Toward interactive timelapses

Timelapse was invented in order to record the progress of any project or phenomenon from its beginning to its completion. It is a type of video whose frames have been shot with a set time and using a photographic camera. Timelapse is continually developing and applied more and more in many fields such as education, construction, the observation of natural phenomenon, experiments etc. However, the timelapse viewer remains passive throughout the duration of the video without the possibility of intervention. The aim of this paper is to propose interactivity on timelapses and the implementation of a related application that showcases the interactive features. Interactive timelapse gives viewers the opportunity to choose the way they wish to view it. Furthermore, apart from photographic shots it also includes text, images, sound, music and video. This added information makes timelapse even more important and its field of application forever expanding. Interactive timelapse features are analyzed, some of which are included and used in this paper and the application. The subject of the application is the recently restored Thematic Gardens of Thessaloniki's New Coast. These gardens are a central attraction for the city, however, very little informational material is available regarding them. The application is directed to anyone who wishes to visit these gardens, especially students of all levels, as an accompaniment to their educational excursions and can be used before, during and after their visit. Primary evaluation results are encouraging and already inspire future work.