High speed photography (catch a bullet)

<p>Just started with high speed photography. Next things on my list are: stopping a bullet, shotgun freez darts and more dangerous and stupid things I can think of ;-)</p>

<p>Here are some starters:<br>

<img src="http://atlantic-diesel.com/HS/large/0001.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="683" /></p>

<p><img src="http://atlantic-diesel.com/HS/large/0002.jpg" alt="" /></p>

<p><img src="http://atlantic-diesel.com/HS/large/0003.jpg" alt="" /></p>

<p><img src="http://atlantic-diesel.com/HS/large/0004.jpg" alt="" /></p>

<p><img src="http://atlantic-diesel.com/HS/large/0005.jpg" alt="" /></p>

<p>So what do you think?</p>

<p>Hey, I'm impressed! This is something that I'd love to learn to do, just for the sheer fun of seeing the results... ;)</p>

<p>Tim!</p>

<p>All of these are great starts! Out of curiosity, what sort of a flash unit are you using? Is it going to be capable of actually stopping a bullet?<br>

If not, there are a bunch of great resources out there, including Andy Davidhazy's vast (and disorganized) webpage on technical photographic techniques, available <a href="http://people.rit.edu/andpph/">here</a> . However, if you don't want to navigate the site, here are two great links.<br>

1: <a href="http://people.rit.edu/andpph/text-hs-overview.html">More than you ever want to know on the subject.</a><br>

2: <a href="http://people.rit.edu/andpph/text-agfa-1280-hs.html">How he does it with a consumer camera.</a><br>

I'm sure you've already found a bunch of this poking around yourself, but I thought I'd consolidate it a bit for you. Also, the flash that Davidhazy uses was discontinued sometime before I was born, which makes it a difficult option. However, if you're looking for a flash that can output the short durations necessary for stopping a bullet, you can either <a href="http://www.flickr.com/groups/highspeed/discuss/72157622585529734/">build your own</a> , or buy <a href="http://www.highspeedflash.com/">this one</a> from a new UK-based company.<br>

Hope this helped a bit, and I didn't just repeat everything you knew!</p>

<p>Here is another link on how to do it.</p>

<p>http://www.hiviz.com/GALLERY/galleries.htm</p>

<p> </p>

<p>This just a tip to get those balloon shots to be even more awesome.</p>

<p>Further increase the distance between the balloon and the dark background and flag your flashes not to hit the background to make it totally black.</p>

<p>AND use a pellet gun to break the balloons. This might make the thing breaking the not visible in the shot and make it even more abstract and cool. I already like the motion blur that you don't really see in shots like these.</p>

<p>Thanks all for you positive and inspiring words.<br>

In theory I know how to do all of this stuff, but I don't have the budget and I have no studio to make everything perfect. However I will try to get the most of it.<br>

FYI: except for number 1, the balloons were all filled with smoke and some water drops on the outside, to get a more visual effect. I did find that less smoke is more appealing, like in photos 3 and 4 (with milk).<br>

Next is to try with 2 microphones: one close and one a little bit further away. I should get two different captures in one picture.</p>

<p>Oops, deleted the photos without thinking.<br>

Here's an update with newer photos. Some shot with the flash firing twice in one shot!<br>

<a href="http://atlantic-diesel.com/HS/">High Speed</a></p>

<p>Wanted to edit the other post, but they wont allow it. After a few minutes? I do pay for this subscription!<br>

Here are a few photos from the link:<br>

<img src="http://atlantic-diesel.com/HS/medium/0004.jpg" alt="" width="800" height="620" /></p>

<p><img src="http://atlantic-diesel.com/HS/medium/0007.jpg" alt="" width="653" height="800" /></p>

<p><img src="http://atlantic-diesel.com/HS/medium/0013.jpg" alt="" width="770" height="800" /></p>