This article appeared in the May/June
2004 issue of PT. To purchase this issue and receive this and
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by Ted Kinsman
In the past, high-speed photography was limited to
research institutions and a small select group of individuals who
built or modified their own equipment. Practitioners had to be
knowledgeable in areas such as high-voltage electronics and circuit
design. Now, some 100 years after the advent of high-speed photography
(the process of capturing an exposure faster than 1⁄10,000
second), the equipment has become greatly simplified and within
the price range of the serious photographer.
Dropping Objects into Water
One of the shots art directors commonly request (and use) is
an object dropping into water. The object is usually a featured
product
and the art director wants to show its relationship to water
and add some excitement. A falling object traps air as it moves
into
water, and only a high-speed flash will capture this with a minimum
of blur. This is a fairly simple shot that novice high-speed
photographers can gain a lot of experience by trying.
I use a 40-gallon fish tank from the local pet store.
Ideally the tank should be much larger, but a smaller one has an
important
advantage: The water needs to be changed every few dozen shots,
depending on how much dust collects in it, and a smaller tank
is much easier to clean. The tank should be located close to a
sink,
and water should not be left in the tank for more than a day
or two. Otherwise, as the water evaporates, it leaves a line of
calcium
that is difficult to clean and will show in future shots.
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