[vimeo http://www.vimeo.com/18213768 w=500&h=283]
That video is epic. I’ve always found time-lapse photography so interesting…. well, I’m going to figure out how to do it. I did a little poking around last night reading about how to do it and such, and it seems like I have the means to make it happen, so why not? I think I’ll even “live blog” about the process, starting tonight when I get off work (I’ll update this post with timestamps…. that work?). I can’t promise success, but who knows, maybe I can figure it out and do some fun stuff.
7:30pm…. I totally forgot to blog as I did this. I did a little research, and unfortunately neither of the two cameras I have are capable of time-lapse photography… without a litte modifying. I don’t like the sound of that… so I’ll be working exclusively with my older camera, a Canon Powershot A720IS. I found what seem to be some simple instructions here, so I shall forge ahead. The Bruins game is on now, though, so goings will be slow as I now multitask.
8:04pm…. I’ve hit a snag. Following the instructions, I’ve downloaded the script to do something or another (hell if I know what it does… lol)… but I can’t download the build of the CHDK thinger that I need to install to make my camera work. That’s problematic.
8:08pm…. Snag avoided. For some reason Chrome couldn’t find the page to download the build, but Safari found it no problem. Peculiar…. but this is why having multiple browsers at your disposal is handy, kids!
8:11pm…. And another snag. A roadblock, perhaps. I run the script, but an error message comes up, claiming the memory card is locked. There’s a little lock switch on the card, and it confirms it is unlocked. Tried it “locked”, still got the same thing. Hmm.
8:22pm…. Success! Thanks to the Do It Yourself Camera Repair Blog, I found a fix for the locked card claim… and CHDK is successfully installed on the memory card. What’s next? Not sure!
8:44pm… So, apparently I did something wrong, because the card wasn’t bootable. Sooo, I downloaded an app to do it right and make it bootable. Just installed the CHDK again… let’s see if it works this time….
8:45pm…. Hot shit, it worked! AND when the camera turns on, this bright blue light flashes in the middle of a button… I never even knew that was a light lol. Now to figure out how to apply this CHDK thinger to do some magical things.
8:58pm…. I’m still reading into all the different things my camera can now do… but I’ve found something both humorous and frustrating. This camera works just fine, still takes good photos, but for whatever reason, it claims the batteries die VERY quickly, even if they are fresh and still have 100% of the juice in the battery. I’m fiddling with the camera now, and its flashing it’s usual “low battery!” warning. Well, the CHDK puts a battery percentage on it’s display. So, now, simultaneously, my camera is telling me the batteries are at 100% AND are low. Le sigh. I’ll be needing an external power source before I go much further, I see.
10:15pm…. Took some time off to finish the Bruins game and ate…. Canon sells power sources for $50 (!), whereas Amazon has comparable ones for as little as $10. So, yeah, some more tinkering is in order… if I can get it to take pictures appropriately, I’ll go forward with buying the stuff I need. Starting to get excited. I’m such a geek.
10:50pm…. Success! I found a script, input the script, changed some settings…. any it all worked! So, the external power source (and a tripod… but that’s super simple to procure) is all that stands between me and some time lapse photography. Well, that and knowing what to set shutter speeds and the ISO at… but that’s something I can figure out with my newer camera while I wait. To, project temporarily suspended…. but it’s a success thus far!
