Time-Lapse by the Water at The Forks – DJI Action 5 Pro + ND32 + D-Log

gear4greatness
Jul 7, 2025
3 min read

Updated: Nov 6, 2025

🎥 Time-Lapse by the Water at The Forks – DJI Action 5 Pro + ND32 + D-Log

There’s something peaceful about filming time slip by — that sense of watching life move faster than you can feel it. I brought my DJI Action 5 Pro down to the river at The Forks on a quiet summer afternoon, set it near the water’s edge, and just let the scene breathe. 🌊 The sun was high, reflections shimmered off the surface, and people moved through the frame like rhythmic brushstrokes in a living painting. I wanted to capture that — not just what I saw, but how it felt. With an ND32 filter locked on and D-Log engaged, I hit record, stepped back, and watched the city unfold in accelerated time.

The setup was simple — just the Action 5 Pro sitting low on a rock, angled slightly upward to catch the Esplanade Riel bridge, the clouds, and the lazy current below. No movement, no gimmicks, no camera tricks — just the world doing its thing. The ND32 filter softened everything beautifully, giving that cinematic drag to the clouds and people crossing by. Without it, the scene would’ve felt too crisp, too mechanical. This gave it breath. The D-Log profile helped preserve every ounce of dynamic range, pulling detail from harsh light bouncing off the water and shadows tucked under the bridge. It’s one of those setups where less really is more — one camera, one filter, one perfect frame.

As I stood there watching the Action 5 Pro quietly capture the scene, I could feel that creative calm settle in. The kind of moment where time doesn’t rush — it stretches. 🎞️ A breeze carried ripples across the river, a cyclist glided past, and the skyline shimmered in the heat. I wasn’t filming action, I was filming patience. There’s a certain honesty to time-lapses like this — they remind you how much happens when you’re still. You realize that even when you do nothing, the world never stops moving. That’s the beauty I wanted to capture.

🌄 Final Thoughts

When I look back at the finished clip, it feels almost poetic — light shifting, clouds morphing, people weaving through frame, the world spinning a little faster than we remember it. 💭 It’s the kind of footage that doesn’t just show a place — it reveals its rhythm. Shooting it with the DJI Action 5 Pro reminded me that you don’t always need movement to create motion; sometimes, the world gives it to you.

There’s a joy in slowing down just long enough to film everything speeding up. The ND32 gave me balance, the D-Log gave me texture, and the moment gave me everything else. As creators, we often chase excitement, but sometimes, magic hides in the simplest setups — a small camera, a patch of light, and a bit of patience by the water. ✨

— Written by Pete | Gear4Greatness 🌉