1.- Shoot in JPG

No, no and no! There’s no discussion about this. You must think of this extension as if it were the devil himself. If you are a professional or just have some appreciation for what you do, I`m sure you never shoot in JPG. So when you do time-lapse you should avoid this type of file as well. Just because you shoot lots of pictures does not mean you can use a more compressed file. Many bad images do not make a good one. JPG File works in 8bits, while RAW works in 12 or 14bits, this means greater depth of color and gradation between levels. And you’ll notice this especially when editing an image. If you still have doubts, here you can see the histogram of a photo in jpg after a simple levels adjustment. Notice how there are steps in the histogram, which means lack of information, posterization, etc.. In the real image it means… “DISASTER!”

2.- Use short shutter speed

If there is one thing that differentiates a professional time-lapse from an amateur one, is the proper use of the shutter speed. This is basically due to ignorance of the concept “Motion Blur”, which helps to create a natural, pleasing blur effect of each of the 25 or 30 frames that make the clear image that we will see later. Therefore it is essential to use long shutter speeds of between 1/3 and 3s. Although in many cases you can use a longer exposure, always depending on the interval you are using. To achieve these exposures at daylight is essential to use a neutral density filter, also known as ND. It amazes me how many people spend $ 5,000 on a camera and lenses and don`t have a single filter in their backpack. To show you that no one is perfect, here is one of my first videos, back then I did not know about Motion blur. You can see the weird flicker in moving cars and people due to high shutter speed.

3.- Mix actions at different speeds

Something that bothers me quite a lot is to see shots in which there are actions at different speeds. As those images where the timelapser is determined to capture a sunset over a city full of people and traffic. Obviously the intrepid timelapser select an interval of at least 10s to capture the entire path of the sun to until it sets, quite right. But as in the foreground we have people walking or cars passing very quickly, each of them will be captured by our camera in just one frame, disappearing in the next, in which there will be other new elements. This produces an inconsistency in the movement, altering the continuity. The result is chaotic clip with no flow at all, a real horror!

4.- Framing moving plants in the foreground

With this advice I`m sure I will not make many friends, but I have to say it, moving plants, especially when they are in the foreground, look horrible in time-lapse. Every time I see a time-lapse with plants in a windy day and without using a long shutter speed, I shiver like them. If you can not pull up plants or have no other element to include in your frame, at least use a long exposure, at least 3 or 4 seconds, it will help to smooth the shivering, I mean … the movement. This is a good example, the well-known video of “The Mountain” of TSO, here you can find both incredible shots of Milky Way in Canary Islands as mediocre floral compositions.

5.- Attempt to time-lapse everything

Indeed time-lapse is trendy, certainly has many applications and there are many applications for timelapsing. But to think that everything can be timelapsed is a big mistake. The time-lapse technique has a clear use as a cinematic tool, it lets us see time passing by, things that otherwise would escape our perception. But remember that the time-lapse is a very specific feature, it speed up our shot, no matter how short we set the interval, we always get a faster footage than real life. By this I mean, that some situations simply do not work well faster than real time . Not to mention where there are hardly any movement, those where the time-lapse has little to add. Choose your subject well and make sure that seeing it sped up it is a good idea. There are a lot of good examples out there, just take a look.

6.- Focus only on the movement

This is a major mistake made by amateurs of photography. This is very common in the community. It is when someone has started to shoot time-lapse without learning photography. They don`t care about framing, composition, light, and even less the subject to be photographed. For them any street where cars pass by, (the more movement the better ) is the best subject. There are people walking in foreground, cars behind and clouds in the background. They will put down their tripod and try to capture it all. But you’re interested in photography, light, composition, and you want your shot to make sense, have emotion and transport the viewer into a magical world where they have never been. So care of every detail of your time-lapse as if it were a still photograph. I always ask my students to imagine have one roll of film, where there is just one shot left, so they have to make the best use of it. Only after finding the right subject, framing, light and emotion, we can think that we have a memory card that can hold thousands of pictures. Now you can set an interval and shoot your time-lapse.

7.- Abusing of camera movements

This is quite popular right now, and is closely linked with the above advice. If there is something that fascinates the viewer it’s the camera movement, and is well know by the timelapser. That is because they don`t miss any opportunity to use the motorized slider, even if is not necessary. Personally I think you have to move the camera when this movement really brings something to the shot, or at least doesn`t distract from the most important, the subject. But it seems that today people care more about technique and mastery of camera shake than the image that is being captured. Thus we find many videos on the net where you can see how the creator has put more effort in programming the slider in the composition or light.

8.- Retouching too much

This is another element that shows the filmmaker desire to impress the audience and the community of “amateur filmmakers”. Among the excessive camera movement, the other tool that the timelapser has to produce “wow” images and get thousands, or millions of visitors is over-retouching. I`m talking about that aggressive process with surreal textures on buildings and dramatic skies. Images that remind us of Harry Potter. I am not against HDR, this has its place and its audience, and can handle if it fits with the subject and story. But I can get it when it’s used to hide the lack of quality in the key elements of any video, which for me are the composition, the light, the subject, and specially story and emotion. As always, there are plenty of examples. But I want share this because it is very close to me, as it was filmed in my county, Castilla la Mancha, Don Quixote country, which I have always seen in other tones. Can you imagine the old gentleman riding in the scenary of the young wizard? Neither do I.

9.- Use the music of Sigur Ros

In the last three years it seems that all video made in time-lapse had to have the music of Sigur Ros, or even better, let´s use one of Hans Zimmer, no no! Carmina Burana! … or any other musical epic like it, it’s a timelapse! It has to be epic! No, not all the videos made with time-lapse must have a epic track, or use the music of the famous Icelandic band. Since the release of their documentary “Heima”, there have been many timelapsers who have made videos of Icelandic landscape accompanied by the music of Sigur Ros. It’s not very original and I would say that too obvious, but still make sense if is used for Icelandic landscape. But what we should not do 3 years after this fever, is to use the music of Sigur Ros for a video about Argentina! My advice, be original, seek suitable music for your story, with the same emotion as your pictures, but be careful it hasn`t been used previously in a similar video. Seriously, there are thousands of artists, millions of songs, there is no need to use the same tracks over and over again.

10.- Upload your video to Youtube

Finally, you should never upload your video to Youtube. The image quality offered by this website is terrible and the compression applied to the videos is very high. Also your video is lost among millions of clips of cats playing with balls of yarn, video tutorials of how to make gluten-free bread and other visual gems. What you want is to upload it to Vimeo, where the quality is pretty good and you will get in contact with a community of filmmakers from whom you can learn a lot, and with whom you can share even more.

Conclusion

With this article I want to share some of my experience in this area, so you can avoid the same mistakes I made 3 years ago, when I started practicing this technique. At that time, there was little information on the network, and we had to go through the typical way of learning, trial and error. I hope these tips have been helpful whether you’re a beginner or experienced filmmaker. As you can see, as well as other’s videos I used one of my videos as example of what not to do, because I think no one is perfect, and everyone can and should continue learning. Please feel free to share any comment or thought. I will be happy to discuss.

Si quieres profundizar mas sobre el time-lapse y practicarlo sobre el terreno, quizá te interese alguno de mis talleres.

A couple of weeks ago I decided to give away a free place in my next timelapse workshop in Iceland. Many of you took part of this competition and I`m sure you are wondering if you are the lucky one.
Well, now is time to know the winner.
But In case you are not the lucky guy, I want to remind you that still are a couple of spaces available in the workshop. Please ask me without hesitation; info@enriquepacheco.com
Here all the info about the workshop

For those of you that wanted to know how I picked the winner, just let you know that I used an app that does it randomly, in case the winner can`t or don`t want to come to Iceland, I will choose another one until I find someone who does, sounds good uh!!?? maybe you will be the one.

When I put my hands on the little Sony RX1 for the first time, I didn`t think that it was going to be the main camera to shoot one of my videos. Much less if I required very high technical performance for time-lapse footage of northern lights, video at 50 fps a slider, etc..

The Sony RX1 is undoubtedly a very special camera, due to its Full Frame sensor 24 x 36 mm, its 35mm fixed lens and its small size, it has been designed to become the perfect companion for the photo-journalist and social photographer. I do not think Sony’s engineers’ plan was for this camera to be used for making professional videos, even though it includes video option, as this is obligatory today in most cameras.

The promising qualities of this little gem, as the magnificent Zeiss Sonnar T *, the ability to record at 50 fps in 1080 as well as its small size, made me think it could be interesting and challenging to do a video with this camera in Iceland. For this, I had to manage with a little ingenuity and some skill, the limitations it suffers when performing both video and timelapse. So in this article I will try to explain how I solved these limitations, not forgetting of course describing the performance of the camera in both photo and video mode.

Operability
The Sony RX1 is a high-end compact camera, ideal to carry around everywhere you go without being noticed. It is not designed for use as a DSLR or camcorder, it does not have many of the advantages of these cameras, so shooting a video with it was bit tricky. At first I thought because of its fixed lens my options would be limited, as I was about to make a video in Iceland where the landscape would be the protagonist, which in many cases require a wider or longer lens than the 35 mm Carl Zeiss Sonnar T *.

My surprise was that working with this fixed lens not only did not limit my creativity, but it enhanced it. I was forced to see nature in a different way, to move around the scene, to get closer to objects, seek for fresh and exciting framing. Something I thought was impossible, as I was filming in locations I had visited many times before, as I conduct workshops in this area of Iceland quite often.
So I have to say though in my backpack had a Sony A99 with a good set of Carl Zeiss lenses,I didn’t need to take it out, and returned home without taking a single shot. The small size and weight of the Sony RX1 beat the heavy bag with the A99 and lenses, that stayed kept in the car for the entire trip.

In most of the shots I used a KietaCAM slider, without tripods, with only the fantastic legs that come as standard. The Kietacam and Sony RX1 became a tool as practical and creative as compact and lightweight. Lighter and smaller than a DSLR with a tripod, I could get shots with a stunning visual strength, easily adapting the slider to the scene and situation of each spot. Transforming the lack of tripods and other accessories in new creative possibilities, finding new and fresh angles. Perhaps the biggest drawback I found on the RX1 regarding my A99 was the lack of folding screen. After you get used to this feature is very hard not to miss it, especially coming from several years at Canon.

Battery
Not everything would be to my advantage, and I knew that when I got into this adventure, and some might say it was a risk, shooting a video with a compact camera of this kind. Perhaps the biggest problem I had to face was the short duration of the battery of the RX1. On the web there is a lot of talk about the few shots that holds the battery, but if what we do is video, where both the screen and the sensor are constantly running, and if we work at the low temperatures of Iceland, the battery of the RX1 sometimes did not last more than half hour. Also Sony has decided not to include a charger in their new compact cameras, this is certainly a mistake, especially if we talk about cameras in this price range. In the RX1 the battery should be charged using the USB cable, connecting the camera to your computer or plug. As result we can`t charge a second battery while using the camera. I solved this problem with a universal charger, which adapted to the RX1 batteries so I can charge the extra battery while using the camera. With such high consumption, the RX1 used more batteries than I had time to charge, in many cases a battery was unable to make a full time-lapse, even less at night, where exposures were about 20 seconds.

The solution was to connect a 5v external battery to the RX1 using a micro USB cable. This battery provided a more prolonged autonomy, although not as much as would have liked, especially on cold nights in Iceland. Another thing to mention is that due to the small size of the camera and the position of the battery at the bottom we have to remove the tripod plate each time you change the battery, which is quite uncomfortable, and could have been resolved better. As I said earlier, this camera is designed as a pocket camera, working on tripods is not a priority.

Menu and other features
The RX1 menu is as simple as practical, especially if you’re used to work with Sony cameras like the A99 or NEX. In my case, after two years working with these cameras, it took me just a few minutes to get familiar with the set up of the RX1.
Once again Sony provides perhaps the biggest advantage over most DSLR or CSC, the ability to record at 50 fps Full HD or 1080p. So we can get fluid slow motion effect on our shots without sacrificing high resolution image quality. Another handy feature is image stabilization. When this option is activated, it applies a small crop to the image, which is not much problem, because if we do it via software afterwards, we would get the same result. But lets dig into what I`m sure interests you most, problems, weaknesses and how to overcome them.

The first major problem I encountered is the lack of any help to focus in video mode. While in photo mode we have peaking, magnification and of course autofocus, all this disappears when we move the dial to video mode (always speaking in manual mode). I do not understand what Sony’s engineers were thinking when decided not to paste the lines of code that activate these functions in the firmware, even though the NEX cameras or the A99 have these options. When working on video in manual mode there is no possibility of confirming our focus, and to rely on the screen is little more than an act of divine faith. The solution? As simple as annoying, move the dial to photo mode or any other program, where the magnification works, focus on the desired point and move back the dial to video mode to push record.
What happens with the exposure? Do we have histogram? Like the Sony A99, the histogram does not work in video mode. Why? I guess they also forgot to activate it in the firmware, because I don’t think they felt it was unnecessary , as it is essential. So I checked the exposure while in photo mode, like with the focus.
I have to say this, if the RX1 and A99 are designed for both photo and video, why not enable the two options in manual mode? I do not understand the need to change the mode dial every time I take a picture after recording a video clip, or vice versa. If Sony decides to activate this option, this will make our work easier and also will help to sell more cameras.

Lens
The quality of the lens of the Sony RX1, the Carl Zeiss Sonnar T * 35mm f / 2, is beyond any doubt. Even wide open the performance is fantastic. As I said earlier, the fixed lens made me think it would be very limited, but that limitation did nothing but enhance my creativity when seeking new compositions and points of view. In addition the aperture of f2 allowed me reduce the exposure in my timelapse of the Northern Lights to half against the f2, 8 that I use in the Zoom on my Sony A99.
This means that I could make double the shots with the RX1 than with the A99 in the same time. The Carl Zeiss Sonnar T * features a ring for manual iris control, and this is a great advantage when making video and time-lapses, being very handy to avoid flickering when timelapsing as well. What really missed in this lens were the focus marks and hard stops at the end of the length of the ring. I truly think that a camera of this level and distinctly retro and manual style, should have had these features. Having had marks or stops, would have been enough to focus manually in many situations, solving the lack of magnification or peaking.

Time-lapse
From the beginning I knew that to do time-lapse with a compact camera would be an exciting challenge as potentially hazardous. But I was surprised when I realized that the Sony RX1 had neither connector for remote control or infrared sensor for the remote activation, as you can find in the Sony NEX cameras. Sony has decided to include in this latest generation camera, a trigger system we could call … vintage. I am talking about the classic manual trigger cable, the one we used in our old film cameras. After confirming that this was the only option, I went to my local store and bought one of this old cables, which provided the necessary blocker. How did I create my time-lapses? How to set the interval? When shooting at daylight I used ND filters to allow me set 1 or 2 seconds of shutter speed, then choose continuous shooting mode on the camera and block the trigger. This way as soon as the camera ends one exposure it starts the next one, so that the interval is rather controlled by the exposure time. A bit limited yes, but quite effective, and also long exposures are much more fluid and aesthetic when we do time-lapses.

Shooting at night, in the case of the northern lights, obviously did not need the filters, and the choice of the exposure is the key again, and also in this case there was no difference between the RX1 or shooting with a DSLR because I never use interval between shots when shooting at night, firing continuously to avoid jumps in the final image. I have to say that I always shot at full quality, 24 megapixel RAW and using SanDisk Extreme III never had buffer problems.

Image Quality
I think the image quality offered by the RX1 is excellent beyond any doubt. In both video and pictures, this little feat of technology has proven to be at the standard of the DSLRs. Even in situations as complex as the Northern Lights, which are shot at ISO 3200 with exposures of 20 seconds, the images generated by the RX1 showed a low level of noise and a very good resolution. Also a fantastic response to the high contrast of these scenes.

When I first opened the video files of the RX1, they surprise me with great resolution, something that we have not used with DSLR. This resulted in a very low level of aliasing and moiré, producing a very clean image. Also the dynamic range is at the highest level. As I have seen in this shoot, facing high contrast situations, with bright ice on dark volcanic sand, the Sony RX1 has performed better than many of the high-end DSLR. I can’t emphasize enough the uniqueness of having the image quality of a high-end DSLR in a pocket camera. It’s just brilliant.

Conclusiones
What at first appeared as a whimsical challenge with uncertain results has become a rewarding and enriching experience. It has given me a new way of seeing and capturing a landscape that I thought had nothing new to offer me.
While some of the limitations and disadvantages of the Sony RX1 were difficult to overcome, others like the fixed focal length, were key to the success of this work. But the exceptional qualities of the RX1 are what made this work different from the rest. The small size and weight, ease of use and fantastic image quality of the RX1 resulted in a video with a professional quality and visual freshness difficult to achive with any other compact camera.
I think this video is the perfect proof that the model of camera is not as important as the way you use it, and that even with a compact camera you can do interesting work if you put effort , creativity and a little ingenuity.

If you liked this images, you might want to come to one of my workshops

Prints available by request. info@enriquepacheco.com

A4 High quality print. 70$
A3 High quality print. 120$
A2 High quality print. 200$

All prints will be rolled in a tube. International shipping included.

Do you have a passion for photography?
Do you want to travel around Iceland?
Do you want to learn time-lapse technique from a professional?

Now you have a chance to win a free place on the next Time-lapse Workshop in Iceland with Enrique Pacheco: Link

How? very easy…

1º. Subscribe to his mailing list: here
2º. Like his Facebook page: here

And that´s it, on April 19th Enrique will contact the winner with the big news.

Good luck.

The Maghreb from Enrique Pacheco on Vimeo.

When I decided to go to Morocco to film “The Maghreb”, I knew I would need gear that could cover all situations that I’d find in a country with so many possibilities. I needed at least two good DSLR for the time-lapses, many of them at night, and a camcorder that allowed me to record at a high frame rate to get slow motion footage. I also needed a motorized slider, a stabilizer and of course a good set of lenses. In the next post I will describe what I chose and more importantly, why I chose this equipment and how I used it.

DSLR cameras: Sony A99

When I heard that Sony was going to release a full frame DSLR I showed interest in this camera, knowing Sony was going to be innovative and include features that professionals like me are demanding as a must have. Shooting in places like Morocco, where dust and sand are a constant, it is essential to have a camera with a sealed body, this is no secret and most brands offer this feature in high end models, but having also a foldable screen in this kind of body is a bonus. For me, this feature is a must, since I love shooting with the camera at ground level and also put it on the slider in that position. If the screen is fixed you have to lay in the ground and get dirty or wet to be able to check the frame.

Another quality that is essential to me in a DSLR is low noise at high sensitivities, between 1600 and 3200 iso, because when shooting night time-lapses I have to keep the shutter speed under 30s, in order to get the stars sharp and to avoid trails. Here the Sony A99 Performs fantastically, offering a very clean image without color noise, although the noise luminance is evident from ISO 3200 is easily fixable in Ligthroom.

The electronic viewfinder or EVF and its partner the translucent mirror are not inconvenient for me- but quite the opposite. The EVF allowed me to frame in any kind of situation while showing me information like level, histogram, etc.. And the translucent mirror helps prevent camera shake in long exposures, since the camera has no moving parts that could transmit vibrations to the shot, apart from the shutter of course, but with the A99 you can eliminate the first click of the shutter, replacing it for an electronic one.

In short, the Sony A99 performed perfectly in all difficult situations that I encountered, I had no problem shooting in the most demanding locations, proving that it is a professional tool that you can trust to the highest technical level.

Camcorder: Sony FS700

Choosing the Sony FS700 as the camcorder for this film seemed obvious, first for its ability to record up to 240fps in FullHD, and second by having NEX mount, which allowed me to use all the great Zeiss lenses from the Alpha series, which I had already for the Sony A99. To be able to carry just one set of lenses for two different systems is a great advantage, not only to save space and weight in your backpack, essential when making a trip by yourself with no assistance, it also helps providing consistency and continuity to the look of the final image. Not forgetting of course the cost savings from not having to buy two twice the same focal lenghts. The lenses I chose where the zooms 16-35mm f2.8 and 70-200mm f2.8 and the primes 24mm f2 and 50mm f2.8 macro.

Before traveling to Morocco, I did several tests with the FS700 to determine the settings where the camera performs best, both in dynamic range and image compression. Regarding dynamic range, the chose of the color profile in the menu is what mainly determines how the camera will distribute the stops. First I tried the custom profile LOG type from Abelcine, but then I realized that while delivering an image with a wide dynamic range, very flat and low contrast, apparently ideal to grade, tended to lift the shadows way too much, producing excessive noise even at his nominal sensitivity, 500iso. After several tests I concluded that the profile that best suited my needs was the Cinema6 of the camera, which was still quite flat but has an optimal noise/contrast correlation. This is quite subjective of course, so I will say that this is just my opinion and suited the look I wanted for this particular film.

Regarding the frame rate, I used 50fps for most of the shots, since the quality is as good as 25ps, and 200fps for the scenes where slow motion was required. While this camera goes up to 800fps, it does it by lowing the resolution and compressing the image, resulting in footage with excessive aliasing and a decrease in sharpness. For this reasons I chose the 200fps, which are more than enough to get really fluid slow motion effects, and image quality barely shows artefacts regarding 25 or 50fps.

The FS700 has built neutral density filters, this was very handy and comfortable in a shoot like this, when in most cases I did not have time to open the bag and find the right filter, it would have been more difficult to use a matte box with square filters.
Another feature that seems to be out of the list of priorities of the professional is the autofocus, I am myself against the use of it in most of the cases, but in this work is been a real help. Both NEX and Alpha lenses with LA-EA2 adapter allow continuous autofocus on the FS700, which was most convenient in the shots where I used the Glidecam HD2000 stabilizer, because I didn`t have a focus puller and a wireless remote. The results speak for themself, totally sharp and focused shots without any failure, which would have been impossible otherwise, having had to focus at the hyperfocal which becomes complicated when working with wide apertures, in the case of the dark streets of the medinas of Fes and Marrakech.

In conclusion, the FS700 has filled my expectations in terms of resolution, look and quality, as well as its ease of use and performance, not to mention its high frame rate and the ability to use almost any lens on the market by a simple adapter ring, although in this case the Zeiss lenses were the perfect company.

Motorized Slider: XLIDERCAM-M

If the camera and the optics are important, so too are the accessories that help create dynamic images. The motorized sliders have become an indispensable tool in many professional productions. Having tried many of these sliders, the economic Dynamic Perception and the expensive Kessler, I can say without hesitation that the KietaCAM Xlidercam-M is the slider that counts with the best features and performance level, as well as being easier to use. I can set it up in minutes, getting smooth and fluid movements, and what is most important to me, thanks to its control by a Tablet and a specially developed application, I get accurate information about interval, shot duration, and clip length.

The XLIDERCAM-M has two powerful and accurate motors, providing both movement along the rail and horizontal pan. It may seem heavier and bigger than other sliders, but not so much considering that it has both movements. I have traveled with it to places like the USA, Iceland and Morocco and have never seen a problem in its size or weight. Its robustness and reliability make it a the most professional tool. I don`t want to travel to a place like Morocco and miss the perfect shot because the slider lets you down in the middle of the dunes. The costs of such a trip and the time is worth much more than the money you can save on more economic and less reliable tools.

I hope this article helps you to understand a bit more how professionals work and why we choose the equipment according to the needs of each project.
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Morocco is a country that awakens in the photographer a desire for adventure.
From the green mountains of the northern Rif to the arid and warm desert of Erg Chebbi, Morocco offers endless opportunities to get those fantastic photographs that we have always dreamed of.

This trip to Morocco was certainly one of the most rewarding and enriching I have done so far, both for traveling alone and for the magnificent results that I have achieved. I was very lucky with the weather and the people who kindly helped me throughout my stay.

And it was also very important the formidable equipment I have used: DSLR Sony A99 and Sony FS700, lent by Sony Spain, and Xlidercam-M, lent by KietaCAM. Therefore I would like to express my deepest gratitude to Javier Agueda, Belen Arronte and Jose Hernandez.

Morocco is one of the essential destinations for any photographer looking for adventure, unique images and to discover the culture of Islam. This North African country appears to have been frozen in time, with cities moving to the rhythm of the markets, artisans and calls to prayer. In Morocco you can experience the feeling of being in the middle East, through its people and culture, and photograph the beautiful landscapes that form the exotic desert of Sahara, Todra Gorge and the Draa Valley.
The itinerary of this tour has been carefully designed to allow time to enjoy exploring and photographing the Moroccan culture and landscape, with plenty of time spend at each location, adjusting schedules to accommodate sunsets and sunrises. Discover the beauty of Morocco and improve your technique in creating motion pictures with Enrique Pacheco, a truly expert in this field and an experienced instructor. Join us on this great adventure, Africa is waiting for us!

8 days / 7 nights (October 9th to 16th)
- Level: Medium
- Terrain Difficulty: Class 1 (paths without difficulty)
- Price: 1.250 €
- Maximum number of participants: 12
- Reservation: info@enriquepacheco.com
- Included: experienced local guides, transport in Morocco, accommodation in double room, breakfast, camel excursion in the dunes, 4×4 excursion,
- Not included: Other meals, international flights, travel insurance.

Highlights
-Imperial City of Marrakech
-Todra Gorge
-Erg Chebbi Desert -Sleeping in Berber camp
-Draa Valley
-Photograph authentic Kasbahs
-Getting to know the local culture

Itinerary

Day 1:. Arrive at Marrakech We pick you up at the airport and take you to our hotel, and after some rest we go to explore the vibrant streets full of stalls and shops of all kinds. Discovering corners to capture these genuine images of everyday life in the old medina of Marrakech. Dinner at the famous Yama el-Fnaa, where you will experience traditional cuisine in stalls coming from all across the country.

Day 2: We leave Marrakech and head towards our next destination Skoura, but first we cross the big Atlas Mountains, reaching 2.260m. Skoura is a privileged village situated at the foot of a palm grove that spreads like an oasis between the Atlas and the desert. Here the magnificent views of the palm grove will provide us with many exciting photographic opportunities. The impressive Kasbah, Ait Benhaddou, (famous for appearing in films such as “The Mummy” and “Gladiator” ) is another great location for night photography and timelapse work.

Day 3: We enjoy a powerful Moroccan breakfast, and head to the desert passing beautiful spots like Elkelaa M’Gouna and Todra Gorge. Our destination is the small town of Hassi Labied at the foot of the Erg Chebbi desert, where we will enjoy our first night in contact with the warm sand dunes and a starry sky. Once we are there it would be imposible to resist a night of astro-photography!

Day 4: After a few hours sleep in our comfortable hotel, we will go to the nearby town of Risani to visit its traditional market place where locals buy and sell all kinds of goods. This is also a fantastic scene of genuine local culture . However the highlight comes in the afternoon when we ride camels and enter the desert dunes of Erg Chebbi, to spend the night in an authentic Berber camp. Here we can photograph both the sunset and the night scenenary, a unique and unforgettable experience.

Day 5: If you still have any energy after last night, it is worth using the opportunity to photograph the sunrise over the clean dunes. After that we enjoy a complete breakfast in our camp before heading back to our hotel in Hassi Labied. It may be worth taking a small nap before our next activity, a 4×4 route around the dunes of Erg Chebbi, visiting nearby towns, nomads, abandoned mines and other interesting locations. At night, after a good dinner we will have another opportunity to get into the dunes to capture the starry sky.

Day 6: We start our way back, but this time we choose the southern route, which will take us through the stunning Draa Valley with its deep canyons, ancient Kasbahs and palm groves surrounded by deserts. We stay overnight in a genuine Moroccan Riad, to rest by the side of a great landscape to photograph both sunset and night images.

Day 7: Final stage of our trip, we complete the path that runs between the Valley of the Draa and Marrakech, where we will arrive before sunset to enjoy the Yama el-Fnaa square, the perfect place to capture the sunset behind the mosque. In the evening we will taste the local cuisine while sharing our experiences of this fantastic journey.

Day 8: Transfer to the airport, or if you have extended your stay, a perfect day for shopping in the wonderful souks of the old medina.

What to bring:
- DSLR Camera
- Tripod
- Memory Cards, at least 16Gb
- Camera Remote
- Laptop or external hard drive
- Warm cloth, it’s cold at night.

SPONSORS

This workshops will bi sponsored by Sony and Kietacam, so the participants will have the chance to use and enjoy DSLR cameras like the Sony A99 and advanced motorized sliders such the Xlidercam-M, as well as jib cranes and stabilizers.

Fes, Capital of Islam.

The first stop on my trip, and one of the great attractions of it, was the city of Fes. This imperial city is the capital of Islam in Morocco, as well as religious and cultural center of the country.
Because of this and its great traditions of craftsmanship, the three days I spent in this city were very productive resulting in fantastic images of Islamic architecture, art, street atmosphere and its people.

One of the most picturesque places that the photographer can find in Fes is the tannery, located in the old Medina. That location that captivated me for hours. There you can see, and for a few Dirhams also photograph, an ancient way of working that’s is quite a show – I mean the process of dyeing and tanning leathers.

But in the old imperial city of Fes agglutinate all types of artisans such as blacksmiths, potters, weavers, etc.. I would need to make a one-hour documentary to show everything that I shot there in just three days. This combined with the marvelous madrassas, or Islamic schools, covered with beautiful details carved in wood and plaster, give this city a cultural and artistic uniqueness.

Merzouga and Erg Chebbi, the desert.

The next part of my journey is certainly the one that has characterized it the most – my arrival to Merzouga and Hassi-Labied. These two small villages are just 50 km away from Algeria and are well-known for being at the foot of the Erg Chebbi desert. This sea of dunes is 22 km long and 5 km wide and is a delight to any photographer. These are the images of sand and adventures we’ve all seen in the National Geographic magazines.

It’s easy to feel like a pioneer when exploring a landscape as unique and impressive as this, but even more so if you do it on the back of a camel and are being guided by a genuine Berber. The experience of spending the night in the middle of the desert dunes next to a camp fire with just your guide, your camel and your photographic equipment, make the whole trip and the thousands of kilometers totally worthwhile.

Both sunrise and sunset are magical at the dunes. The soft light of this time of year (February) bathed the crest of the steep dunes to make them shine like brass artisans.
But it was the night that caught my attention even more – the night with millions of stars that crowded the entire sky, leaving little room for the emptiness. That’s because the night was governed by the new moon, which facilitated the capture of the Milky Way.

Skoura, the oasis of thousand palms.

The small town of Skoura is known as a traditional stopping place for caravans of camels, coming from the desert with goods, which later will be sent to the big cities.
But what characterizes this fantastic place the most is its location near majestic Kasbahs and especially the edge of a vast palmery that’s under being protected by UNESCO and is known as the “Oasis of the thousand palms”.

I enjoyed getting lost in the lush greenery of the palmery and went to photograph the sunset from the roof of a Kasbah.
But undoubtedly the highlight came at night. I talked to the manager of the famous Kasbah Amridil, known for appearing in numerous movies and commercials, to let me get on the roof of this Kasbah-Hotel and enjoy the amazing view. I shot the great view of Kasbah for several hours under the starry sky, carefully exposing to compensate the difference between the bright Kasbah and the dark sky. I think that the result speaks for itself.

Marrakech, the Imperial City.

The last part of my trip, at least photographically speaking, brought me to the city of Marrakech. Here a traveler or photographer will find a busy city, filled with vendors of all kinds as well as improvised guides that offer their services to take them anywhere.
There are many attractions in Marrakech – it’s full of Mosques, Madrassas, souks and of course the main square “Djemaa el-Fna”, where in the evening you can find countless performances of music, dancing and of why not, food of all kinds in stalls that fill the esplanade.

Perhaps the most enjoyable filming locations in Marrakech are the narrow streets that run through the old and chaotic medina. Here the light comes through the roofs covered with wooden slats, timidly reaching the shops installed inside. Dust from continuous activity in the partially paved streets does the rest. What a visual feast!

Another place that fascinated me was the Menara Gardens, a peaceful green area just minutes from the city center. It’s a place to go for a walk when the evening falls to escape from the noise and bustle of the busy center.

Conclusion.

Morocco has exceeded all my expectations as a traveler and even more as a photographer/videographer. This is a country where they know how to welcome visitors in every possible way – offering warm hospitality, always willing to help you to get to the location where to capture the best pictures, sometimes in exchange for a few dirhams. Well deserved in most cases.
This has been a very special and successful trip party cause of improvising my itinerary and adapting it to the needs and emotions of the moment.

I will definitely return to Morocco soon, as this country has caught my eye, and I can`t wait to re-experience its magic. I hope that next time I will be accompanied by many of you. Would enjoy sharing my favorite places with friends and colleagues.
See you soon!

Made on Earth from Enrique Pacheco on Vimeo.

Todos conocemos esas impresionantes imágenes donde el mundo parece ir a gran velocidad. Escenas que en la vida real son tan lentas e incluso inapreciables a nuestra vista, son transformadas por esta técnica en rápidos movimientos. El Time-lapse se ha convertido en una técnica muy popular hoy en día, y como cualquier otra disciplina requiere de un aprendizaje.
El objetivo de este taller es proporcionar a los asistentes de todos los conocimientos necesarios tanto en la producción como en la postproducción de time-lapses con la máxima calidad
Por ello profundizaremos en técnicas avanzadas como HDR y usaremos herramientas profesionales como dollys motorizadas, cabezas panorámicas robotizadas, intervalómetros con rampas de exposición programables, etc…

PROGRAMA

Pioneros del time-Lapse
Ajustes básicos de cámara
Trabajar en RAW
Intervalos y Frame Rates
Exponer correctamente
Transiciones día/noche, Little Bramper
Evitar y corregir Flickeos
Prácticas en exteriores, uso de sliders motorizados, timelapses nocturnos, transiciones dia/noche
Copia y backup de archivos
Revelado RAW
Workflow con LightRoom
Flujo de trabajo con Quicktime
Postproducción con After Effects
Revelado HDR
Exportar para diferentes formatos
Codecs, prores, Vimeo, etc…

Es aconsejable que los participantes traigan sus propias cámaras si tienen, para profundizar en el manejo de las mismas. También es importante que traigan un disco duro externo o su portátil para almacenar todo lo rodado en las jornadas de prácticas.

Fecha.
Sábado 8 de Junio de 10:00 a 21:00 y domingo 9 de Junio de 10:00 a 17:00. Total: 15 horas.
* La realización del taller está sujeta a cubrir un número mínimo de plazas.
El número de plazas está limitado a un máximo de 15 alumn@s

Precio: 150 €.

Escuela Evolutiva. Tecnocórdoba. Edificio CIESA. Calle Noruega, Glorieta de los Países Bálticos.

http://workshops.escuelaevolutiva.com/noticias/taller-de-time-lapse/

Formulario de inscripción aquí.