High-Speed Photography – A Basic Guide
A lot of people constantly wonder how photographers are able to capture clear images of bursting balloons, water splashes and so on. The primary objective of high-speed photography is to capture objects when they’re in motion. You can easily capture events which follow a very predictable sequence. In every case, you should be able to detect a specific trigger, wait for the even to occur and take a picture.For instance, if you want to capture a drop of water hitting the surface, you need to detect the precise time when the drop of water starts falling. The next step is to create a basic delay between the event and trigger. Last but not the least, you take a picture. There are two different methods of taking pictures via high-speed photography. In the first method, you use the shutter of a camera, and the other requires you to use an electronic flash.1) Shutter MethodThe shutter method offers a major advantage. It allows you to enjoy high-speed photography outdoors. You will also be able to completely illuminate the subject and its background. Since the shutter can be used to freeze the motion of your subject, it offers limited speed. Usually, the maximum speed of a shutter ranges between 1/4000 seconds to 1/8000 seconds. Thus, in some cases, fast moving objects may seem blurred.In addition to this, there is also a basic delay between the actual exposure and shutter release. Depending on the type of camera, it can even be close to 100 milliseconds. Moreover, you could also experience basic variation in timing. Therefore, if you require high timing accuracy, you should not use this method.2) Flash MethodThis is the second method of high-speed photography. You can take the picture by simply opening the shutter of your camera, activating the electronic flash, and closing the shutter. However, you need to take the picture in a dark room. Since the room is dark, long exposure will not have a major effect on the final output. Flash light duration will become the actual time of exposure.Better timing consistency and exposure speed are the primary advantages of the flash method. Electronic flashes can offer speed of 1/10,000 seconds or faster. If you lower the power of the flash, the flash duration will be shorter.The lag between the flash strobe and trigger will be insignificant. However, there’s also a major disadvantage of this high-speed photography method. You can just use this method in a dark room. Moreover, it can also be difficult to offer uniform lighting or illuminate the background properly.