Everest - A Time Lapse Film

Elia Saikaly spent two years in the Himalayas shooting 44,069 still images to create 108 time lapses, all of that was edited down to the less than three minutes you can watch above. He writes:

Some technical breakdowns of this short time lapse film:

€¢108 total time-lapses and set ups over two years in the Himalayas
€¢44,069 still images created
€¢Edited down to 26 shots, 1,896 stills or 2 mins and 18 seconds pending how you do the math

That means 82 shots or 42,173 stills are on the cutting room floor!

These time lapse Images were captured as high as 6200m (camp 2) above sea level on Mt. Everest. We slept at 6000m for three consecutive nights on the summit of Mt. Lobuche East waiting for a glimpse of Everest from that vantage point. Around 11pm on the 2nd night, the skies opened up and the top of the world revealed herself in all of her glory.

No where else on the planet have I ever seen the Milky Way so clear, so vivid and so very much alive. It takes a great deal of discipline to stay up all night capturing the magic for the world to experience. Cameras freeze.Shutters freeze. Batteries freeze. Humans freeze. The high altitude environment is debilitating at best. Your body is taking a constant beating by the low levels of oxygen in the atmosphere. The higher you climb of course, the worse this becomes.

And yet… this is heaven on Earth for me. This is my comfort zone. This is where I feel alive. This is where the combination of my love for imagery, astrophotography, storytelling and connection with the mountains all intersect. I toss logic out the window on clear nights and run all of my cameras until all batteries are exhausted, CF cards are filled and the sun re-emerges for yet another beautiful day. It’s my oxygen. It fuels me. Energizes me. And keeps me in a flow state.

My tribute to Everest – In Time Lapse.