Sorry it took me such a long time...

So, I had trouble working out what I could do with the theme of time. Once I had an idea it took me a week to try it out. My first attempt failed so I had to spend another full week trying again.

Without further ado - I grew cress to form the words 'Stack Exchange':

_{(Click to watch the YouTube video)}

Process Breakdown

Failed Attempt 1

So the first one I tried I made in a large pyrex dish (I wasn't the most popular guy when I filled our best dish with compost) filled with compost with the cookie cutters buried underneath:

and then buried:

I mounted a GoPro on a Cymbal stand (because I haven't got a tripod apparently) and set it to take an image every 60 seconds:

Unfortunately, the cress seeds forced the letters up through the compost which meant you couldn't even tell what the cress had grow into:

So after 7 days growing this batch, and with the deadline fast approaching, I decided to go back to basics and grow it on kitchen paper instead.

Attempt 2

For the second attempt, I used less seeds ensured that the paper was wet at all times. I know that the good folk from Graphic Design SE may be upset that the letters aren't that evenly spaced and I'm using an upside-down V for an A and a sideways M for an E but it kind of works.

The final time-lapse consisted of 8,948 images totalling 19.5 GB.

Some things I learnt:

• Use a more powerful lamp at night
• Too many seeds make the letters raise and twist (check out the video and watch the letter 'C' in 'Stack').
• It's incredibly easy to bump the camera and change the shot.
• If I didn't have a fixed focus camera it would have been easier to frame the shot better and get less table in.

Sorry it took me such a long time...

So, I had trouble working out what I could do with the theme of time. Once I had an idea it took me a week to try it out. My first attempt failed so I had to spend another full week trying again.

Without further ado - I grew cress to form the words 'Stack Exchange':

_{(Click to watch the YouTube video)}

Process Breakdown

Failed Attempt 1

So the first one I tried I made in a large pyrex dish (I wasn't the most popular guy when I filled our best dish with compost) and buried the letters underneath the surface of the soil:

I mounted a GoPro on a Cymbal stand (because I haven't got a tripod apparently) and set it to take an image every 60 seconds:

Unfortunately, the cress seeds forced the letters up through the compost which meant you couldn't even tell what the cress had grow into:

So after 7 days growing this batch, and with the deadline fast approaching, I decided to go back to basics and grow it on kitchen paper instead.

Attempt 2

For the second attempt, I used less seeds and ensured that the paper was wet at all times. I know that the good folk from Graphic Design SE may be upset that the letters aren't that evenly spaced and I'm using an upside-down V for an A and a sideways M for an E but it kind of works.

The final time-lapse consisted of 8,948 images totalling 19.5 GB.

Some things I learnt:

• Use a more powerful lamp at night
• Too many seeds make the letters raise and twist (check out the video and watch the letter 'C' in 'Stack').
• It's incredibly easy to bump the camera and change the shot.
• If I didn't have a fixed focus camera it would have been easier to frame the shot better and get less table in.

Sorry it took me such a long time...

So, I had trouble working out what I could do with the theme of time. Once I had an idea it took me a week to try it out. My first attempt failed so I had to spend another full week trying again.

Without further ado - I grew cress in the shape of the Stack Exchange logo:

_{(Click to watch the YouTube video)}

Process Breakdown

Failed Attempt 1

So the first one I tried I made in a large pyrex dish (I wasn't the most popular guy when I filled our best dish with compost) filled with compost with the cookie cutters buried underneath:

and then buried:

I mounted a GoPro on a Cymbal stand (because I haven't got a tripod apparently) and set it to take an image every 60 seconds:

Unfortunately, the cress seeds forced the letters up through the compost which meant you couldn't even tell what the cress had grow into:

So after 7 days growing this batch, and with the deadline fast approaching, I decided to go back to basics and grow it on kitchen paper instead.

Attempt 2

For the second attempt, I used less seeds ensured that the paper was wet at all times. I know that the good folk from Graphic Design SE may be upset that the letters aren't that evenly spaced and I'm using an upside-down V for an A and a sideways M for an E but it kind of works.

The final time-lapse consisted of 8,948 images totalling 19.5 GB.

Some things I learnt:

• Use a more powerful lamp at night
• Too many seeds make the letters raise and twist (check out the video and watch the letter 'C' in 'Stack').
• It's incredibly easy to bump the camera and change the shot.
• If I didn't have a fixed focus camera it would have been easier to frame the shot better and get less table in.

Sorry it took me such a long time...

So, I had trouble working out what I could do with the theme of time. Once I had an idea it took me a week to try it out. My first attempt failed so I had to spend another full week trying again.

Without further ado - I grew cress to form the words 'Stack Exchange':

_{(Click to watch the YouTube video)}

Process Breakdown

Failed Attempt 1

So the first one I tried I made in a large pyrex dish (I wasn't the most popular guy when I filled our best dish with compost) filled with compost with the cookie cutters buried underneath:

and then buried:

I mounted a GoPro on a Cymbal stand (because I haven't got a tripod apparently) and set it to take an image every 60 seconds:

Unfortunately, the cress seeds forced the letters up through the compost which meant you couldn't even tell what the cress had grow into:

So after 7 days growing this batch, and with the deadline fast approaching, I decided to go back to basics and grow it on kitchen paper instead.

Attempt 2

For the second attempt, I used less seeds ensured that the paper was wet at all times. I know that the good folk from Graphic Design SE may be upset that the letters aren't that evenly spaced and I'm using an upside-down V for an A and a sideways M for an E but it kind of works.

The final time-lapse consisted of 8,948 images totalling 19.5 GB.

Some things I learnt:

• Use a more powerful lamp at night
• Too many seeds make the letters raise and twist (check out the video and watch the letter 'C' in 'Stack').
• It's incredibly easy to bump the camera and change the shot.
• If I didn't have a fixed focus camera it would have been easier to frame the shot better and get less table in.

Sorry it took me such a long time...

So, I had trouble working out what I could do with the theme of time. Once I had an idea it took me a week to try it out. My first attempt failed so I had to spend another full week trying again.

Without further ado - I grew cress in the shape of the Stack Exchange logo:

_{(Click to watch the YouTube video)}

Process Break Down

Failed Attempt 1

So the first one I tried I made in a large pyrex dish (I wasn't the most popular guy when I filled our best dish with compost) filled with compost with the cookie cutters buried underneath:

and then buried:

I mounted a GoPro on a Cymbal stand (because I haven't got a tripod apparently) and set it to take an image every 60 seconds:

Unfortunately, the cress seeds forced the letters up through the compost which meant you couldn't even tell what the cress had grow into:

So after 7 days growing this batch, and with the deadline fast approaching, I decided to go back to basics and grow it on kitchen paper instead.

Attempt 2

For the second attempt, I used less seeds ensured that the paper was wet at all times. I know that the good folk from Graphic Design SE may be upset that the letters aren't that evenly spaced and I'm using an upside-down V for an A and a sideways M for an E but it kind of works.

Some things I learnt:

• Use a more powerful lamp at night
• Too many seeds make the letters raise and twist (check out the video and watch the letter 'C' in 'Stack').
• It's incredibly easy to bump the camera and change the shot.
• If I didn't have a fixed focus camera it would have been easier to frame the shot better and get less table in.

Sorry it took me such a long time...

So, I had trouble working out what I could do with the theme of time. Once I had an idea it took me a week to try it out. My first attempt failed so I had to spend another full week trying again.

Without further ado - I grew cress in the shape of the Stack Exchange logo:

_{(Click to watch the YouTube video)}

Process Breakdown

Failed Attempt 1

So the first one I tried I made in a large pyrex dish (I wasn't the most popular guy when I filled our best dish with compost) filled with compost with the cookie cutters buried underneath:

and then buried:

I mounted a GoPro on a Cymbal stand (because I haven't got a tripod apparently) and set it to take an image every 60 seconds:

Unfortunately, the cress seeds forced the letters up through the compost which meant you couldn't even tell what the cress had grow into:

So after 7 days growing this batch, and with the deadline fast approaching, I decided to go back to basics and grow it on kitchen paper instead.

Attempt 2

For the second attempt, I used less seeds ensured that the paper was wet at all times. I know that the good folk from Graphic Design SE may be upset that the letters aren't that evenly spaced and I'm using an upside-down V for an A and a sideways M for an E but it kind of works.

The final time-lapse consisted of 8,948 images totalling 19.5 GB.

Some things I learnt:

• Use a more powerful lamp at night
• Too many seeds make the letters raise and twist (check out the video and watch the letter 'C' in 'Stack').
• It's incredibly easy to bump the camera and change the shot.
• If I didn't have a fixed focus camera it would have been easier to frame the shot better and get less table in.