Long exposure

As I explained in my last blog, all cameras work by using shutter, ISO, and aperture to help you capture the correct amount of light. These things can also be manipulated to make creative effects in your photograph. One simple and fun way to manipulate light is to use long exposure. Long exposure is basically taking a very long photograph, so that it captures your subjects movement. Your shutter can do speeds anywhere from 1/100s to five or six hours. Of course, you need to change your ISO and aperture so that your photograph isn't too bright, and unless you have a neutral density filter (a ND filter is basically like a pair of sunglasses that takes your aperture down a few extra steps) then your photograph must be taken at night. When your shutter stays open for a long amount of time, like six seconds... then it is literally taking a photograph for six seconds and anything that moves in front of your camera during those six seconds is captured on your photograph as a movement blur. I'm going to explain a few different types of long exposure effects in my other blogs but today we're going to focus on blurring and ghosting people.

                      

The ghosting effect is created when your subject stands in front of the camera for a certain period of time and then moves. When they move, the light from the background shines through where the person once stood, and in the finished photograph you can see the background through the person. This creates a ghost effect. These can't be taken in front of a black background, because then there will be too much blur and it will be hard to see features. There's two things that can cause blur in these photographs; your person moving too slow or you moving the camera. I would recommend using a tripod and maybe ever a shutter release remote or you will never get your camera steady enough to capture a good long exposure photo. Sometimes your person's movements can be used in creative ways though, like in those examples photos of those dancers. If you plan on capturing movement then your photograph must be taken in front of a black background. It doesn't matter if your taking it in the dark at night or in front of a background, but it must be black so that your movement isn't covered up by light. You'll capture more detail the slower the person moves or the longer they stand still. These concepts can be hard to work with at first, but after you try a few times you'll find that its a really fun way to take photographs that involves a lot of movement and experimenting that both you and your subject will have fun with.