Incredible “Birdman”-like Tracking-Shot Timelapse of Earth from Space

The Academy Award winning film “Birdman” used what’s called tracking shot to create the sense of a seamless one-shot film. A new timelapse created from imagery captured by astronauts on the International Space Station uses the same technique — which has not been used in previous ISS timelapses — with stunning results. Additionally, the footage is very recent, from January and February 2015. It was compiled by Phil Selmes.

“The footage has been composited and edited to show enhanced camera movement, a day to night transition, and an uninterrupted camera movement which links two timelapse shots seamlessly,” Selmes told Universe Today. “These processes have never been used to present ISS time lapse footage in this way before.”

Like other ISS timelapses that Selmes has put together, this one shows perspective-altering, gorgeous views of Earth from space. “I don’t see politics, races, borders, countries, religions or differences,” Selmes said in a previous article on Universe Today. “I saw one planet, one world, one incredibly beautiful miracle in the absolute vastness of the universe.

All the footage comes from courtesy of the Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit at NASA Johnson Space Center. Links to original footage can be found here.

For post production, Selmes used After Effects and Premiere Pro.