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Time-Lapse Calculator

Plan your time-lapse frames and clip length.

How it is calculated

The tool takes the shooting duration in minutes, the interval between photos in seconds and the playback frame rate in frames per second (fps). Frames: frames = duration × 60 ÷ interval, shown rounded to a whole frame. Clip length: clip = frames ÷ fps in seconds, computed from the unrounded frame count and shown with two decimals, so it can differ very slightly from dividing the rounded frame count. All three values must be above zero. The tool assumes you shoot continuously for the whole duration at a steady interval; it does not account for pauses, exposure time longer than the interval, or the speed-up factor, which is simply the interval multiplied by the fps (here 7 × 25 = 175 times faster than real time).

Worked example

You shoot a cloud scene for 90 minutes, one photo every 7 seconds, and play it at 25 fps. Step 1: shooting time in seconds = 90 × 60 = 5,400. Step 2: frames = 5,400 ÷ 7 = 771.43, shown as 771 frames. Step 3: clip length = 771.43 ÷ 25 = 30.86 s. So 90 real minutes become about 31 seconds of video.

Try this example →

Common mistakes

  • Entering the duration in hours or seconds; the field is in minutes, so 1.5 hours must be typed as 90.
  • Entering the interval in minutes; it is in seconds.
  • Setting an interval shorter than the camera's exposure plus write time, so the camera cannot actually take that many frames.
  • Confusing the shooting frame rate with the playback fps; the interval is the shooting rate, and fps only sets how fast you play the frames back.
  • Forgetting to leave extra frames for editing, fades or stabilising, so the finished clip is shorter than planned.

About this calculator

This calculator plans a time-lapse shoot by finding the total number of frames — shoot duration divided by the interval between shots — and the final clip length once those frames are played back at a chosen frame rate (frames ÷ fps = clip seconds). Because a time-lapse compresses a long real-world duration into a short clip, getting the interval and frame rate right in advance avoids ending up with either a clip that's seconds too short or a memory card full of unnecessary frames.

Photographers and filmmakers use this to plan sunset, cloud, star-trail, and construction time-lapses, where shoot duration can range from minutes to months and the right interval depends entirely on how fast the subject changes. Content creators and YouTubers planning a plant-growth or build video, and anyone setting up an intervalometer on their camera, use this calculator beforehand to know exactly how many frames they'll need to capture and how long the finished clip will run.

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Comments (1)

  • Editorial team

    Plan backwards from the clip you want. For 30 seconds at 25 fps you need 750 frames, so a 90 minute shoot calls for a shot every 7.2 seconds: 5,400 seconds divided by 750. Try intervals around that value in the calculator until the clip length fits. Then multiply the frame count by your file size to check card space. What subject are you shooting, and how long do you plan to leave the camera running?

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