Dusk-to-Dark Time-Lapse: Looking over Los Angeles from Mount Wilson

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2005-07-14 and 2005-08-25: Mount Wilson, California, facing south-west; wide-angle lens setting: These time-lapse sequences were taken from Mount Wilson (elevation 5700 feet) on July 14, 2005 and August 25, 2005. Visibility was very good towards the south-west direction allowing one to see as far as Santa Catalina and Santa Barbara Island.

IMPORTANT NOTE: At the Internet-friendly resolution (640 x 480 pixels) used for the QuickTime movies below, one can barely discern some important details -- notably moving traffic. The original resolution of the master *.mov files are 3072 x 2048 pixels (!!), bettering HD and digital cinema by a good margin. Pioneering filmmaker, Tony Kern, developed this innovative process for his Mythopolis projects. Click here for more information.

The first image below is a still from the first T-L sequence, a dusk-to-dark transition, which was captured with an interval roughly equal to 8-10 seconds between frames (exposure time was 8 seconds).
Sample movie available on request.

The second image below is a still from the second T-L sequence shot, almost all night-time, which was captured with an interval roughly equal to 20-25 seconds between frames (exposure time was 20 seconds).
Sample movie available on request.
The first image below is a still from the first T-L sequence, a dusk-to-dark transition, was captured with an interval roughly 8-10 seconds between frames (exposure time was 8 seconds). This is an 18 mm wide-angle image.
The second image below is a still from the second T-L sequence, the second sequence, almost all night-time, was captured with an interval roughly 20-25 seconds between frames (exposure time was 20 seconds). This is an 18 mm wide-angle image.

Below: 2005-08-25; Time: 19:50: A wide-angle (35 mm) image of Los Angeles from Mt. Wilson, facing south. The sun is beginning to set in the West (right). This is the first frame of a 182-frame time-lapse movie. Each frame required 3-seconds of exposure time. Frame-rate: 24 fps. The caption labels were added to this still for geographical information; they are not incorporated into the movie. Sample movie available on request.
click for time-lapse movie of Dusk Los Angeles, from Mt. Wilson 35 mm (wide-angle)

Below: 2005-08-25; Time: 20:10: A wide-angle (35 mm) image of Los Angeles from Mt. Wilson, facing south. This is the first frame of a 164-frame time-lapse movie. Each frame required 8-seconds of exposure time. Frame-rate: 24 fps. (QuickTime movie will be posted soon.)
1st frame: Night: Los Angeles

More technical information:

My home PC cannot "run" a 3072 x 2048 movie -- the native size of the original masters used for the sequences above -- due to lack of processing power. For home viewing, I used Canopus ProCoder Express -- an inexpensive video CODEC -- to reduce the movie to a more-managable size. I prefer MPEG2 format with a better-than-DVD bitrate equal to 15.000 Mbps (the maximum allowed in Canopus ProCoder Express). I set the resolution to common 720 x 480 pixels. With these parameters set, the file sizes for the movies above are 8.3 MB and 3.14 MB, respectively. The size of the original 3072 x 2048 movies are 1.8 GB and 0.67 GB, respectively. Given the absence of data-robbing audio, one can appreciate the image fidelity of the native files, especially on very large displays. Top of page.

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Port of Los Angeles information Santa Barbara Island (639 acres), 38 miles west of San Pedro, is the smallest of the California Channel Islands. Formed by underwater volcanic activity, Santa Barbara is roughly triangular in outline and emerges from the ocean as a giant twin-peaked mesa with steep cliffs. Even though small in size, Santa Barbara Island boasts diversity in its habitats, with a few narrow rocky beaches, six canyons, and badlands area. It is much like Anacapa Island in its being a haven for sea birds. The steep cliffs and isolation from mainland predators provide safe breeding sites for thousands of sea birds. Many millions of years ago, the formation of the island began with volcanic activity on the ocean floor. Subsequent geologic uplifting and subsidence, tectonic plate movement, sedimentation and metamorphic activity along with weathering, erosion and climatic change all worked together and played off each to create the topography of Santa Catalina Island as we know it today. The rugged mountains, shallow soils and arid climate that influence today's plant and animal life are only a small part of the island's natural history.