Time Lapse Video's while docked at night

[Laszlo]

Will be docked in Bermuda for two nights in a few weeks. We have a forward cabin on the Gem with a huge balcony. I was hoping to do some night time lapse of the stars with my GoPro. I've done them from home and they turn out very nice. If the stars are bright I do a 20 second exposure. Has anyone tried this before? I wondering if the moment from the ship will be too much?

[Re-tired]

Too long without a reply...   I think that the movement of the ship might be an issue,   But what the heck, it's not like you are going to ruin a roll of film.  Give it a try and if it doesn't work out it's no big deal.  If it does work out show us the result...

[Heidi13]

On 6/7/2024 at 6:10 AM, Laszlo said:

Will be docked in Bermuda for two nights in a few weeks. We have a forward cabin on the Gem with a huge balcony. I was hoping to do some night time lapse of the stars with my GoPro. I've done them from home and they turn out very nice. If the stars are bright I do a 20 second exposure. Has anyone tried this before? I wondering if the moment from the ship will be too much?

 

The ship's movement can depend on many factors. Winds and tide are the obvious, but passing vessels can also cause considerable movement at the berth.

[peety3]

I did time lapses on two of our Alaska cruises. Last I recall, I set a DSLR for aperture priority with safety shift, I think ISO 200 or 400, f/8, and had an intervalometer fire the camera once a minute. The camera essentially stays at the ISO I chose, tries to stay at f/8, and chooses a shutter speed for a reasonable exposure. If it's real dark, it'll top out at 30 seconds, at which point safety shift kicks in and opens up the aperture to try to salvage the exposure. This does result in a noticeable shift in motion blur as it gets dark, but I think it also tells a neat story.

 

Our 2012 Vancouver to Anchorage/Whittier cruise in time lapse: Playlist of time lapse videos by day

Our 2015 "Alaska Sampler" cruise in one video: four days in eleven minutes

 

I do recall forgetting to manage my memory card(s) on that Alaska Sampler so the card filled up even though I kept the batteries happy. There's a tiny jump but it's hard to notice.