a long time frame. These are for a 10 minute period. I'm probably missing something but I tried Shutter Encoder but the lowest FPS I saw was 24 which was way too fast for such a short time period. I saved jpgs on 2 cameras at one every 3 seconds, so over 3200 jpg images on each camera over the entire duration of the eclipse. On these I am posting I used Blue Iris with a speed multiplier of 10 and 10 FPS. I turned off IR and forced color thinking it would ruin the effect to be switching to black and white when it got dark. I have saved all jpgs and BI videos so I can play around with things when I want, after all it was a rare event.

 

[Alaska Country]

With shutter encoder the lowest default setting is slightly below 24 FPS. However, one can change that field to whatever is needed. Just enter 6 or less and give it a try.

 

[Alaska Country]

Here are two time lapse examples using the Blue Iris "Time Lapse" feature. The settings are a speed multiplier of 15 for the first example and 8 for the second example. The original video for the 15X out of BI was 296 megs and for the 8X at 502 megs. BI playback FPS set at 10.0 for both.

Both of these clips were run through Shutter Encoder for a final output file size of 2.56 megs (15X) and 15.8 megs (8X). The 8X file could be further reduced if necessary. (22 seconds and 41 seconds run length)

15 Times Normal
View attachment 15_Times.mp4













8 Times Normal
View attachment 8_Times.mp4