Time-lapse images can be a great way to capture movement in the sky, countryside, cities and more. But if they have a small issue, it's that your usual viewpoint is always entirely static: the camera is fixed, while the world moves around it.

Panolapse is a tool which can change all this, by using perspective correction to create real-world panning throughout your scene. As a result, the time-lapse runs just as it did, but this time it appears as though your camera is moving around within the scene, a far more visually interesting effect. (If you're not sure what we mean, this Vimeo collection of example scenes should make things clear.)

To make this happen you must first import your images. The program only accepts numbered JPEGs (pic001.jpg, pic002.jpg), but otherwise didn't seem too fussy about naming structures, correctly loading whatever we gave it.

Adding the panning motion is then achieved by specifying its start and end point, in terms of pitch, yaw and roll (that is, its movement up and down, left and right, and any rotation). You can enter figures for this, or click and drag with the mouse.

These settings won't mean much, at least initially, but fortunately a slider offers an easy preview: just drag it from the Start to End point to get a feel for what the motion will look like, then adjust your values accordingly.

It's also possible to add a zoom factor into your video. Check "Enable zoom animation", move the slider to the End point, and spin your mouse wheel to set the zoom level you need. Repeat the process for the Start point, if necessary, and use the preview slider to check how it looks.

When you're happy with the results, click "Export frames", and the program will calculate the image resolution it's able to support (this will be less then the original because it has to accommodate your movement; that is, you're panning a small image within the larger original). You can choose to export your time-lapse as JPEGs for processing elsewhere, or MP4/ MOV images, and clicking Queue For Render > Render All will export your finished work, ready to share with the world.

Please note, Panolapse is free for personal use, with export resolutions of up to 1280x720 (import files can be whatever resolution you like). For commercial use, or unlimited export resolution, you must purchase a license.

v1.25 (Latest Version) Jan 8, 2017 - AutoExposure support for manual lenses and various minor fixes.