Time Lapse Cityscapes

October 14, 2006 6:08 PM

This video (set to The Album Leaf's "Outer Banks") is an absolutely gorgeous bit of time lapse photography, all shot around a cityscape I couldn't recognize. Watching it made me think of this movie, which is another bit of ethereal time lapse urbanscape beauty, this time shot in a city I did recognize (downtown Los Angeles & LAX initially, San Francisco later). Direct download 480p version of second film here. Of course, watching the second film reminded me of this previously posted third film (Rivers of Light, by the Grass Collective) involving cityscapes(downtown L.A. again - flash based preview here), this time in slow motion, and without audio. All links are quicktime, and HUGE, but highly recommended and very, very pretty.
posted by jonson (19 comments total)

Apologies for double posting that Rivers of Light film, but it fits so nicely with the first two, and I figured anyone who likes them would probably be a fan of RoL as well...
posted by jonson at 6:08 PM on October 14, 2006

i do really enjoy these videos, they are stunningly beautiful. for the first one, however, i feel a lack of greater purpose or story to the video. what is it saying, other than, "we can do time lapse really f-ing well"?
posted by localhuman at 6:14 PM on October 14, 2006

Yeah, looked cool, but once you've seen a couple of time-lapse videos you've seem them all.
posted by matthewr at 6:18 PM on October 14, 2006

I tried to find more information on that one, localmotion, but I started to believe (perhaps incorrectly) that it's just one guy's reel that he set to Outer Banks without getting permission from anyone. I could be wrong, but I don't think it's an official music video. As for the purpose/theme, you're right, it's not quite as visually effective as the others, but the music is really great.

Consequently, the lack of sound on Rivers of Light diminishes it significantly. Fortunately kliuless was kind enough to solve this problem in the prior thread.
posted by jonson at 6:20 PM on October 14, 2006

I've seen all the Qatsi films, and I still enjoyed these. A lot of that was due to the music in the first, which was lovely. Ta!
posted by Jon Mitchell at 6:20 PM on October 14, 2006

once you've seen [one] you've seem them all

That said, the second one was great. Thanks jonson.
posted by matthewr at 6:25 PM on October 14, 2006

The best part of any of them is in the 2nd one, above LAX. Notice how each plane just winks into existence along the flightpath, and how they all follow the same trail. Sublime stuff...
posted by jonson at 6:30 PM on October 14, 2006

jonson, I always get a little excited when you post because it's always such good stuff! Thanks!
posted by LeeJay at 6:43 PM on October 14, 2006

I think the city in the first video is San Diego.
posted by c:\awesome at 6:48 PM on October 14, 2006

Also a good bit of time lapse fun is Netlag from Pleix.net which has been linked here several times.
posted by LeeJay at 6:51 PM on October 14, 2006

Thanks, LeeJay! And thanks for the cool link to Netlag as well.
posted by jonson at 6:57 PM on October 14, 2006

2x on it being San Diego. The skyline toward the end gives it away as the uncontended King of Southern California cities.
posted by chachee at 7:02 PM on October 14, 2006

Damn, I love the Album Leaf so much and had been thinking of making a video like this. So awesome. Thanks.
posted by patr1ck at 7:06 PM on October 14, 2006

Does anyone know what the music is behond the second video? It sounds awfully familiar. A film score?
posted by LeeJay at 7:45 PM on October 14, 2006

You know, I don't mean to knock someone else's attempts at creativity, but the first video in the links just seemed really weak. Someones first attempts at using an intervalometer. There wasn't much attention paid to the composition of the frame ... most times, it seemed like they just plopped down the camera any old place, and turned it on. It all seemed very high-schoolish and amateur. Given more practice and attention to details, I think they might get somewhere, but they're not there yet. (And I mean that in the most constructive-criticizing way possible.)
posted by crunchland at 8:08 PM on October 14, 2006

It is indeed San Diego (and the surrounding area, Anza Borrego desert). The Album Leaf are from San Diego. Their new album is quite good.
posted by shoepal at 8:50 PM on October 14, 2006

It's going to be hours before this blasted HDTV boner subsides.
posted by CynicalKnight at 8:53 PM on October 14, 2006

Notice how each plane just winks into existence along the flightpath, and how they all follow the same trail.

This timelapse photo of one plane on a flight path did the rounds recently - don't know if you saw it.
posted by carter at 8:21 AM on October 15, 2006

When I've seen the Album Leaf before, they've projected videos onto the wall behind them while they're playing songs. I don't have the capabilities to watch any of these, but it seems entirely possible that they might be their concert videos. I haven't seen them in a while, so I can't really determine from the descriptions here whether that's the case or not.
posted by LionIndex at 11:06 AM on October 16, 2006