After a month of testing the Radian time lapse devices I’m very pleased to share my first of many video’s produced with them. This main image is actually a single frame from the first tests using the Radians. In this post I will be giving you my first thoughts on the Radians and a few tips together with the finer details on the video.
The Radians are a very well crafted device that should offer many years of use. The build quality is second to none and its has the feel and look of an Apple device. Its Internal Li-ion rechargeable battery is my only concern for the future however many devices these days are going for this design. The specs are 100+ hours of pan motion for a single full charge and 5-6 hours for a tilt. The App for programing the Radians is also very tidy and is available in both the Iphone and Android App Market. It does take some getting used to and could do with a few tweaks but I will leave that for another video blog post.
After playing with the Radians both at home and in the field I have a few tips and gotchas to share with you all:
- Always check the rotation direction before starting. A few of my shots started to move Counter Clockwise (CCW) not Clockwise(CW) as I had imagined the shot. Oversight on my behalf and a simple thing to check.
- Keep your movement at or below 0.15 degrees otherwise your footage will move too fast and look rather choppy. Remember that at 24fps with 0.15 degrees rotation means that the camera will move a total of 3.6 degrees in a single second of video. The App provides some great dynamic stats on how many shots will be taken, how fast the pan will be and the total run time once compiled whilst you input your desired settings.
- Not every location needs a massive pan angle. Seriously on a wide angle lens you can get away with the slightest movement. 45-90 degrees on a wide angle shot covers a vast amount of landscape.
- Use the supplied bubble level to make sure your pan isn’t tilted. Place the small level in the middle of the device behind your camera and adjust as needed. For something that only takes a second to check it will save you from a lot of disappointment come rendering the video. Its not something easily fixed in post.
Click here to view the embedded video.
The 1 minute video was compiled from footage captured completely in Coffs Harbour on two different trips from Brisbane. Actually all of the day time lapse shots were captured on the same day at Look At Me Now Headland whilst the final astro clip was captured on another trip to the area near Nana Glen. Check out the video in HD for the best experience. - https://vimeo.com/67180233
The same kit was used for all of the scenes being a Canon 40D with the Canon 10-22mm ultra wide angle lens. All of the time lapse sequences were edited and exported at 24fps from Lightroom with the use of the LR Time Lapse software plugin. I then used Adobe After Effects for bringing them all together.
I have been using the free version of LR Time Lapse for the moment but I do see some great advantages to the paid version as it can automate your keyframes for editing in Lightroom. Something a little time consuming in the free version. This was also my first introduction to the world of Adobe After Effects and whilst at first it was very daunting it was also very liberating with the control of the sequences and audio side of things. I even managed to make myself a daggy little intro movie with my new personal logo. There is certainly a lot to learn about AE but I will be sharing those experiences here on the blog.
Scene 1 – Sunrise @ Serenity Bay Emerald Beach NSW.
Scene 2 – Early Morning @ Serenity Bay Emerald Beach NSW.
Scene 3 – Final Days Light @ Look At Me Now Headland Emerald Beach NSW.
Scene 4 – Sunset Storm @ Look At Me Now Headland Emerald Beach NSW.
Scene 5 – Abandoned Homestead @ Nana Glen, NSW.
Music – ”End Credits” by Jan Morgenstern, from the 2012 short film, The Secret Number. freemusicarchive.org/music/Jan_Morgenstern/The_Secret_Number/8-End_Credits
