I have a favorite idea for what I would like to create. I figure I should work with my current toolkit and build upon it. I believe that will be a good way to set myself up for success in the short amount of time we have. With that in mind, my first idea is to produce long exposure light art on the pole.
After a quick Google Search, I was excited to see that I could not find it in the way I envisioned it! People have experimented with adding light sources to their heels, or as background effects at standing level. Here is where I think I have an edge. I plan on adding light sources to my hands and my feet, creating light streaks that span the full height of my approximately 10 ft home pole. Combinations of moves can have you spanning the entire length of the pole. There’s a lot of vertical space to be worked with, and it will be fun to experiment what kind of angles and moves achieve certain light shapes. The pole is able to be stationary or can spin which will allow for movement along one plane or create a helix effect. Another exploration I plan to do is with the point of view. That could be from the base facing upwards, or the ceiling looking straight down.
I don’t have experience creating long exposure art, so I am not sure what the potential pitfalls can be. I don’t own a camera other than the one on my Pixel 4 phone, so I may have to reach out to friends to help out with that part. I also don’t know how to edit photos! I figure I can learn, but it’s still another layer of difficulty to creating what I have in mind. I have yet to experiment with the intensity of light sources and if they have to be very bright or if defused ones would work. For now, I’m thinking lights that clip onto my finger tips or light-up bracelets that can be easily purchased from Amazon.
If anyone has ever tried out long exposure art, I would love to hear about your experience!
This is a very unique idea! There are some apps that allow for long exposure pictures to be taken, however I have never used them. This may be a good back up for you if you can’t get ahold of a camera. There are also usually pretty simple editing capabilities on these apps that may also help make it a little more user friendly. I also love the idea of the finger clip lights! I didn’t even know those existed.
Thanks for the idea, Taylor! This is what I ended up doing for my maquette 🙂
I think this idea could come out to be something really really cool! I’m certainly excited to see how the final piece turns out. I’ve never done long exposure art before, but I have seen those finger lights before. Only concern that arises is simply if the lights will work with the camera in the way you wish for them to. I think there is a fair chance the lights aren’t strong/focused enough to emit the light desired, and may instead cause a jumble of lights over a bunch of precise streaks from where you move. I could very well be wrong with how they work together though, and I’m excited to see what you do with it!
Thanks, Charles! Yes, that’s a concern of mine too. It will definitely take some experimenting.
I think this is a really interesting concept. I have never done long exposure art before but I am excited to see what you made out of this. In terms of light source, I feel like you might have to find things that emit bright lights, especially if you are using the full 10 ft height of the pole. This might be dependent on the camera you use though, since different cameras pick up light different and have varying photo qualities.
this is awesome. I could see this turning into almost a performative piece instead of photography. It would be cool to experiment how many lights and were you put them to get the best affects and lines. I see too many lights getting busy but maybe that’s will be cool.
I wish I could perform it, but I also know how frustrating of a process choreographing minute long pieces can be. I don’t think I would be setting myself up to have fun, but maybe future me will be more ambitious!
The other thing about long exposures with light is generally your background is pitch black. I don’t know if the lack of light in the room will add difficulty to actually performing the moves us and down the pole.
Great point! I hadn’t considered that before you mentioned it. I have a plan just in case my walls are too bright.
This is definitely going to be a cool way to add another dimension to the long exposure image. My only concern is you may need tools which emit light that is strong enough to be captured.
I think this idea has a lot of potentials! You’d have a lot larger canvas to work on and I’m sure you’d get amazing results. Have you thought of any moves you’re going to try out?
The idea sounds really unique – I guess the hardest part (after figuring out long exposure/editing) would be figuring out what choreography you’re going to do. I think doing a spiral either from the side or top view would create a cool effect (similar to what you said about doing a helical effect).
Never tried long exposure pictures but tried blind+single line drawing and can wish you the best of luck!
The only advice I might have is to choose some pictures you want to show. You probably will understand it soon after you begin to record but full concentration on the single sketch helps a lot!
This is an interesting concept for combining together some of your different creative practices.
It’s possible to do this on your phone with long exposure apps, but you might have an easier time with a dedicated camera with manual controls. You can sign out a DSLR and tripod from the Academic Technology Center – just shoot me an email and I can help you get setup with borrowing privileges. With either camera, you might also find it worthwhile to invest in a clip on mount that could be attached to other things (perhaps even the pole itself). It might also be interesting to try attaching the camera to your body in some way.
As Roe mentioned above, controlling the ambient lighting in the space makes a big difference in getting clean long exposure light painting images. The darker you can make it, the more flexibility you will have in playing with different exposures.