What is light painting?
Light painting is an effect achieved by using a long exposure time on a DSLR camera. The effect that results in the long exposure is a streak of light. You can light paint in many different ways. For example, in the photo above I used a flashlight during the thirty second exposure time to write the words, "How to Light Paint." There are endless possibilities using this effect.
How to Light Paint?
In order to light paint we will need a few things to begin:
1. DSLR Camera. I am using the Canon EOS T3i
2. Flashlights, LED's, any other light emitting object.
3. A dark room, or dark area outside.
4. Tripod or something sturdy to place your camera onto. (Blurry pictures come from moving cameras)
5. A buddy. (not necessary, but EXTREMELY helpful)
Steps to Success:
1. Set your camera into manual mode. With the camera in manual mode we can set the aperture and the shutter speed for maximum quality in our photo.
2. Set the ISO to no more than 400. With an ISO of more than 400, the photo will have a grainy look on it called noise. We do not want noise to ruin our photos so we will keep the ISO at 400 or below, this rule should be applied to photography in ANY situation.
3. Set the shutter speed. To achieve a quality light painted photograph we will need to use a long shutter speed. For the "How to Light Paint" Photo above I used a shutter speed of thirty seconds, but the light outside was completely dark. This allowed for the longer shutter speed. If it is light outside the the picture will reveal anything around the area, which is what we don't want. Unless of course, you are looking for that effect.
4. Set the aperture. The aperture on a camera also lets us regulate the amount of light that is allowed into our pictures. The side-effect of adjusting the aperture is depth-of-field. I will elaborate on this effect later on in another post. Right now we need to adjust the aperture to a higher number so we can focus on everything in the photo.
5. Focus on an object with the lights on first! Before you take your picture you need to have the camera in focus. With the lights on or light on an object at the distance you want, auto-focus the camera, and once it is finished, switch the camera into manual mode. This will keep the camera from focusing when there is no light.
6. Take the picture. Now we can take the picture, have fun with the new effect. Try different light sources, but keep in mind that you will need to have the camera on a tripod or something really sturdy, and have it set at a slow shutter speed. I hope you enjoy this new effect!
Here are a few pictures taken from my camera, showcasing this cool effect:
