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 12/14/2005 04:11:48 PM · #1
I finally broke the Top 10!

Woohoo! This was such a fun image to take. It took me the whole week to brainstorm but only a half an hour to execute. It's amazing what a week of looking at your photo can do. I have since reshot this image where the light bulb is actually lit. Too bad the idea came in "Too Late". Anyway, here was how it was done.

This was a four second exposure. Using a mechanical stoboscope I built out of Radio Shack parts, I used my flash to freeze the motion of the hammer swing.

The lightbulb was held with a clamp duct taped to the handle of another tripod.

With my camera on a timer and the motor on spinning the black cardboard, I fired the first flash as soon as the shutter opened. Counted to 3 while lowering the swing of the hammer and then fired the second flash just before the 4 second exposure time was up.

It is important to note that a sufficient amount of light is required to light the whole scene. Not too much because it will blow it out. I used an IKEA table lamp to light the setup.

A good sturdy tripod is necessary for this setup.



Image was captured in RAW to compensate for exposure. Minor adjustments after RAW conversion included levels and curves. USM, rotation to compensate for the tilt of the tripod arm and bulb and cropped to 470x630 pixels. Added a 1 pixel stroke and enlarged canvas size to 480x640. Used NI for two passes and slight USM.

For my outtake, I actually rigged the light bulb to a foot switch so I activated the switch after the second flash just seconds before the 4 second exposure was up. I will post it later. It's definitely much better than this image in my opinion.

Congrats to the winners and thank you all for the heart warming comments and encouragement. I'll break the top three someday :)

Rikki
12/14/2005 04:12:27 PM · #2
Great job Rikki!!!
 12/14/2005 04:36:59 PM · #3
Originally posted by Palmetto_Pixels:
Great job Rikki!!!


Thanks Lee. I had a blast with that challenge.

BTW, no lightbulbs were harmed during the shoot. I had to stop just shy of the bulb without touching it as it would cause a slight movement and blur. It's already a bit blurry to begin with :(
 12/14/2005 04:37:12 PM · #4
great thinking..! and great shot..!
 12/14/2005 05:04:04 PM · #5
Great instructions. I must try it sometime. Congrats on your top 5. Great job!
 12/14/2005 05:09:03 PM · #6
Congratulations. One of the super smart things you did here was the good use of color. A smashing image. Stay busy and bring us more attractive entries. There are some ribbons waiting for you.
 12/14/2005 05:10:37 PM · #7
Hey, awesome, you finally got over that hurdle!

R.
 12/14/2005 05:45:30 PM · #8
Go Rikki!!

Guess I gotta go find some new couchmates!
 12/14/2005 09:55:14 PM · #9
Hey guys! Thanks a lot. It was great challenge and a fun one at that too.

Pidge, you and I will always be couchmates. I bring the couch remember?
12/14/2005 10:07:04 PM · #10
Time to celebrate!!!

12/14/2005 10:19:06 PM · #11
12/14/2005 10:25:32 PM · #12
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