How to Record a Time-Lapse Video of Mac Screen

How to Record a Time-Lapse Video of Mac Screen

You will find time lapse videos on Instagram Stories, Instagram Reels, and even YouTube on various things. Whether it’s artists making art or sculpture, chefs showing off their culinary skills and more. That’s the beauty of time-lapse, which allows creators to show an elaborate process of making something in a minute or more. While most people use phones, you can record everything on your Mac screen using a dedicated app.


How to record a time lapse on the Mac screen

I know, you are wondering: why bother with a dedicated app when you can use any screen recording app? Well, you still have to edit these videos to create a time lapse of them. This is why a dedicated application works. You can record time-lapse videos to show your process of creating digital art or editing clips of your workflow. You can even add multiple clips on one screen on Instagram to make it a cool and distinct story.

This is how I started using the new Hustl app for Mac to record smaller time-lapse videos for graphics or images I create with Pixelmator.

The best part about the time-lapse app is that it doesn’t actually record video. The app takes a series of screenshots and then stitch them together to your liking.

Since I often try multiple apps, it’s hard to remember the exact shortcuts or parameter names. These time-lapse videos help me quickly catch up with my past work on my Mac. Here’s how to record a time-lapse video of your Mac screen using Hustl.

First, you need to get the Hustl accelerated recording app for Mac. You can get the Hustl app for $ 29.99 directly from the developer’s site. But I’ll tell you how to get it for less than that.

You can get it for free with the SetApp subscription for $ 9.99 per month. With this App Store subscription, you can use over 200 apps for free every month.

This is how you can enjoy Hustl and several other apps for free by paying the subscription.

Once you have installed the Hustl app, you need to set the preferences for recording different types of time-lapse videos. Here is how you can set it up and configure it to record time-lapse videos as per your need and convenience.

Step 1: Launch Hustl and you’ll find it running silently in the menu bar.


Hustl Application menu bar

2nd step: Click on the Hustl icon. Select the gear icon to launch a context menu and choose Preferences.


Hustl app preferences

Step 3: Head to the Registration tab.

This is where the main settings are for you to fine-tune your time-lapse video.


Hustl app recording tab

Let’s understand the different settings to set your expectations and choose the appropriate options for videos.

Recording

In this section, you will need to choose the duration in seconds between takes when recording a time lapse. This means the interval between shots to determine the speed of the final video. The app lets you choose one of seven second interval settings – 1, 2, 5, 10, 15, 30, or 60 seconds.


Seconds Interval Hustl app

After that, you need to choose the recording quality between normal and maximum. As shown on the window, the maximum quality may force your MacBook’s fan (if it has one) to run faster than usual.

There is an important option: always set the crop area to full screen. Check the box if you want to record all activities such as accessing different menu options and time in the upper right corner. Otherwise, you’ll have to settle for a cropped or selected view only, entirely yours. So if you leave the box unchecked, the app will launch with a customizable box to adjust the area of ​​your Mac screen that you want to record.


Hustl check-in area

Export

This area will help you with the final output of your time lapse. You can choose from 12, 24, 30, or 60 frames per second when you export the video. Yes, you can preset the FPS you want to record your time lapse at.


Hustl Application FPS Option

Of course, you can choose the resolution from 480p to 8K from the drop-down option. Choosing a higher resolution and higher frames per second means your Mac will have to work harder and be sure to choose the appropriate options.


Hustl app resolution option

At present, you can only choose between MP4 and MOV file types. Fortunately, these are universally accepted video formats.

After selecting the options, it’s time to prepare for the session. Finally, launch the app or activity you want to perform.

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Record great time lapse videos

Now that you know how to record time-lapse videos from your Mac screen for entertainment or reference purposes. I have used the app to record many clips for reference. The best part about a dedicated time-lapse app is that you save a lot of time and energy. Otherwise, you’ll need to record your Mac’s screen first and then open it in a video editor to turn it into a time-lapse video. And finally, export it. So imagine how many steps you have skipped.

Then:

Does your Mac suddenly display folders with a question mark? Click the following article to learn how to resolve this issue.

Last updated on Nov 30, 2020

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