Hi everyone. I am an amauter photographer and lately I’ve been requested to photograph some local concerts at my city. The image linked above is one of my many inspirations, and I am very curious about this light trail technique. Is it done right at the time, is it edited later? How? If someone could help me, I’d be very thankful. :)
Dragging shutter, flash w/rear curtain sync.
I would strongly suggest not using this photo as too deep an inspiration.
The light trail effect is cool and all but it’s also massively overused. By all means figure out how to do it, and if the venue is ok with flash, take a few like that, but if you spend the whole set trying to get light-trail photos and nothing else, it’s gonna be pretty lame.
Flash n spin+ longer exposure
Shutter drag.
Single shot, dragged-shutter Second-curtain (rear curtain) sync flash on-camera, rotated on axis.
Set your camera’s rear curtain synch so that it fires the flash at the end of the exposure, then set your shutter speed slow like 1/10 or slower (up to a second or two)
Push the shutter release while rotating the camera, and it will fire the flash at the end.
This will combine bright light streaks and a clear picture of your subject.
Shutter drag. Start your settings with 8/8/8/8 - 1/8th second SS, f/8, ISO 800 and 1/8th flash power. If it’s too bright, reduce the flash. If it’s too dark, increase the iso before anything else because too much/too bright flash gets annoying for the subject of the photo.
Google shutter drag
20+ year concert shooter here. Sometimes you just have to use flash. Shitty dark punk rock venue with some random Home Depot lights? Flash. Esp with punk rock and awesome slow shutter effects. Performance during event with flat lighting with flash allowed in the venue? Flash. Most other gigs? No flash. It’s a tool, horses for courses.
Tbh - way better to know how to use a flash effectively in all occasions and not needing it is better than having no clue/inflexible values (“it’s not true to the ART!!!”) and having to turn in useable shots at the end of the show.
Get permission from the artist and venue before using a flash. The majority of shows I do not allow flash.
Yeh I have been trying to figure how to do this without using flash, tried with a double exposure but it’s fiddly
Best thing you can try to get creative without using your own lighting is some prism filters to get stuff like this
Check the “Shutter Drag” technique
Shutter drag, rear curtain flash sync.
It’s called light painting. Go on YouTube and search for it and you will find all that you need
You can do it with a speedlight and lowering your shutter speed to around 1/8-1/15th Find good pin light sources
Definitely go check out r/lightpainting it’s pretty rad shit.
Slow shutter speed + flash
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play around with anywhere from 1/30 to 1/60 shutter speed
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I would go to a higher aperture, maybe 2.8 up to 5.6, but again, play around before the shoot
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You can do it with an in-body flash but a hotshoe flash will give better results
This thread is full of technical answers on curtain sync, and I would generally put those comments on the back burner until you’re comfortable with the basics of what’s happening here. This image is achievable on any camera that allows manual shutter speed and a flash.
You’re slowing the shutter speed to blur the lights and shooting the flash to freeze the initial subject.
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