Some of my timelapse projects, such as the one I discussed in last month’s blog post, depict an ongoing construction process, but most of them tend to coincide with the completion of the subject. This is one such project: a few years ago, I shot the installation of some 2,000 solar panels on the roof of a local brewery, with the intent to present a finished video at my client’s launch party.

Early in 2020, Solar States, a leading solar installer in Philadelphia, asked me to document the installation of 2,000 panels—their largest installation to date—on the roof of the Yards Brewery. Despite the lockdown that spring, Solar States was still able to complete the project safely within six months, and I recorded that process through a mix of long-term timelapse, short-term timelapse, live footage, and drone work.

I quickly found out why my video was needed. While a building may have a ribbon-cutting or...

How do you attract investors when your product isn’t quite finished yet?

We often think of timelapse photography as something that captures a concluded process from start to finish, but in the case of the future Vagelos Laboratory, 215 Timelapse was tasked with documenting a work-in-progress to draw in more donors.

The Vagelos Laboratory for Energy Science and Technology is a planned addition to the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Arts and Sciences. The 111,000-square-foot facility sits at the corner of 32nd and Walnut Streets and will serve as a new gateway to the Penn campus. The energy-efficient building will feature a modular infrastructure that encourages collaboration and adapts to changing research needs.

Because this project is still being funded and completion is a couple of years away, it’s important to show prospective investors what they’re putting their money into—even if it doesn’t actually exist yet. In addition to capturing the construction in progress, we also shot footage of a scale...