Record Your Digital Art Process as a Timelapse Video

Why Artists Share Process Timelapses

Art timelapses are some of the most-watched content on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. People are fascinated by watching a blank canvas transform into a finished piece in seconds.

What it does for your art career:

• Builds your audience faster than posting finished pieces alone
• Shows clients your skill level and process
• Gets shared more than static images (algorithms love video)
• Creates a portfolio of your growth over time
• Helps you study your own workflow and improve

The Problem with Built-in Timelapse Tools

Some apps like Procreate have built-in timelapse recording. But on Windows:

• Photoshop has no timelapse feature
• Clip Studio Paint's timelapse is limited
• Krita doesn't record at all
• SAI2 has nothing built in

And even when apps have it, you can't record across multiple tools — switching between your drawing app, reference images, and color pickers.

ChefLapse: Record Any Art Software

ChefLapse works with every drawing application on Windows because it captures the window directly. Photoshop, Clip Studio, Krita, SAI2, Aseprite, Affinity — anything.

Best Settings for Art Timelapses

Capture interval: 2-5 seconds

Digital painting involves lots of small strokes. 2-3 seconds captures the progression smoothly. For detailed rendering work, 5 seconds is fine.

Window capture mode

Select your art application's window. This means your reference images, Spotify, and browser won't appear in the recording.

Enable cursor tracking

Viewers love seeing the brush movements. It shows your stroke confidence and technique.

Timestamp overlay (optional)

Useful if you want to show how long each phase took — sketch vs lineart vs coloring vs rendering.

Tips for Better Art Timelapses

• Zoom out occasionally — give viewers the full picture between detail work
• Use a consistent canvas size — 1920x1080 or larger looks best in video
• Record the full session — don't just record the "good parts," the whole process is interesting
• Auto-stop for long sessions — set a 4-6 hour limit if you tend to paint all day

Where to Post Art Timelapses

• Instagram Reels — the #1 platform for art timelapses
• TikTok — huge art community, 30-60 second clips perform best
• YouTube — longer 2-5 minute versions with music
• ArtStation — attach timelapses to your portfolio pieces
• Twitter/X — great for engagement, keep under 2 minutes

From Hobby to Commission Work

Many artists report getting commission requests directly from timelapse videos. Clients see your process and think "I want that person to draw my character." The timelapse proves your skill in a way a finished piece alone can't.