Night Photography - During the Day??
Recently
I appeared as a guest on the Edmonton morning show The
Big Breakfast where I demonstrated some light painting techniques used
to create the photos here on the website. Since the level of darkness required
for time exposures was unachievable in the TV studio, the demonstration took
place as a live remote from the studio of Roth
& Ramberg Photography in downtown Edmonton.
I
want to extend special thanks to Michele and Dale for giving me the run of
their studio and accommodating my every request. They also make excellent
home made bread! Hope we didn't leave too much glass on the floor after Steve
and I dropped the busted TV. We really tried to pick up all the chunks. Honest!
The
following photos were taken in total darkness while the TV audience watched
via a special night vision camera. It was much darker than when I shoot under
the full moon, which made navigating the set to add strobe flashes much more
challenging. It was amusing to think that while I was stumbling around in
the dark, everyone watching at home had the infinitely better view you see
here.
Here we have host Steve Antle as a typical TV viewer. The lighting on Steve
was added using a strobe covered by a red lighting gel from above the camera
location. The light on the plants and TV was done with a green gel from left
of the shot. 
The
gold light on the lamp shade and the shadow below were added with a small
flashlight from above the lamp, just outside the shot. This was in order to
tightly control the beam and avoid getting light on the rest of the set. The
red lines on the cracked TV screen were added from behind with a laser pointer,
adding to the "on the fritz" look. As this shot was exposing, I
walked through the field of view several times without appearing on film.
This is even possible under moonlight, provided I don't stand in one place
for too long.
Here's
a view from the other side. I like these low angle photos. They seem to make
the shot more dramatic. Steve is lit by a single blue flash fired from just
above of the TV, simulating the reflected glow of a television. Note the slight
red outline around Steve's hand as he holds the remote control. That was caused
by a slight movement in his hand between the time I added the blue flash and
when I added the red. It seems to imply motion, as if he was clicking the
remote. Occasionally a mistake can actually improve a shot.
This
is much the same shot as above but with Steve's "Psychotic Look".
He's great fun to work with
since he seems to be able to produce an endless number of these expressions
on demand. Keep in mind that
I am working in complete darkness here. When I asked Steve for a facial expression,
I couldn't see what he was doing until I popped the flash. This is one of
my personal favorites, largely due to Mr. Antle's excellent performance!
..."It's amazing what you can still make out, even through the scrambling!"
Here is the first of 3 close-ups we tried between the on air segments. I've
never before photographed a person using these techniques and I'm sure most
would agree that attempting portrait photography using time exposures is a
bit unusual. Even though the shutter was open for roughly a minute in each
of these shots, the only time a subject will register on film is at the moment
I pop the flash. Since Steve stayed relatively still, the long exposure didn't
present a problem. I like the harsh lighting in this one.
More fun with the laser pointer! This looks like an effect from a low budget
Sci-fi movie. It appears as if I got Steve right in the eyes with the laser
but I actually didn't. I illuminated his face with the blue flash first, then
asked him to close his eyes before I used the laser. Since the laser creates
such a fine line, the fact that his eyes were closed for this part of the
shot does not register on the film.
This is another of my personal favorites from the shoot. The partial lighting
adds a certain mystery to the shot.
Hope you enjoyed the photos. I sure had fun making them! If you have any questions or comments, feel free to drop me an e-mail.