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Gorgeous Timelapse Blu-ray and 4K "TimeScapes" now shipping

post #1 of 58
5/27/12 at 4:39am
Thread Starter 
Hey, I wanted to post this here for you to be aware of. One of my idols in timelapse, Tom Lowe, has finished production of his first full-length movie. The trailer is fairly light on details of the movie but at the very least it's compelling demo material!

http://timescapes.org/

What's especially interesting is that he is selling Blu-ray, DVD, download, AND two high-res options: 2560x1440 and 4K via USB stick! I ordered the Blu-ray.

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post #2 of 58
5/27/12 at 7:51am
I could not find any details on 2560K & 4K playback or how many gigs they are. The 2560K appears to be a not yet available download.
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post #3 of 58
5/27/12 at 8:08am
That information doesn't seem to be up for the 2560k version, but it says this about the 4k:

The TimeScapes 4k version is only suitable for displays with a 4K resolution.
The file is a single 14 Gigabyte mp4, with a bit rate of 40-80 Mbits at 4096 x 2304 pixels.
We will send you a file to copy to your computer, so we cannot offer refunds or returns.
Please ensure your system can play back a file like this. You will likely need a very fast hard drive or a RAID system and a multi core processor.
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post #4 of 58
5/27/12 at 3:57pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dan Average View Post

That information doesn't seem to be up for the 2560k version, but it says this about the 4k:

The TimeScapes 4k version is only suitable for displays with a 4K resolution.
The file is a single 14 Gigabyte mp4, with a bit rate of 40-80 Mbits at 4096 x 2304 pixels.
We will send you a file to copy to your computer, so we cannot offer refunds or returns.
Please ensure your system can play back a file like this. You will likely need a very fast hard drive or a RAID system and a multi core processor.

That's what I suspected, iffy computer playback. Not sure if there is 4K display drivers yet.
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post #5 of 58
5/27/12 at 6:43pm
40-80Mbps? That's surprisingly small. At most, that's only 10MB/sec. Even the slowest hard drive on the market is capable of at least 60MB/sec sustained transfer rate... Hard drive speed won't be the bottleneck for this unless your hard drive is horribly fragmented. The bottleneck will be your CPU and/or graphics card. If you can play BD on your system with plenty of power to spare, you should be fine.
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post #6 of 58
5/27/12 at 8:10pm
Looks like the situation is still very much in flux re: the 4K version:

http://www.reduser.net/forum/showthr...=1#post1015038

Quote:


BTW, our 4K strategy is changing a bit. We are going back to a 30GB 4K file on a USB stick, but will also be offering a higher-end version, for real home-theater buffs -- a 130GB Cineform 4:2:2 version of the film that will ship on a USB 3.0 external drive. Still working out pricing and such.
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post #7 of 58
5/28/12 at 10:27am
Wow, awesome! Of course, the cheapest external USB 3.0 HDD I can find online is about $65. Add $20? $30? $40? for the feature itself? That's one expensive release. It's small potatoes for someone who has 4K equipment, I'd wager.
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post #8 of 58
5/28/12 at 9:23pm
Looks like good work. I have no interest in 4k, and wish they had left out the people shots, but I like HD scenery loops, so I'll give it a look.
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post #9 of 58
5/29/12 at 4:32pm
The trailer download page is inaccurate, the 2560p is actually 1440p.
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post #10 of 58
5/30/12 at 11:01am
what aspect ratio? 16:9? I hope that we could have a scope version of this....You guys should look out for the sequel to Baraka, which is showing up in select theaters this summer!
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post #11 of 58
5/30/12 at 11:27am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by KBMAN View Post

what aspect ratio? 16:9? I hope that we could have a scope version of this....You guys should look out for the sequel to Baraka, which is showing up in select theaters this summer!

Hmm... good question. I'm guessing 16:9 given the trailer.
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post #12 of 58
5/30/12 at 3:25pm
How long is the film?

How long is the Making-Of?
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post #13 of 58
5/30/12 at 4:51pm
Hello all,

I'm involved with this film, so can answer some questions if you like.

The film is 48 minutes long, the behind the scenes are 18:23, 13:22, and 6:29 (there are three).

Movie is 16:9 4k - 4096 x 2304.

The H264 4k is 31 Gb and the cineform version is 180Gb 12 bit.

Cheers!

Nigel
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post #14 of 58
5/30/12 at 4:51pm
Only thing is that UHD "4K" (3840x2160p) seems to be the standard they are going with for consumer products since it's ~1.78:1 and 1080p can be easily upconverted to this res.

I don't know if they'll go up to 10 bit video, etc. or not. The actual standards are not set yet.

The only thing critical I have to say about the film from the trailer is that the shots of people intermingled with the awesome timelapse photography just doesn't do it for me.
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post #15 of 58
5/30/12 at 4:54pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dan Hitchman View Post

The only thing critical I have to say about the film from the trailer is that the shots of people intermingled with the awesome timelapse photography just doesn't do it for me.

It was a step down pq wise from the rest as well.
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post #16 of 58
5/30/12 at 5:10pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by nzastromonkey View Post

Hello all,

I'm involved with this film, so can answer some questions if you like.

The film is 48 minutes long, the behind the scenes are 18:23, 13:22, and 6:29 (there are three).

Movie is 16:9 4k - 4096 x 2304.

The H264 4k is 31 Gb and the cineform version is 180Gb 12 bit.

Cheers!

Nigel

Was this shot with RED Epic 5k cameras, by any chance? Or like Ron Fricke's timelapse work, custom 65mm cameras?
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post #17 of 58
5/30/12 at 5:22pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by nzastromonkey View Post

Movie is 16:9 4k - 4096 x 2304.

The H264 4k is 31 Gb and the cineform version is 180Gb 12 bit.

180Gb file size? What is that going to be put on? That would be one massive download.
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post #18 of 58
5/30/12 at 5:23pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by wuther View Post

180Gb file size? What is that going to be put on? That would be one massive download.

You're right, we'll be sending it on a hard drive. It's really the videophile option.
The biggest download is the 2560x1440p version at 6.2Gb.
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post #19 of 58
5/30/12 at 6:03pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dan Hitchman View Post

Was this shot with RED Epic 5k cameras, by any chance? Or like Ron Fricke's timelapse work, custom 65mm cameras?

Hey dan, yes Tom had one of the first Epic Cameras. The slow motion was shot at 5k on the Epic.

The Time-lapse is all Canon cameras, shooting raw stills at over 5k. The whole lot is down sampled to 4k for editing and mastering, and then to various resolutions for playback.

To my knowledge it was also the first film to be finished in 16 bit Tiffs. The company that did it did Social Network and Dragon Tattoo.
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post #20 of 58
5/30/12 at 9:33pm
Sweet!

I'll definitely check the film out even with my stylistic trepidations of the blending of people dancing and partying... with awesome nature photography. I don't see how the two go together. Unless Tom is trying to compare and contrast, like Ron Fricke's IMAX film Chronos, the beauty and serenity and timelessness of nature and the ancient world with our crazy, hustle-n-bustle modern-day existence.
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post #21 of 58
5/31/12 at 5:44am
Are we humans and our rituals and customs not a part of nature as well?
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post #22 of 58
5/31/12 at 8:58am
The proper way to see this would be in a 4k theater. Any chance of a screening in NYC?
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post #23 of 58
5/31/12 at 11:38am
Quote:
Originally Posted by nick_danger View Post

Are we humans and our rituals and customs not a part of nature as well?

We're chaotic and out of balance and destroyers of nature, even though we are animals within the same web.

I like how Ron Fricke brings these two opposing forces together in his films to make a statement. We'll see how this one stacks up.
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post #24 of 58
5/31/12 at 12:08pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dan Hitchman View Post

We're chaotic and out of balance and destroyers of nature, even though we are animals within the same web. I like how Ron Fricke brings these two opposing forces together in his films to make a statement. We'll see how this one stacks up.

I don't see the separation. Beavers build dams, locusts wipe out vegetation, red tides kill countless sea creatures, bacteria and viruses kill of humans in droves, oil naturally seeps up from the depths to pollute soil and water, volcanoes pollute the air and kill off entire populations of animals and humans alike. While our ability for destruction is greater than other animals due to our intellect (or lack thereof) and tools, we're still a spec in the grand scheme and system of the natural order. The opposition of man and nature is illusory. I'd argue that our ability to identify our destructive habits and stop them make us better than other animals - not worse.
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post #25 of 58
5/31/12 at 12:52pm
We know what we're doing is wrong and we know our role in fouling our own nests, and yet we keep on doing it (in fact, we're ramping up).

Look at the statistics of who is frequenting our national parks... very few young people. It's like they've tuned nature out and instead replaced it with video games, Twitter, and Facebook.

We'll be the losers for it.
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post #26 of 58
5/31/12 at 2:33pm
Hi Nigel!

The cineform version certainly is intriguing. Any information about pricing for this option yet? I don't see a 180GB download as problematic - I would rather have this as premium download (takes about 40 minutes with my internet connection) than getting this on hard-disk. Sending a hard-disk by mail overseas is probably not the best of ideas. And it adds to the costs - which will not be "cheap" for cineform I take it ;-)

Kudos for this amazing project and its uncompromising execution!

Quote:
Originally Posted by nzastromonkey View Post

Hello all,

I'm involved with this film, so can answer some questions if you like.

The film is 48 minutes long, the behind the scenes are 18:23, 13:22, and 6:29 (there are three).

Movie is 16:9 4k - 4096 x 2304.

The H264 4k is 31 Gb and the cineform version is 180Gb 12 bit.

Cheers!

Nigel
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post #27 of 58
5/31/12 at 8:19pm
I just posted here about why those with 4K capabilities should get the 4K Cineform version of this film. Earlier this month, I hosted the world 4K premiere with the Sony VW1000 and a full 7.4 Seaton Sound system at minus 2.0 dB, which I posted about here.
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post #28 of 58
5/31/12 at 8:39pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by TheLion View Post

Hi Nigel!

The cineform version certainly is intriguing. Any information about pricing for this option yet? I don't see a 180GB download as problematic - I would rather have this as premium download (takes about 40 minutes with my internet connection) than getting this on hard-disk. Sending a hard-disk by mail overseas is probably not the best of ideas. And it adds to the costs - which will not be "cheap" for cineform I take it ;-)

Kudos for this amazing project and its uncompromising execution!

The cineform option is up now... we've priced it at $299. Now that might sound like a lot, but it will include a hard drive, fedex, and probably a lot of emails back and forth getting it to play back (installing the cineform codec, which I doubt most people will have). This is basically the same quality as the master which we down-res to make the other versions from.
To be honest this is not intended to be a money spinner, and 99.9% of people will and are going for the 1080p versions which are priced pretty competitively, $15 for the 1080p download.

There's the $99 H264 version and we also go through all formats right down to SD.

Oh and from my hometown of wellington, some of my friends were saying 7 hours for the 1080p download (it's 20 minutes here in New York). 180Gb download is not really an option for a lot of the world!

Anyway, some 4k owner friends said we should offer it, and not just the H264.
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post #29 of 58
6/1/12 at 2:20am
Quote:
Originally Posted by nzastromonkey View Post

The cineform option is up now... we've priced it at $299. Now that might sound like a lot, but it will include a hard drive, fedex, and probably a lot of emails back and forth getting it to play back (installing the cineform codec, which I doubt most people will have). This is basically the same quality as the master which we down-res to make the other versions from.
To be honest this is not intended to be a money spinner, and 99.9% of people will and are going for the 1080p versions which are priced pretty competitively, $15 for the 1080p download.

There's the $99 H264 version and we also go through all formats right down to SD.

Oh and from my hometown of wellington, some of my friends were saying 7 hours for the 1080p download (it's 20 minutes here in New York). 180Gb download is not really an option for a lot of the world!

Anyway, some 4k owner friends said we should offer it, and not just the H264.


Hi Nigel,

thanks for adding this option. I am afraid $299.- is too rich for me. Can you give me an email contact to discuss this further. I am in the nice position of running my home theater completely by a HTPC setup. So I am good to go with Cineform (I use this format for my own content as well). Is this version 4:4:4 or 4:2:2 12bit encoded?

I have had contact with fugueness in the past discussing matters like Seaton equipment. When he gets excited about something I know I will as well... ;-)
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post #30 of 58
6/1/12 at 2:28am
One more thing, Nigel. Can you make a trailer/sample of the cineform encode available to test? Thank you very much!
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