Fun with Long Exposures

I'm always looking for new skills and knowledge to improve my photographic skills.  Light painting has been something that has fascinated me.  There are tons of very talented people out there that make some amazing creations by leaving the shutter open and using various light sources to "paint" an image.  One of the best examples is Denis Smith of Denis Smith Photography.  His images as well as story are inspiring.  Be sure to check his work out here.  He is also very open about his technique which is awesome.  So many times you see an image and wish there was a description about how it was captured.

I've gone out a couple of times and waved flashlights around for fun.  It is a great activity for kids and a lot of fun to watch.  For equipment all you need is a tripod, remote trigger, and manual settings on the camera.  Just open the shutter and let whoever has the flashlights dance around then close the shutter when you think you have something interesting. 

Granted if you want to make art like Denis Smith does your actions have to be a bit more planned out.  If you are just looking for something fun to do just find a few different colored flashlights (LEDs work great), put them on some string and start getting creative.

For the images below I had my niece, nephew and sister helping out.  My nephew and niece (2 and 4 at the time) had a blast.

My sister's attempt at a Christmas tree.  I think it worked well

I think this was a sword fight between my niece and I

I especially liked this one because of the ghosted image of my niece