title: Very-high-resolution time-lapse photography for plant and ecosystems research.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Traditional photography is a compromise between image detail and area covered. We report a new method for creating time-lapse sequences of very-high-resolution photographs to produce zoomable images that facilitate observation across a range of spatial and temporal scales. •
  
  
  RESULTS
  A robotic camera mount and software were used to capture images of the growth and movement in Brassica rapa every 15 s in the laboratory. The resultant time-lapse sequence (http://timemachine.gigapan.org/wiki/Plant_Growth) captures growth detail such as circumnutation. A modified, solar-powered system was deployed at a remote field site in southern Arizona. Images were collected every 2 h over a 3-mo period to capture the response of vegetation to monsoon season rainfall (http://timemachine.gigapan.org/wiki/Arizona_Grasslands). •
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A technique for observing time sequences of both individual plant and ecosystem response at a range of spatial scales is available for use in the laboratory and in the field.
authors.affiliation: U.S. Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service, Southwest Watershed Research Center, 2000 East Allen Road, Tucson, Arizona 85719 USA.
authors.forename: Mary H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Nichols
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Sweet Briar College, 134 Chapel Road, Sweet Briar, Virginia 24595 USA.
authors.forename: Janet C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Steven
authors.affiliation: Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213 USA.
authors.forename: Randy
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sargent
authors.affiliation: Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213 USA.
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Dille
authors.affiliation: Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213 USA.
authors.forename: Joshua
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Schapiro
keywords: digital photography; phenology; plant behavior; visualization