Smoke Photography Advice

[shp]

Hmm.

I was looking for photography tutorials on YouTube, (unfortunately there's none with subtitles for a deafie like me), and stumbled onto this video about smoke photography. I would probably go back and watch it again, see where I went wrong.

I wanted to try it out, so figured I would go to ehow.com and read up on it, since videos without subtitles suck for a person like me, and found this particular article that ended up not helpful whatsoever for some odd reason. Others found it useful, though, so I know I went wrong somewhere.

So here's what I did;

I set up everything, of course. Put up the black posterboard, with some difficulty as it got a little crooked a while back and I couldn't keep it up at first with tape, then I placed the table about a foot away from it. Then at first I was using a flashlight, and took a few pictures at the aperture value and shutter speed recommended (F8.0 and 250, or 1/250 (it shows as just 250 on my camera)), but the issue was that all the pictures came out black. I also did the manual focus, and was able to focus the incense sticks clearly but all I would really see if I had focused the camera at them would be the part that were burning. So I went back and read the article again, seemed like I would need a lamp. So I put my lamp into the foyer, where I was doing it, and also put my fabric sheet over it to diffuse the light. I had put it beside the table to the left, couldn't do it from front or behind me as it would cast shadows over the backdrop, even if the backdrop's supposed to be completely black. However, still nothing. So I changed the shutter speed down to around 5. That's when I can actually see the smoke, but it's all blurry and etc. I had also changed the aperture value a few times, from F8.0 to F16.0. But still no luck because all I want is the smoke and a clear view of it in my images, too. Could anyone give me advice or maybe even know where I went wrong? =(.

[Saknika]

You simply don't have enough light. 1/125 is average flash sync speed, so 1/250 is twice as fast, meaning you need more light. 5/1 is very long, and that allows all movement to be seen, making it blurry. Most people do these photos with a speedlight to achieve the shutter speeds necessary.

[shp]

I also forgot to mention that the camera had something blinking on it, a number (-5.0), and it kept saying it was underexposed whenever I took a photo. I did have only one lamp, and after posting this I decided to look around some more. I can use natural light, an overhead light wouldn't cause problems, so I might use the natural daylight tomorrow. I only have tungsten lamps and nothing fancy like those strobe lights, so that's why. I shall try again tomorrow when I've had some sleep. =).

[Saknika]

That blinking number would be your internal camera meter for the scene.

[shp]

Ah, okay, I kept thinking it was the exposure compensation thing... No wonder it wasn't changing much whenever I changed the exposure compensation, lol. I did some more reading on the smoke photography, found a really useful tutorial via YouTube (he had a blog for "part I", Part II was just post-processing), definitely going to try his tips out tomorrow, =).

[MarianMurdoch]

Can you post some photos so we can see them? I'd also love to have the link to the article.

[Accebera]

You need a LOT of light for smoke photography. One lamp or flashlight just won't work well (especially when you diffuse it). I dabbled in it for a while, but I got bored quickly so I never perfected a lighting set up. From what I've tried, though, I suggest going to your local hardware store and buying two or three spotlights with narrow hoods (to focus the beam of light instead of allowing it to disperse over a wider area). Put the first two on either side of your setup and aim them so that they'll shine directly on the area you'll be shooting. Move the third around to wherever you need it most. If possible, you could also try to move the incense so that it's under a window. The more light you can use the better, and it will also help clear the air when the smoke starts to cloud up the room. (Even if you don't have access to a window, clear the air with something every once in a while, or the haze will ruin the sharpness of your photos.)

And, like Saknika said, a flash will help too.

I don't know about others, but 1/250 was never enough to freeze the smoke the way I wanted. I always tried for 1/1000 or higher.

A cable release also helps tremendously with this. You want to minimize the movement of the camera as much as you can, and a cable release is the easiest way to do that. You could use the timer on your camera, I suppose, but you won't be sure that there will be a nice shape in the viewfinder when it goes off. You have more control with a cable release.

You said you tried to use manual focus; that's good. But don't try to focus on the smoke as it moves. Prefocus on one spot and wait for the smoke to come into the frame, then release the shutter. It's much, much easier than trying to use autofocus or focusing yourself.

Good luck on your next attempt! =]