Intervalometer on the trail

I tried out a little gizmo for my Canon T2i, priced b/w $20-40 (Canon's is $150), that I bought on the Internet. It's an intervalometer, or a "remote switch with digital timer" that plugs in at the side of the dslr:

Aputure brand intervalometer on Amazon (mine is a Shutterboss from B&H)

Here's what it does:

Time lapse, the Grottos outside of Aspen

Although it should be apparent (wasn't at first to me), an intervalometer doesn't shoot video, but a series of images that you later combine in a post-production program like Windows Live Movie Maker to create a "clip."

On a hike or bp, this is a great way to capture time-lapse clips of sunsets, clouds against mountains, a flower blooming, etc.

Upside:
These things are light. It only adds under 5 oz. to your pack (with the two AAA batteries included), although you'll definitely need to carry a light-weight tripod for the thing, so there is more weight.

Downside:
There are several negatives to overcome. First, you'll definitely slow your hiking party down. It takes a minute to set up, then you're taking five-minutes worth of shots for a 10-second clip. They just might leave you behind.

Second, these cheapy intervalometers are missing an important "on-off" button. So you have to take one of the batteries out to save them when not in use.

I'm still trying to figure out how to lock the mirror up during the shooting sequence (it's done in a custom menu.) Because shooting a sequence of 100 images is a lot of mirror-banging.

There is another way to take time lapse to insert in a video and that is to shoot the scene with the camera on a tripod, and then in the post-production program, like Windows Live Movie Maker, you just double the speed of the clip. I used this on the clouds-and twin-peaks clip in the following video -- it's at double the normal speed.

I love being able to do video (and time lapse) along with high-res stills with the lightweight Canon T2i, but have lots to learn to get it perfected. Here's a 5-minute video of a trip last week to Aspen that included a hike (more of a "posthole") to Crater Lake since we ignorantly left the snowshoes back home in Denver:

Aspen, early June, 2011.

BTW, the intervalometer has several functions (two, interval and continuous-shot are used for time lapse.) It can also be used for extra-long exposures at night or for stars in the sky, the Northern Lights and more.

It's too bad CHDK hasn't been ported for it yet - then those extra features wouldn't weigh anything.

As my nerd (and proud of it) brother is fond of pointing out, "SMOP" (simple matter of programming). My first digicam--a Kodak P880, has the feature built in, as do several Ricohs. I suppose it's trickier with a dslr, but still.

Anyway, very cool videos! I look forward to seeing more.

Cheers,

I put together a short (1:44s) video of a few time lapse clips taken last month in the San Juans.

San Juans

The clips were all taken campside using one of these .

It is cheap and almost toy-like, with no on/off switch -- you have to take a battery out to conserve power -- yet it works well. Used with a dslr on a lightweight tripod and set up campside at sunrise or sunset, and it can do all the work for you while you relax or cook dinner.

Sweet! Definitely says "fall."

Hope you're ready to explain to the whippersnappers who Mr. Hendrix is.

Cheers,

Another short video of using a cheap (<$20)intervalometer on ur DSLR -- or any digital camera with that remote plug:
(Hike & video done with my left hand held above my head.)

I think with that music, your last scene should say "Fin" instead of "The End"

Like, say, Fellini, but less baroque?

This is very cool. I've recently purchased one of the intervalometers but have yet to really try it. I've been reading that you can upgrade the firmware in the canon DSLR to "magic Lantern" This has time lapse built right in to it. (among other features.) I've been looking at getting a 60d. Might go this route.