Full Moon at 1000mm

Bad Moon Rising

The moon has enthralled mankind since we were first able to look up at the night sky.

A few weeks ago a friend of mine loaned me his 500mm mirrored lens with 2x tele-converter. At 1000mm, plus the crop factor of the DX sensor, it is easy to literally fill the frame with the moon.

The downside to the technology used is that it is a fixed f/8 lens which means a slower shutter and high ISO to compensate. And at 1000mm the camera shake generated simply by the shutter actuation was shocking and frustrating, even on the most stable tripod Manfrotto makes. To prevent the shutter actuation from making the image blurry, getting my shutter to 1/1200 of a second, I had to ramp the ISO up to 3200 which means noise was awful.

I am still intrigued with getting one of these for myself. They are affordable at about $190 for the kit. I just wish they can make them at about f/4. But until they do, I will make do with what I have available and my friends who love to share their technology with someone eager to try new things.

To find out more feel free to visit, Amazon.

Playing with Fire - Setting Fire to Rain

Flaming Umbrella

Glowing Orb - Part One

 What an amazing evening. My friend and fellow photographer, Elizabeth Smith and my wife headed into the dark stormy night with one thing on our minds; setting fire to the world and capturing it on film.

We headed to an a rock quarry that Liz works at by day. Using a few household items and some ingenuity we captured some amazing moments. The above flaming umbrella image was one of many stunning images we captured.

Circle of Fire

 So the trick to accomplishing this is:
Find a safe place where you won't set anything on fire accidentally.

You will need fine grain, type 0, steel wool.

You will need a medium sized wire whisk  like those that you would beat eggs with, preferably one with a loop on the end.

You will need to two carabiners and a length of chain that is about two feet long.

You will need one wind proof lighter.

You will need to long pants and long sleeves and closed toe shoes.

Glowing Orb - Part Two

Put one carabiner on each and of the chain.

Attach the whisk to one of the carabiners.

Unroll the steel wool to allow it to breathe as it burns

Stuff the steel wool into the whisk.

Light the steel wool all over.

Begin spinning the steel wool.

Actuate the shutter.

Walking Fire

 One key is to activate the shutter after you have the spinning started and to deactivate the shutter before the end of the spin.

Remember to keep safety first.

When this stuff burns, it becomes molten.

Never swing it towards any person or object that can burn.

Keep away from dry grasses.

Keep water nearby in case an accident does happen.

Have fun, be safe, and go out and make some art.