Shaky Time Lapse

Paul Harvey · Jan 7, 2026

What could cause this? It wasn't windy and I wasn't even holding the controller. It doesn't always do it

Any ideas?

Dale D · Jan 8, 2026

Paul Harvey said:
What could cause this? It wasn't windy and I wasn't even holding the controller. It doesn't always do it,

Any ideas?

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I gave up doing time lapses with a drone several years ago and I documented it here on the forum. I did numerous sunsets in calm weather and no winds at a low altitude (100 feet) and got very unstable footage despite stabilization in post. I was told that it imposssible to erect a tripod in the sky and that the drone always moves a small amount. See my thread from Jan. 17,2025 and this video. Click this link
Sunset Over Coral Gables

Kilrah · Jan 8, 2026

Will always be. If you want the best output have it save the individual images and edit/stabilize in post.

Dale D · Jan 8, 2026

Kilrah said:
Will always be. If you want the best output have it save the individual images and edit/stabilize in post.

I have used RAW-DNG) image timelapses since I learned LRTimelapse 2015. Even with individual images timelapse generated by LRTimelapse and stabilised in Adobe Premiere Pro still did not fix ther wobble. I no longer do sunrises and sunsets without a tripod on soldi earth.

Dale

Paul Harvey · Jan 8, 2026

@Dale D and Kilrah...

Here is what my Air3s time lapses usually look like:

Dale D · Jan 8, 2026

Paul Harvey said:
@Dale D and Kilrah...

Here is what my Air3s time lapses usually look like:

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I am always willing to learn- can you tell me the steps you used?
e.g.: Camera mode>multiple exposure>????next, next, next, ???? My drone interval will only go as low as 2 sec interval.

Paul Harvey · Jan 8, 2026

Dale D said:
I am always willing to learn- can you tell me the steps you used?
e.g.: Camera mode>multiple exposure>????next, next, next, ???? My drone interval will only go as low as 2 sec interval.

I didn't change anything from the defaults except the length of the final video (from 5 seconds to 10). Camera mode was Auto with a 2 second interval.

I've done the exact same with every drone: Air2s, Air3, Air3s, and Mini 5 Pro with the exact same results. Until this shakiness started.

Kilrah · Jan 9, 2026

Possible the fact the good one is in full daylight makes a difference and the built-in stab can't work as well in backlit conditions.

But to me the "good" one is also too unstable in the first place so

Paul Harvey · Jan 9, 2026

Kilrah said:
Possible the fact the good one is in full daylight makes a difference and the built-in stab can't work as well in backlit conditions.

But to me the "good" one is also too unstable in the first place so

"Unstable?" It looks awful smooth to me. Hmm...hadn't thought about the daylight thing, thanks

Churchbuilder53 · Jan 10, 2026

Dale D said:
I gave up doing time lapses with a drone several years ago and I documented it here on the forum. I did numerous sunsets in calm weather and no winds at a low altitude (100 feet) and got very unstable footage despite stabilization in post. I was told that it imposssible to erect a tripod in the sky and that the drone always moves a small amount. See my thread from Jan. 17,2025 and this video. Click this link
Sunset Over Coral Gables

Don't give up. It is a beautiful video. Even Walt Disney time lapse nature videos had movement but the central object remained mostly stationary. I ran your video through proDAD Mercalli with AI option. The sun is smooth but the bigger picture still has some movement which is to be expected.

Churchbuilder53 · Jan 10, 2026

Paul Harvey said:
What could cause this? It wasn't windy and I wasn't even holding the controller. It doesn't always do it, but it does often enough to be a PITA!

Any ideas?

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Hello Paul. Time lapse is not perfect but still a great technique. Nature videos of time lapse will always have, say a plant, moving because that is what they do. I ran your video through proDAD Mercalli (with AI on) and got the attached result.

Occams Razor · Jan 10, 2026

Paul Harvey said:
What could cause this? It wasn't windy and I wasn't even holding the controller. It doesn't always do it, but it does often enough to be a PITA!

Any ideas?

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Mine are never rock steady. Were you using the telephoto lens? Also, wind conditions at elevation can be much different than at ground level.