Original guide and reference
Written for the app that started it.
This is the original TimeLapsed guide, kept intact for photographers and space fans who still use the first-generation app.
TimeLapsed 1.0
From the original TimeLapsed
Terms of Service
The historical terms of service for TimeLapsed version 1.0.
Version 2026-08-08.1 · Effective August 8, 2026
TimeLapsed is a camera app for timelapse, long-exposure and celestial photography, published by ShutterSpeed Apps. These terms are the agreement between you and us for using it.
By using TimeLapsed you accept these terms. If you do not accept them, do not use the app.
Who we are
TimeLapsed is published by ShutterSpeed Apps. You can reach us at support@shutterspeedapps.com about anything in this document.
Your account
Some features work without an account. Cloud sync, AI Scene Analysis, and purchases tied to your identity require one.
You can sign in with Apple or with Google. We do not ask for or store a password when you do. If you sign in with Apple using Hide My Email, we only ever see the relay address Apple gives us, and that is fine — we do not need your real one.
You are responsible for what happens under your account. Tell us promptly if you believe someone else is using it.
You can ask us to delete your account at any time. See the Privacy Policy for what that removes and what we are required to keep.
Your photos and videos are yours
You own what you shoot. We claim no rights over your captures.
TimeLapsed processes your captures on your device. Frames are assembled and blended on the device's GPU and the result is written to your photo library or to your own iCloud storage. We do not receive your captures as a matter of course.
There are two exceptions, and both are narrow:
- AI Scene Analysis sends a single frame to our servers to be analyzed, and only when you ask it to. See the AI Use document for exactly what happens to it.
- Cloud Sync, if you enable it, stores your profiles, trips and settings in *your* iCloud account using Apple's CloudKit. That is your storage, not ours.
Trips, locations and celestial planning
TimeLapsed can group shoots into trips and can plan around sunrise, sunset, moonrise and other celestial events. Those calculations run on your device from the location you choose.
Location is used for that planning and for the metadata your own photos carry. We do not collect a location history, and we do not need your location to run the app — the planning tools simply cannot answer "when is golden hour here" without knowing where "here" is.
Celestial times are astronomical estimates. Weather, terrain and the horizon in front of you will change what you actually see.
Purchases and subscriptions
TimeLapsed offers paid subscriptions, a one-time lifetime unlock, and consumable credit packs. All purchases are handled by Apple through the App Store. We never see or store your card details.
Subscriptions renew automatically until you cancel. You cancel in your Apple account settings, not in the app — Apple owns that switch and we cannot cancel on your behalf. Canceling stops the next renewal; it does not refund the period you are in.
The lifetime unlock is a one-time purchase that does not expire and does not renew. It includes a monthly allowance of AI Scene Analyses that refreshes for as long as the app exists.
If you bought the TimeLapsed Full Version in an earlier release, you keep it. That purchase unlocks the same features as the lifetime tier, at no further cost, and it is restored from your App Store receipt — use Restore Purchases if it does not appear. It includes the same monthly allowance of AI Scene Analyses; the analyser is a newer feature that costs us money per request, so it is metered for everyone, and you can buy credit packs on top if you want more.
Credit packs are consumable. Credits you buy do not expire and are not removed by the monthly reset. When you use an analysis, we spend your monthly allowance first and only then your purchased credits, so you are never charged for something your subscription already covered.
Monthly allowances do not roll over. If you do not use your allowance in a month, it resets. Purchased credits are the deliberate exception — those persist until you spend them.
Refunds are handled by Apple under their policy, not by us. If Apple refunds a purchase, we revoke what it granted, including any unspent credits from a refunded pack.
Prices are set in App Store Connect and shown to you by the App Store in your local currency before you buy. We may change prices for future purchases; a change never affects a purchase you have already made, and Apple will ask you to confirm before any subscription renews at a higher price.
Fair use of the AI features
The AI features cost us real money per request, which is why they are metered rather than unlimited. Do not try to circumvent the metering, script the app, or resell access. We may suspend accounts that do.
What we do not promise
TimeLapsed is a creative tool, provided as is. We work hard on it, but we do not promise it is free of defects, that it will work on every device, or that it will always be available.
Specifically, do not rely on it for anything irreplaceable. A timelapse can represent hours of unattended shooting, and camera apps occasionally lose captures — to a crash, a full disk, a thermal shutdown, a drained battery, or a bug of ours. Save work you care about, and keep your own backups. We are not liable for lost captures.
AI Scene Analysis returns suggestions, not correct answers. It reads one frame and guesses. Judge its advice yourself.
To the extent the law allows, our total liability to you is limited to what you paid us in the twelve months before the claim. Some jurisdictions do not allow these limits, in which case they apply to you only as far as they are permitted.
Ending this agreement
You can stop using TimeLapsed at any time and delete the app.
We may suspend or end your access if you materially breach these terms — for example by abusing the AI metering or attacking our systems. Where it is reasonable to do so, we will tell you why first.
If we end your access for a reason that is not your breach, and you have unused paid time or credits, contact us and we will sort out a fair refund.
Changes to these terms
We will publish a new version of this document when it changes, and the app will ask you to accept it. Continuing to use TimeLapsed after a change means you accept the new version. We keep a record of which version you accepted and when.
Governing law
These terms are governed by the laws of the United States and the State of Washington, without regard to conflict-of-laws rules. Nothing here removes rights you have under the mandatory consumer law of the country you live in.
Apple
Apple is not a party to this agreement and has no obligation to support TimeLapsed. If the app fails to conform to any warranty Apple cannot disclaim, you may tell Apple and Apple may refund your purchase price; beyond that, Apple has no other warranty obligation. Apple is a third-party beneficiary of these terms and may enforce them against you.