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A simple tool for creating a timelapse video from a sequence of photos (e.g. from a camera on a tripod). Pick a folder of photos, set the frame rate and target resolution, and the tool assembles them into the resulting video.
The project contains three independent variants with the same functionality — pick whichever suits you:
| File | Description | Requires | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
jadiv-timelapse_plus.py |
More advanced desktop GUI with a dark theme (PyQt5) — recommended version | Python 3, OpenCV, PyQt5 | Maintained |
docs/index.html |
Web version — runs directly in the browser, no installation needed | Modern browser (Chrome/Edge/Firefox) | Maintained |
jadiv-timelapse.py |
Simple desktop GUI (Tkinter) | Python 3, OpenCV |
jadiv-timelapse.py(Tkinter version) is unmaintained. It stays in the repository for people who already use it, but it is no longer developed and new bugs in it are not fixed. For new installs, usejadiv-timelapse_plus.pyor the web version.
- Create a timelapse video from
.jpg/.jpeg/.pngphotos (including large JPGs from cameras) - Adjustable frame rate (FPS)
- Optional target resolution (4K, Full HD, HD, SD, low quality, or original resolution) with aspect ratio preserved
- Shows processing progress and lets you cancel processing at any time
- Processing runs in the background (the GUI/page never freezes)
- On startup, the app (desktop
_plusversion and web version) checks GitHub for a newer release and shows a notification if one is available; the current version is shown in the corner of the window/page
You need Python 3.8+ and the following libraries:
pip install -r requirements.txtjadiv-timelapse.py additionally uses tkinter, which ships with the standard Python installation on Windows and macOS. On Linux you can install it via your package manager, e.g.:
# Debian / Ubuntu
sudo apt install python3-tkpython3 jadiv-timelapse_plus.pyRuns directly at jan-tdy.github.io/jadiv-timelapse (GitHub Pages) — nothing to install, just open the link in a browser.
It can also be run locally without an internet connection — download docs/index.html and open it in a browser (double-click, or via File > Open). In both cases the photos are processed locally in the browser and are never uploaded anywhere. The output is a .webm video.
python3 jadiv-timelapse.pyIn both desktop versions, simply:
- Select the folder with the photos.
- Choose where and under what name the resulting video should be saved (
.mp4). - Set the FPS and target resolution.
- Click VYTVORIŤ TIMELAPSE (or press Enter).
Processing can be interrupted at any time with the Zrušiť (Cancel) button.
- Photos are sorted by file name using natural (numeric) sorting — so
frame2.jpgsorts beforeframe10.jpg, even without leading zeros in the number. It's still worth using a consistent naming format (e.g.IMG_0001.jpg,IMG_0002.jpg, ...). - Corrupted or unreadable photos are skipped during processing and are not included in the video.
- MP4/WebM codecs require an even width and height for the video — the tool handles this automatically.
The natural-sort and resolution/aspect-ratio math shared by all three variants lives in a single testable place per variant: timelapse_core.py (used by both .py GUIs) and docs/resolution.js (used by the web version).
# Python (both desktop variants)
pip install -r requirements-dev.txt
pytest
# Web version
node docs/test/resolution.test.jsThe project publishes versions via GitHub Releases — the release tag is also the version shown to users (e.g. in JapySoft Code Master, which downloads the app based on the latest release, not the latest commit on the branch).
This project is available under the license found in the LICENSE file.