Freezing fast motion – Learning High Speed Photography

High Speed photography is the science of capturing events that occur too fast to be seen by the human eye. Some examples would be the splashing of water, a bullet hitting an apple, or a hammer hitting a bottle.

There are several ways to do High Speed Photography, one of them is using ultra fast shutter speed, another way is to use burst mode, but what you will learn in this article is using flash to freeze motion and achieve these kinds of shots.

Photo by anna altez

In doing High Speed Photography you will need the following things: a camera that will enable you to manually control the ISO, Shutter Speed and Aperture to match with the settings of your Flash or Speed light. Most point and shoot cameras are not advisable to use in High Speed Photography because of the limitations in the control settings.

Next thing you will need is an External Flash or Speed Light. Some photographers prefer using Studio Lights; you can use whichever is available. The Flash will help you easily achieve a High Speed Photograph because Flash stops the motion. To help you control your Flash you will have to use Triggers and Receivers as you are going to use your flash unit off-cam.

Lastly, you will need a subject to photograph. For the photograph shown above I used a glass of milk and a slice of banana. Others prefer to use a glass of water with artificial coloring; some prefer to use a bowl of milk and a strawberry, while there are some who use water balloons. You may use anything that suits your taste and is available.

Here’s a diagram of how my set up was:

I used two Speed Lights with powers both at ¼. The main light was positioned beside the table, facing the glass of milk. I used an umbrella to diffuse the light.

Originally, the background I used was white, and to add some color I used another Speed light with blue lighting gel positioned behind the subject and facing the background. The camera was positioned in front of the subject. The camera settings used can be seen in the diagram.

One important tip to remember in doing High Speed Photography is having a perfect timing. In my case I asked a friend of mine to drop the banana in the count of three, so I would know when to press the shutter button. But of course there were times when I got too excited and pressed the shutter button even before the banana reached the glass of milk. You may have to try it several times before you achieve the shot you want. You just have to be really patient until you get the perfect timing. Shooting in unusual angles will also give your High Speed Photographs different effects.

Photo by anna altez

Photo by anna altez

This can be a bit messy, so I advise you to do it in your kitchen or garage, wherever you think it’s safe.

When you have mastered the settings and the timing you can try doing it with other subjects, such as smashing bottles or light bulbs.