Panning Timelapse Motor Controller (hacked clock) ver. 1.0

[GeezerRay]

I also use a small clock motor to do the same thing. I added a ball bearing to make the rotation more stable. With the bearing, and mounting the camera so it is balanced, the tiny motor is powerful enough. Works great, though of course you are restricted to a speed of 90 degrees in 3 hours. A sample is on my GeezerRay YouTube channel. (links aren't allowed in comments) I use CHDK on a Canon camera. Sample on my channel is 3 frames per minute.

[Myleso]

Very ingenious. Been looking for such a device.

[jordan314]

This is brilliant! Thanks so much for this.

[PaulJosephDarSantos]

yOUR Genius!!!

[Dirk2enky]

Nice solution i tried it also. But here in the Netherlands we only have clocks with very weak motors, to weak for a camera. So where did you find thet clock? Thanks

[milapse]

I found it at a recycle center... Unfortunately that's the fatal flaw of this solution. It's hard to find a 'strong' clock!

[milapse]

there was a suggestion in the earlyer comments to use a 'plug timer' with a rotating face used to switch things on and off.. that's probably your best bet! I thought it was a good idea...

[Dirk2enky]

Thanks for your fast reply.

[Bluewave42]

Nice solution. I'm using a clockwork kitchen timer mechanism for my panning TLs. It rotates 360° in two hours, but always from right to left. As it's clockwork I can take it out in the field.

[InfiniteWorld]

Genius... I've always wanted to figure out how to do that with an old clock but never got around to it. I was going to buy a telescope tracking mechanism and try to hack that but they are kinda pricey. Thanks for the info.

[nybras66]

what about an old turntable with a power regulator to slow down rotation? May provide more stability and space... or may only burn the motor? :/

[PhilDBowl]

no no... the slowest a turntable goes it 33RPM... a clock is perfect... you can get 1RPH...

[grongle]

he used the hour-hand, so really it's 1 revolution per 12 hours

[AshMashMash]

Awesome, very ingenious. I have just started experimenting with using a plug in timer that you get for turning lights on/off etc. It spins around once per 24 hours like a clock, and can get some cool effects.

[milapse]

ah! now that's another good solution! I'll have an update on this one when I get some time. I made it so I can go counter clockwise as well!

[cheegum]

wow.. cheap AND effective.. cant wait to see more of your panned timelapse videos.. heres an idea.. how about you fix this camera/clock think on top of your car with a relatively inexpensive camera and go for a ride around town or something :)

[paperphoenix]

That's awesome!!! Very creative and rather inexpensive to make! I've always loved that effect and wondered how the studios mounted something like that so smoothly.

[Thairick]

Very cool. They used this effect beautifully in the movie Baraka and I've always thought it would be fun to try it. Now I can... just need to find a clock that will work. This would be a hit at parties for sure.

[WorldLapse]

Indeed! I think i got quite lucky when I stopped by the local 'recycle&reuse' shop... I hope you do to!

[sameoldmike]

this is freaking awesome! thanks so much for posting this how-to. I definitely want to do it. I need to find a nice big clock that can support my canon eos 20d + lens...

[milapse]

cool - can't wait to see more people doing this! Look for a clock with mostly metal gears and plug in is probably the best route... the trick may be a second axle for you.

[nicesmooth2k]

fantastic hack. excellent results. i'm trying to find a solution that'll hold some serious weight - dslr with larger lenses. but the clock hack sounds intriguing.

[milapse]

I think I'll make a second axle with a belt drive so I can reverse it and support more weight!

[loonitunez]

Very nice job. Whats the time interval you used between pics and how many frames per second did you use?

[milapse]

these tests where 15 sec/frame replay is around 30fps