Photographing movement in the studio

<p>Hi,<br>

could anyone please give me some advice on how to photograph movement in the studio? Freezing the movements of a carate instructor, using studio lights and dark background.<br>

Camera and light settings. Results similar to RJ Muna style. Dramatic, frozen in movement.<br>

Thanks!<br>

Viola</p>

 

http://www.rjmuna.com/galleries/images/dance/showcase/</p>

<p>Use incandescent or other static/constant lights, and much slower shutter speed, in vicinity of 1/15, 1/30 or 1/50 sec.</p>

<p>Flash lights are too fast for the effect you want to achieve.</p>

 

<p>The images in the Muna portfolio are produced using flash. There are a couple with movement blur, but to freeze motion requires a flash, which light will be somewhere around 1/25000 s IIRC. Since shutter speed only goes so far, and you'd need high-speed sync for anything faster than 1/200 s, I think the goal here is to rely on the light from the flash to illuminate what you wish to capture. How much light, I'm unsure about, but you'll need a fair amount. Continuous lights will be no help here.</p>

<p>The above advice will not produce crisp, frozen images. It will produce blurs. Which is fine, if that's what you want.</p>

<p>"<em>The above advice will not produce crisp, frozen images. It will produce blurs. Which is fine, if that's what you want</em>" </p>

<p>The question was :</p>

<p><em>"how to photograph movement"</em> - and the movement is best expressed as some motion blur, that requires slow shutter, and continuous lighting, as well as a lot of experience.</p>

 

<blockquote>

<p><em>how to photograph movement"</em> - and the movement is best expressed as some motion blur, that requires slow shutter, and continuous lighting, as well as a lot of experience.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>I understand that. My take was to look at the referenced portfolio as an indication of what the OP is trying to achieve, and recognize that the question was not expressed in a precise fashion. I find that, often, folks that don't yet know how to accomplish something may not even be able to ask appropriate questions.</p>

<p>In other words, I answered a different question, and attempting to distinguish my answer in terms of what the (differences in the) end result would be.</p>

<p>I think this is a similar technique to one I used recently. It uses both flash and continuous. Set the continuous first to give you a long exposure, maybe 1 or 2 seconds (in my case I also used a blue filter). Then set the flash to a level that is balanced to the continuous, it will give the frozen still part of the image. When you expose, the flash goes off, and then you move the camera around to get the smoke-like ghosting. My image has no photoshop, but the one referenced may have been a composite.</p><div></div>

<p>Muna definitely uses flash, but I don't think it's as simple as this. He composites quite obviously with some of the other photos, and I suspect that the referenced image is either a composite or a very long exposure with multiple scenes on it. The first would be far easier to pull off. And there is definitely flash.</p>

 

 

 

<blockquote>

<p>Flash lights are too fast for the effect you want to achieve.</p>

</blockquote>

 

 

 

 

 

This is completely wrong, as Banks' shot proves.

Broncolor Grafit or the high speed Elinchrom flash gear. If you don't have that kind of money, Paul C. Buff, Inc. Einstein

640 moonlights

<p>"<em>This is completely wrong, as Banks' shot proves</em>" - Banks picture is a composite, and proves nothing, and his technique is far more complex then it neeeds to be for the purpose.</p>

<p>Who is wrong ?</p>

<p>In Banks' picture the movent effect was NOT done by the flash lighting, but by the long exposure static light.<br /> The picture of the face was frozen by the flash, but this portion does not indicate any movement at all.<br /> And as the picture is a composite, it does can lead into wrong conclusion, as per Jeff.</p>

<p>... and this was about photographing movement/motion, and not about making artistically looking composite pictures.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>I realise that I haven't expressed myself clear enough and I apologise for the confusion created. My goal/vision for my final images is to freeze movement and create crisp images.<br>

Some carate poses are without movement making it straight forward to photograph them in the studio with flashlights.<br>

Some, however, are short, but fast movements, like jumps up in the air. Here I need to freeze the person in mid-movement, 'up in the air' so to say. And this is where I'm unsure about the most suitable settings.<br>

Gary, you mention 'high speed sync' to go beyond 1/200s shutter speed. Could you kindly explain how I would do that? Thank you! And yes, I have to reply entirely on my flash light (probably only one to only partly illuminate the subject and hence create a more dramatic effect) as I don't have a continuous light source or plenty of natural light entering the studio.<br>

My background will be seamless black.<br>

I got this example shot from my client. Shot by someone in the sports room. One of those 'in movement poses' will be this one, though we want this in the studio and completely frozen in a more expressive and dramatic light. That's why I decided for a one-flash light set-up positioned at different angles to highlight the subject only partially.<br>

The other two shots with the black background are what the client has in mind.<br>

Thank you all for your input so far! I hope that I explained myself in a more useful way for you to help me. Thank you again.<br>

Viola</p>

<p> </p><div></div>

<p>The other two attachments</p><div></div>

<blockquote>

<p><img src="/photo/17507201" alt="" />Banks picture is a composite, and proves nothing, and his technique is far more complex then it neeeds to be for the purpose.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Umm - NO its NOT a composite, it is one exposure, and only contrast and small exposure tweak done post processing. I have the original raw if you need proof ;)<br /> My subject was still and I moved the camera, Muna's imagge (since taken down from ths post for copyright reasons) had a moving subject (and possibly is a composite). The other images in the showcase are just "normal" flash images, i.e. the falsh simply freezes the movement IMHO. I'd recommend Broncolor if you are rich for this.<br /> Rob</p>

<p><img src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/17507201-md.jpg"></p>