Forum: Photography


Subject: Inexpensive Stroboscopic Photography Technique(s)

ASalina opened this issue on Mar 29, 2002 ยท 6 posts


ASalina posted Fri, 29 March 2002 at 12:15 PM

Attached Link: http://www.rit.edu/~andpph/text-stroboscope.html

The capturing a moving object in multiple positions on a single frame of film can be fairly easy and inexpensive to do. The equipment needed for a minimal system (aside from a camera, of course) are some pieces of cardboard and a small battery powered motor.

It should be possible to produce some pretty interesting
pictures with this technique. I wonder what it would look
like if one were to pan the camera while making an exposure
with this attachment?

The link above (first method) describes how to make a cheap
and effective stroboscopic attachment for any camera with a
sufficiently long shutter speed and a lens with filter threads.


Rork1973 posted Fri, 29 March 2002 at 2:06 PM

I don't think this is a really good thing....any cheap flash that's able to meter through your own camera will figure out the right exposure much better than anything that's not connected to your camera. Perhaps the one big advantage of this thing is the high rate of flashes, which would require a pretty expensive flash :P Although a lot have a strobe option anyway. But anyway, just image that the flash light will only highlight your subject, which will freeze him/her in time. (normally the flash's limited to 1/250), but at least you can turn the power down to prevent the rest of your photo to get overexposed by all the light. Now, if you'd turn (like when someone would ride a bike and pass you quickly, and you'd turn around with it), you'd have a photo with a bend horizon...like a bit of a U shape....the background will be all blurred lines while (if the flash is quick enough) the subject will be incredibly sharp. Would be a nice effect =)


Slynky posted Fri, 29 March 2002 at 5:25 PM

I've seen some funky stuff that a guy set up a tripod in his basement, turned off all the lights, set the camera to bulb (taped the release down), turned on a strobe light, and danced around naked. Fun stuff.


ASalina posted Fri, 29 March 2002 at 6:33 PM

Rork, it's true that you'd have to calculate what the
shutter speed of the spinning disk would be, and then
compensate with the aperture setting for good exposure,
but the advantage over a high-speed strobe light is that
this thing can be used in daylight or other, more pleasent
looking lighting, than single-source flash light.

Slynky, you'd never catch me doing something like
that. Not without a set of tassled pasties!


PunkClown posted Sat, 30 March 2002 at 1:04 AM

LOL! Now you know we expect to see those images posted here soon!! ;-)>


bsteph2069 posted Mon, 01 April 2002 at 12:57 AM

Cool I was just at a science museum. I kept saying. BOY I JUST HAVE TO GET ME A strobe light! Thanks! Bsteph