The Vision
The sun does not fall the same way twice. Capturing its lateral drift across a season, invisible from any single sunset, undeniable across a hundred and eighty, is as much an endeavor in patience as it is a visual novelty rarely attempted at this scale.
Shooting begins on the upcoming equinox (approximately September 22–23, 2026), from a fixed position at a 1,710m altitude in Kirset Hmaysroun (Ehden). The project consists of a daily sunset and select twilight timelapse, shot over two years, facing westward toward the Mediterranean Sea. It tracks the sun's full 57.03-degree lateral movement across four solstice-to-solstice cycles.
The arc spans from the summer solstice in June, through the equinox at the midpoint, to the winter solstice in December, and back. Kirset Hmaysroun's dramatic seasonal range, including heavy snowfall, adds a second layer of visual richness on top of the sun's movement, giving each season its own distinct character.
The main projected outcome is a numbered collection of 24 curated artworks, each a visual continuum spanning a full 6-month solstice-to-solstice season.
OBSERVATIONAL PROFILE
Designed to document high-altitude astronomical events and optical atmospheric refractions over a 24-month timeline from 1,710 meters above sea level.
Hosted at the official location of Kirset Hmaysroun, with special acknowledgment to the landowners and future project endorsers, Aden & Al Jawze.
The Solar Pendulum Cycle
Vernal Equinox
The sun crosses the celestial equator, setting due West (270.53°). Day and night reach equal length.
Summer Solstice
The sun reaches its northernmost lateral limit (299.35°), marking the longest day and the peak of solar drift.
Autumnal Equinox
The midpoint of the cycle, where the sun sets due West (270.67°), starting the transition toward winter.
Winter Solstice
The sun reaches its southernmost lateral limit (241.80°), marking the shortest day and completing the pendulum cycle.
The Eye Behind
The project is led by Alexy Frangieh, a former Nikon Ambassador and International Timelapse Instructor. His career is built specifically around long-term, multi-year timelapse work and the data modeling behind these extended timespans.
The underlying methodology relies on massive continuous capture, sifted through data-driven curation, and distilled into deliberately chosen final frames that tell a larger story than any single shot could.
Nikon joins the project as a media partner. The setup utilizes twin flagship Nikon bodies and supreme Nikkor optics, run in parallel for full redundancy.
CAMPAIGN EQUIPMENT
Two complete systems operate in active parallel alignment to guarantee continuous ingestion.
Utilizing twin flagship digital imaging platforms and calibrated precision focal systems. The main block, as a tribute to the legendary Nikon D3 series, will consist of a 24MP Nikon D3x fitted with a 28mm Nikkor. This lens covers a tight 60% HFov—slightly wider than the 57 degrees of solar motion—which heightens the complexity and elevates the challenge, alongside two auxiliary contemporary Nikon bodies that will follow to probe new possibilities.The Technology
To ensure minimal to no data loss over a multi-year environmental deployment, the project utilizes a custom hybrid capture architecture. A discrete analog hardware anchor serves as the timing fail-safe, operating in tandem with IoT nodes, edge computing, and situational-awareness capture cycles. Rather than relying on simple software triggers, the system adapts dynamically to local atmospheric data and astronomical milestones in real-time.
Because the project's scope is modular, stability comes first; new features are only introduced based on how smoothly the core operation is running. The system carries considerable intricacy and complexity, but never at the expense of the aesthetics, or of honoring this land's sacred status.
SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE
Milestones: July 2026
Before active timelapse ingestion begins, key structural and astronomical thresholds have been successfully met and validated in the field:
The initial campaign relies on empirical validation of celestial telemetry and environmental modeling, locking the coordinates system for the entire 24-month project duration.