There has been a significant growth in the use of time-lapse photography in architectural and construction businesses. It is an effective way of capturing an entire project’s sequential progress within a short time-frame. Now with the exponential growth of promotional video on the web, time-lapse has massive potential as a promotional tool across many different business sectors.
The Value of Captured Moments
“Time-lapse has always had value when it comes to aspects of project management”, explains photographer and videographer Paul Adams. Increasingly we’re seeing its uses widen. Incorporating it into content adds real value when it comes to marketing”.
Paul sees time-lapse as a technique whose time has come. As a form of storytelling, it cuts right to the heart of the matter, presenting its subject in a way that is unambiguous but fascinating.
“On one level it’s very direct and almost primitive like flip-book animation”, explains Paul. “But I think it is this directness that gives it its appeal. Because it is a series of tiny captured moments adding up to a single piece, it has a kind of truthfulness. This is very powerful in marketing terms”.
Paul describes how he produced a time-lapse sequence for Dukes 92 bar and restaurant, in Manchester, who were undergoing lengthy and extensive refurbishments. They used the ongoing time-lapse record as shareable online content, to show the work’s progress to customers, and at the same time demonstrate the scale and ambition of the project.
There is an appetite for seeing how things have come together, in order to better appreciate the finished article. Culturally, this is expressed in the popularity of television programmes like Grand Designs.
Condensed Narratives
“The beauty of time-lapse photography is that it condenses narratives right down but still retains structure”, Paul remarks. “And it is not limited to any one discipline. It can illustrate the magic of a city skyline lighting up as day turns to night. It can also show how an entire event is put together from the ground up and it can demonstrate the ebb and flow of crowds within a set area”.
As the content for web-based video, time-lapse is very shareable. It can capture a lot within a short space of time, and still tell a story cohesively. It presents huge tasks as a kind of visual sleight-of-hand but actually magnifies their achievements in the process.
“Timelapse is a great way to tell stories”, Paul concludes, “and to reach audiences with something that’s intriguing and compelling to look at”.
To find out more about – and view – Paul Adams’ video work, please visit paulmarcadams.com.
Alternatively, if you believe that your next project could benefit from time-lapse photography, please call Paul on 0796 882 3147.
