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Education Field Instructional

How to Create an Instagram Timelapse Using Your Android Phone

Chris Gampat
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09/05/2013
3 Mins read

Chris Gampat The Phoblographer Samsung Galaxy S4 review product photos (3 of 12)ISO 4001-125 sec at f - 1.8

Ever since Instagram launched their video feature, we’ve all been fascinated by what creators can put out into the ecosphere. But something that is very valuable to us photographers is the use of a timelapse to tell stories or capture scenes in a different way. And while stopmotion video is totally possible on Instagram (though with some caveats) timelapses aren’t as simple.

But where there is a will, there is a way. And shooting your very own timelapse for Instagram is very possible–and fun!

DT Pro

For this tutorial, we’re going to recommend that you use an app called Droid TimeLapse Pro. You’ll have to pay a small fee for it but if you want to get more serious about your timelapses, you’ll realize that it is totally worth the money. It can let you set how many images it takes, how often it shoots, how long the timelapse lasts for, etc. Plus you can choose the quality of the video.

For the ease of uploading, we’re going to recommend that you choose the 720p option–though normally we would recommend that you spring for a full resoluion timelapse in case you want to do something extra with it later on.

Find Your Scene

Boot up the app and figure out what composition you want. Since Instagram has a square rendering, try to place the important stuff in the middle but also try to make sure that the full composition can be used later on for something. Despite the fact that Instagram has a square format, shoot your video horizontally. The reason for this is because at the moment, the service doesn’t allow you to flip your videos.

Turn Off the Sleep/Timeout Function

To make sure that the system doesn’t fall asleep, turn off the sleep or timeout functionality on your phone. This way, your timelapse and screen won’t be interupted while recording. In our experience though, DT Pro kept on shooting, but waking the phone up requires that you touch it and therefore throw off your composition. And in the end, that doesn’t look good for a timelapse at all.

Stabilize

Before you shoot, try to find a way a stabilize your device. There are tripod options and various hacks that can be done to stabilize your phone while it is shooting. It can even be as simple as leaning it in the right position against a window or using gaffers tape.

It doesn’t matter what you do, just do it.

Shoot

Finally, you’re ready to shoot your timelapse. When you do this, you’ll see a little counter at the bottom of the screen. Said counter will tell you how many seconds worth of a timelapse it has recorded and saved. The great thing is that the app automatically stitches the images into a timelapse movie as well.

Upload, Edit and Share

Providing that you’ve placed the important stuff in the middle of the frame, now you can upload your masterpiece to Instagram, apply your wacky filter and share it with the world.

And that’s all it takes.

Give it a shot today.

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Chris Gampat is the Editor in Chief, Founder, and Publisher of the Phoblographer. He provides oversight to all of the daily tasks, including editorial, administrative, and advertising work. Chris's editorial work includes not only editing and scheduling articles but also writing them himself. He's the author of various product guides, educational pieces, product reviews, and interviews with photographers. He's fascinated by how photographers create, considering the fact that he's legally blind./ HIGHLIGHTS: Chris used to work in Men's lifestyle and tech. He's a veteran technology writer, editor, and reviewer with more than 15 years experience. He's also a Photographer that has had his share of bylines and viral projects like "Secret Order of the Slice." PAST BYLINES: Gear Patrol, PC Mag, Geek.com, Digital Photo Pro, Resource Magazine, Yahoo! News, Yahoo! Finance, IGN, PDN, and others. EXPERIENCE: Chris Gampat began working in tech and art journalism both in 2008. He started at PCMag, Magnum Photos, and Geek.com. He founded the Phoblographer in 2009 after working at places like PDN and Photography Bay. He left his day job as the Social Media Content Developer at B&H Photo in the early 2010s. Since then, he's evolved as a publisher using AI ethically, coming up with ethical ways to bring in affiliate income, and preaching the word of diversity in the photo industry. His background and work has spread to non-profits like American Photographic Arts where he's done work to get photographers various benefits. His skills are in SEO, app development, content planning, ethics management, photography, Wordpress, and other things. EDUCATION: Chris graduated Magna Cum Laude from Adelphi University with a degree in Communications in Journalism in 2009. Since then, he's learned and adapted to various things in the fields of social media, SEO, app development, e-commerce development, HTML, etc. FAVORITE SUBJECT TO PHOTOGRAPH: Chris enjoys creating conceptual work that makes people stare at his photos. But he doesn't get to do much of this because of the high demand of photography content. / BEST PHOTOGRAPHY TIP: Don't do it in post-production when you can do it in-camera.
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