Start with the camera you actually have

A RAW time-lapse begins as a set of still images. DNG is a format for storing RAW image data and associated information; it is not itself a finished movie. The useful question is whether your camera module exposes RAW capture and whether your chosen app can save a sequence from it.

Android’s Camera2 RAW capability is reported per camera. A phone with several lenses does not necessarily offer the same capabilities on every module. Before planning a long shoot, select the intended camera and save a few DNG frames. Open them in the editor you plan to use and confirm that the files are usable.

UltraLapse supports RAW/DNG sequences on compatible modules, JPEG sequences and HEVC time-lapse video. Its available camera controls depend on the device. Check the current listing for supported features rather than assuming that another phone’s settings will be available on yours.

Work backwards from the finished video

Decide how long you want the finished clip to play, and at what frame rate. A 24-second video at 30 frames per second needs 720 images. To capture those images over one hour, an interval of five seconds is a useful planning starting point: 3,600 seconds divided by five is 720.

The free time-lapse planner makes these relationships explicit. Its schedule starts with an immediate frame and counts captures before the end time. Actual capture timing can differ, so treat the result as an estimate.

Make a deliberate setup

  1. Choose a stable viewpoint and check the edges of the frame for unwanted movement or obstructions.
  2. Choose RAW when your next step is editing individual stills; consider JPEG or direct video when that better fits your workflow.
  3. Choose an interval, then check that your intended exposure leaves room for the camera to finish the capture. Test the combination rather than relying on a theoretical maximum.
  4. Where your device supports it, set focus and exposure deliberately. Watch a short sample for visible changes in brightness or focus before leaving the sequence running.
  5. Check power, free storage and the conditions around the phone. Run a short rehearsal using the same settings you intend to use for the full capture.

There is no universal cloud interval or shutter setting. A fast-changing scene and a slowly changing scene ask different things of the sequence. Compare short tests and choose a result you like.

Measure a real file

Take the size of a test image from your camera rather than borrowing a file-size assumption from another phone. If a frame is about 25 MB and the plan needs 720 frames, the source images alone need about 18 GB in decimal units. Leave additional room for app files, working copies and exported video.

This multiplication is a planning estimate. Image sizes can vary, and a long session may be limited by storage, power, temperature or capture delays. The planner does not predict those conditions.

Check the editing workflow before the long shoot

Open a short sequence in your intended RAW editor. Review exposure and color adjustments across several frames, export a small test set, then assemble it at the intended playback rate in your chosen video workflow. Keep the original DNG files until you have checked the finished export and your backup.

The correct toolchain is the one you have tested with your actual files. This draft does not promise compatibility with a named external editor or give an untested in-app menu sequence.

Sources and scope

Reviewed on October 18, 2026. The arithmetic examples are planning examples, not recorded performance measurements.

Free time-lapse planner · All Lab entries

How anamorphic 3D illusions work · How interactive 3D live wallpapers work on Android · A Lab that works before JavaScript