Quick light painting techniques video

Canon RF 35mm f/1.8 IS Macro

12/23/2014 09:43:26 PM · #1

Hi all,
I wanted to get some practice with video (still need tons more), so I put together one that shows some of my light painting photos (many have been entered in challenges the past few months), and talk a little about how I shot them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31EGwnqShIY

I was having trouble using iMovie and putting the photos in on top of the audio and cutting back to video - it worked except most of them had a stupid zoom during the time the photo is showing and I couldn't get it to go away except for the first photo.

The video doesn't go into great detail, but it's a very rough draft. Open to any/all suggestions for next time, even if the suggestion is to forget about there being a next time. lol

pgirish007

Canon EOS-5D Mark IV

Canon EF 24-70 2.8L II

12/23/2014 10:10:05 PM · #2

Nice one Jon!

GeorgesBogaert

Canon RP

12/23/2014 10:17:59 PM · #3

Can you make one how you created the sticky man on the chair. (more details about the setup and what material was used, camera settings etc...)
Funny to see the little Jon at the end of the video :)

Nikon AF-S Nikkor 17-35mm f/2.8D IF-ED

12/23/2014 10:57:20 PM · #4

Originally posted by GeorgesBogaert:

Can you make one how you created the sticky man on the chair. (more details about the setup and what material was used, camera settings etc...)
Funny to see the little Jon at the end of the video :)

Good idea - I recorded a quick one and put the camera settings at the end. It's uploading onto Youtube now and being processed, but here's the link for when it's done:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuyUN8a9wBU

Just to recap though:

Lights used:
A 6V spotlight, nothing fancy, they sell for around $5 here plus batteries. These have a warmer color temperature, which compared to the ambient white balance makes it pretty colorful. I painted the side of the building and the rails, then painted the chair for longer to increase its brightness.
The iPhone screen displaying a green circle was moved around during the shot - I was kneeling by the chair, but did not show up in the exposure because no light was shining on that area anymore, since the spotlight was turned off. The video shows my technique for drawing the stick figure.

Camera settings are in the details of the photo, and also in the video.

I'd like to shoot a video on-scene to show the light painting happening, but my camera refuses to use its excellent high ISO ability in video mode so it'd be really dark.

tanguera

Nikon D750

12/24/2014 12:50:28 PM · #5

Nice, Jon. Great pictures. Next time, film yourself in action to show how it's done ;)

GeorgesBogaert

Canon RP

Canon RF 35mm f/1.8 IS Macro

12/24/2014 01:01:15 PM · #6

I shared the sticky man video on the Facebook group of Canon 70D users.
Many thanks for creating this one and I will adventure myself with this technique

Alex_Petrini

Sony Alpha a7R III

Sony FE 24-70mm f/2.8 GM

12/24/2014 01:33:17 PM · #7

Never used iMovie but I know video editing very good, so I can try to help you. The image zoom even if you didn't set them for zooming? That's weird. Tell me more about it.

As for the ISO video shoots, I have to say that video has not the chance to have very slow shutter speed, so it's very far from what you can get with a photo, even if lately high ISO for video improved sooo much, especially with the last Sony A7S.

Canon 12x IS USM (S3 IS built-in Lens) -- 36-432mm (35mm EQ)

12/24/2014 03:56:08 PM · #8

Thanks for the comments/suggestions.

Georges - looking forward to see your take on it, it's a fun technique with lots of potential uses.

Alex - I think that iMovie has a default thing for when you import pictures and drag them onto the video timeline; the only time I got rid of it was when I had right-clicked on the video/audio in the timeline and selected "split audio". Then there was some way to get the video off and leave the audio, but when I tried it again it kept deleting both even though I had split them. So I dragged the photo in on top, and it worked except it wouldn't let me remove the zoom effect.

I'll keep wrestling with it, there must be some trick to getting it to work.

I wonder what the lowest shutter speed it will use would be. If I set to to 720P/30fps video and use a 1.8 manual lens, assuming it's 1/60th of a second it looks like ISO 2500 or maybe 3200.
But for such a resized image, I wish they would let the sensor run at ISO 25600, which actually looks fairly smooth at small sizes if you don't expect perfect detail and color rendition.

I guess the best I can do for night shots is use the 1.8 lens, try to get as much lights on what I'm shooting as possible and probably end up 'pushing' the video up after I import it, right?

Sure would be cool to have one of those new GoPro cameras, I've heard those work well at night.

GeneralE

Canon PowerShot S3 IS

12/24/2014 04:07:32 PM · #9

Originally posted by MadMan2k:

... the only time I got rid of it was when I had right-clicked on the video/audio in the timeline and selected "split audio". Then there was some way to get the video off and leave the audio, but when I tried it again it kept deleting both even though I had split them. So I dragged the photo in on top, and it worked except it wouldn't let me remove the zoom effect.

You might try exporting the audio to a separate file, then re-import it (as if it was music). Then turn off/down the audio in the video capture and see if you can mix the photos and stills.

You could also try placing the photos into a separate video file, and exporting as long a video clip as you need, then import that (rather than the still photo) and switch between the two video tracks.

Tiny

Apple iPad mini 4

12/25/2014 05:03:49 AM · #10

You are much better looking than your little image by your name.