Having recently re-engineered my camera rotation device, I've re-acquired the "bug" to start camera rotating again! Camera rotation photography for those that aren't aware is where the camera is rotated on the lens axis during the exposure. It's a fairly unique sub genre of lightpainting and the aim is to capture all the elements of the image in one photographic exposure.
With this set, I've re-visited some of my older camera rotation stuff where the theme is grunge or grime. I've been in to some pretty filfthy places which are maybe not the best environments for my health!
Spiraliser
One the great things about lightpainting is the collaborations with other lightpainters and the out of box thinking that unexpectedly occurs. I would never have thought of this colour combination but Jeremy the French lightpainter certainly had the right idea! I've since used this as the inspiration for other lightpainting shots where I try to use alternate colour combinations.
For this shot, Jeremy walked towards camera with a light on a cord and I rotated the camera four ways. That left a dark, unexposed space in the middle of the frame within which to add a human element and here Jeremy kindly posed.
Convex Nights
In Matlock is an old ceramics factory with a taller section with stairs leading up to the roof spaces. For this shot I set up a camera and fisheye lens on the ground floor where the camera was orientated in portrait format. My LP buddy @neilru75 climbed the stairs and spun a ball of burning steel wool so that the sparks would fall to the ground. After the first lot of sparks finished, I rotated the camera 180 degrees and Neil spun another ball of steel wool.
The result from the two spins was a dark, unexposed space in the middle of frame within which to fill with more light. I swapped tripods to a pre-arranged location in a grimy corridor then changed the lens in complete darkness. It's then simply a case of removing the lens cap while the model lights himself up to fill the dark, unexposed part of the frame.
So much fun to make this shot and I'd love to find another location with a similar high point to drop steel wool!
Under the old Costhorpe Colliery Cellar
Now sadly demolished to make way for a housing estate with properties I can't afford, this is @neilru75 posing under the cellar of Costhorpe Colliery. The floor was covered in an oily residue of filfth and other unmentionable objects and I only hope that when they demolished this place, it was done environmentally!
It's a quick two way rotation with a change of colour gel on the rear mounted Godox AD200:
The Fourth Dimension
Not too far way from where I live is this old personnel railway tunnel under the main line. I never knew this existed until recently and it's always useful to have a tunnel for lightpainting in the rain! A four way camera rotation, shot in one exposure as usual.
Concrete Nights
In the old Costhorpe Colliery was a baths where the miners used to shower and change at the end of their shift. Alongside the entrance to the baths was this old concrete corridor with textures everywhere. It would have been rude not to rotate it with a lone figure.
This ain't no disco
I seem to have quite a lot of images from Costhorpe Colliery! Now demolished but this corridor looked great with a laser level device on the floor. I threw a few smoke pellets in the building and the laser line caught the smoke. To watch this "live" was great; the textures and patterns in the lit up smoke looked amazing. It was however difficult to capture on camera so I had to settle for a long exposure.
About me:
I usually specialise in shooting lightpainting images but occasionally dabble in urbex and artistic model photography. I'm always on the lookout for someone to collaborate with; please don't hesitate to get in touch if you'd like to create art.
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Lightpainting is a photographic technique in which exposures are made by moving a hand-held light source while taking a long exposure photograph, either to illuminate a subject or to shine a point of light directly at the camera, or by moving the camera itself during exposure. Nothing is added or removed in post processing.
If you would like to see more lightpainting please give the Lightpainters United Community a follow and you will be introduced into the illuminating world of light painting!
If you want to see more examples of lightpainting, feel free to check out these guys:
Mafu Fuma | Oddballgraphics | FadetoBlack | DAWN | Mart Barras | Stefan Stepke | Nikolay Trebukhin | Lee Todd | Stabeu Light | Maxime Pateau | Stephen Sampson | lightandlense | Neil Rushby | L.A.C.E.
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What a great serie of LP images buddy 😎😎
Thanks pal, I got the rotation mojo back again. More to come when this damn weather eases!
Cracking shots. My favourite is the last one, the colours and the light are great.
Cheers pal, that last needs a revisit with the laser level
Still waiting for those plans my man😉 Looking good.
With the modded CRT I used a extra long nodal rail which has made the indexing rotator seem more stable. The good ol' home made CRT needs a rethink too....
Yeah, some laser cut alloy might work well.
The first and last are really dope ! I like the rig idea a lot that's pretty cool way to go about it, and you are so right this community is great for inspiration
Must get out with my one, although not as sturdy and smooth turning as yours.