Video of the day: Season’s Greetings from New York City

by Meg Nesterov on

We at Gadling love a good time-lapse video. Whether it’s at a busy airport in Moldova or the many personalities on the streets of Laos, there’s something about seeing life pass by at fast (or slow) speeds that’s entrancing. With Christmas a few days away and Hanukkah in full swing, we especially love feeling festive without the crowds, the cold, and the hassle. Today’s Video of the Day is perfect for getting into the seasonal spirit of New York City without actually being there. Photographer Cris Magliozzi of health, fitness and happiness website Greatist shot the video on a walk from Central Park to Rockefeller Center, taking in some of the city’s best decorations, carolers, ice skaters, and other revelry. Bonus: no holiday music! Think of it as our gift to you.

Want to give us something for the holidays? Post a link in the comments below or add photos to our Flickr Group for our next Photo/Video of the Day.

Hat tip to our friends across the pond at BBC Travel for tweeting the link.

Watch the many personalities of Laos in this time-lapsed video

by Jessica Festa on



This time-lapsed video by Piotr Wancerz allows viewers to see the different personalities of Laos in South East Asia as well as the different events that occur in the country from morning to night. Watch as tourists and locals gather to Give Alms to the monks at dawn, people gather to swim and relax in nature during the day, and the bustling and lively markets come to life at night. The best part is that the timelapse effect makes it feel as though you are watching an entire day as it is happening instead of in pieces. The equipment used to shoot the video includes a Sony Alpha 550, a Samyang Fisheye 8mm, a Sony 35mm, a Tamron 18-200mm, a Velbon P-max, and a Pixel intervalometer.

Video of the Day – Flying over Earth on the ISS

by Stephen Greenwood on

If you haven’t seen this video since its emergence on the internet in the past two days, stop whatever you’re doing, plug in your best headphones, quit your other applications (so you can watch in silky smooth HD), and full-screen this amazing compilation of moving images.

Edited by Michael König, this time-lapse was created by stitching together a series of still images shot by astronauts Ron Garan, Satoshi Furukawa, and the crews of expeditions 28 & 29 onboard the International Space Station. Shot from an altitude of 350km between August and October 2011, the images were captured at 4K resolution with NASA’s Super-Sensitive High Definition TV system.

The imaging system picks up much more light than a normal HD camera is capable of, thus capturing a vivid look at the surface of the Earth and aurora borealis that’s unlike anything humanity has seen before.

Assuming that you don’t have $1 million to book an entire Virgin Galactic flight exclusively for your family, this video should be a pleasant placeholder until you get your finances in order. Until then, leave us a comment with a link to your favorite shots from the ground! It could be our next Photo/Video of the Day.

Video of the Day: Airport time lapse

by Mike Barish on

We’re always fascinated by the happenings at airports that we don’t always get to see. That’s why we’re captivated by this time lapse video (with bonus tilt shift effect) shot at Aeroportul Internaţional Chişinău in Chişinău, Moldova. Myriad trucks and buses roll by, passengers board planes, luggage is loaded and people go about their day in this video that makes mundane airport life really seem quite beautiful.

For people who work at an airport, these events are everyday occurrences. For the rest of us, however, they are curiosities at which we marvel through windows as we wait for our own flights to board. Airports are neat places depending on your perspective.

Time lapse video reveals very slow man

by Grant Martin on

Time lapse videos are all of the rage in the travelsphere these days (bonus points if the camera moves at the same time!) so there’s no surprise that the genre has made its way to subjects as bland as intersections.

Youtube user DENJCA29 had his camera trained on the corners of 5th and Spring in Los Angeles when he noticed a strange anomaly. When played at 8 times the normal speed, cars and humans whiz past in streaks of color and light — except for one man. Shown entering the frame from the left in a red shirt, the man slowly drifts across as if floating through time unnoticed, calmly standing with his hands in his pockets and moving inch by inch.

Whether he’s just not in a hurry or he’s actually player in the time lapse game we’re not sure. But the video is a pretty cool product.