Rachel Jayne Photography: Painting with light

This was my first attempt at light painting. For this series of images a fellow student helped me; I wanted to get a shot of the darkroom to use in my sketchbook for my darkroom work. My aim was to get an image of the darkroom lit up using the painting with light technique.

I positioned the camera (mounted on a tripod) at an angle facing towards the developing area as this was the key element i wanted to capture in my shots. Myself and Lisa worked together in setting the aperture and shutter speed, i then stood to the side of the shot and a used an LED torch to paint the light around the room slowly; using a long exposure allowed the time needed to create a soft flowing movement, enhancing the softness of the light. I changed my position until no flare from the torch could be seen in the final images. I then changed my focus and aimed to just light up the area with the developing trays, rather than the whole room; i hoped this would create a darker area with plenty of shadows to create a more in depth and atmospheric outcome.

I am happy with these final images, mostly because they were my first attempt at using this fantastic technique. All of the images are sharp and lit up well. I especially like the starry affect on the taps in the 2nd and 3rd images.

If i was to shoot this set up again, i would choose to use a wider angle as to get more of the room in the frame. I would then use the same technique to paint up only the developing area; i feel this would add more depth with a higher density of shadows, creating more impact and drama. I would also use this technique to photograph one of the enlargers to include in my sketchbook, this would supply me with a visual aid to tie in with my explanations of the darkroom and all it's wonderful equipment used in the realms of black & white printing.

Overall i will definitely use this technique in the future. Experimenting in photography is so much fun and can really help you along your journey, by discovering ways in which you can communicate your thoughts and ideas, while increasing your technical skills and adding more creativity to your palette.