Here are some pics from a live video light painting show at the Apple Store in Ginza, Tokyo. I was asked by Fluterscooter AKA Andrea Fisher to supply some visuals. She had found Fiz-iks’ work online and imagined in video form. I had not tried doing it with a video cam in real time before but after some research and a lot of tinkering I was able to get it all working. For extra impact I had it all controlled from my iPhone using the OSC technology. The set up requires two people. One to run the lights and one to operate the controls. Being short on guys with the regular fiz-iks team tied up with other things I enlisted the help of old friend and collaborator, Graphica. The company gave me some tech and logistical support and more importantly, Masao-kun to help me out.

So on April 17th, I flew up to Tokyo for the show. It was Fluterscooter on the flute with various guests throughout the show including a DJ, beatboxer, taiko drummer and a keyboard player. Having literally no rehearsal time with them meant my and Masao-kuns part was done pretty much on the fly. I think there is huge potential for this in the future. It is something I hopefully am able to fine tune and offer as a service.

Ardrian Storey, AKA Uchujin, was on hand to document the event. He is a Tokyo-based photographer and film maker. To see the video head over to his blog. He was even kind enough to add in a sparkle on my smile!

• A camera capable of shooting in “Bulb” mode
• A sturdy tripod
• A cable release  *it can be done with a remote but options will be very limited

Where should I go?

A temple for foreground interest.

I tend to look for locations that are have some foreground interest.  It may be an abandoned building, large infrastructure like a radio tower or a bridge, or some natural features like rock formations or big trees.  You may choose to add light to these features with a flashlight or keep them as silhouettes against the star filled sky.  Though it is possible to capture star trails in town it is much easier if you try this far away from any city lights.  A darker sky means you can crank up your ISO and open up your lens really wide and capture a greater number of visible stars.  City lights that are not even visible to the naked eye will show up over a long exposure so when you think you have finally found some dark skies keep on driving!  It really pays off doing some research before embarking on a shoot especially if you have never seen the location in the day before.

markings so shining the light on the foreground subject while using the AF function may work if the flashlight is bright.  If not go lay the flashlight on the ground at the base of what you are shooting and focus on that.  Once you have achieved the glorious state of “in focus” be sure to set it to MF or manual focus before starting your exposure or it will start searching again when you start the exposure and you will lose your focus.  So now you should have your camera focused and set to manual focus(MF) and the shot roughly composed.  When composing the shot try not to include any direct light sources, like streetlights, in the shot.  If you are not using film then I suggest doing a test shot which aids in composing your final shot.  A 2-3 minute exposure at high ISO and wide aperture is enough to be able to see which direction the stars are moving and allow one to imagine what the final shot will look like.  Recompose the shot if necessary and zoom in on the LCD to double check you focus is accurate.

White balance set to 10000 Kelvin

Single exposure, xenon flashlight used on foreground

For shooting options, one could choose to do it all in one shot or shoot multiple shots and “stack” them after using computer software.  I personally find that shooting multiple images and stacking them yields much nicer images than those done all in one shot.  If you are going to do it all in one shot then your biggest concern should be noise.  To avoid noise, one could use a narrower aperture and a lower ISO speed but these settings will typically not pick up very many stars.  If this is the route you are going to take, and I suggest at least trying it, then focus and compose the shot.  Set the time value to “bulb”, the aperture to its widest, and with and ISO at 200, try for a 30-minute exposure with a wide aperture of 3.5 – 4.0.  If there is too much noise then drop the ISO to 100 and either shorten the exposure time or try a narrower aperture.  If shooting this way is your only option, there is something that you can do to increase the appearance of the length of the trails in the frame that will be limited due to the short exposure time.  The actual length of the trails is determined solely by time but the appearance of the trail length is determined by the focal length you are shooting at.  For example, stars over a 30-minute exposure would appear much longer in the frame at 50mm than they would at 15mm.  If you find that you are limited to shorter exposure time due to noise, or any other factor, try shooting at a longer focal length to increase the appearance of the star trail length in relation to the frame.  See my article here that explains focal length and relative star trail length.

same image as single exp. above but this one is stacked

My heavily preferred way of shooting is shooting multiple shots and stacking them later using computer software.  Shooting this way means one can shoot with a wide aperture and a faster ISO that will pick up many more stars than the previous method.  One can do this because noise becomes much less of a factor.  Noise generally increases with time so you only have to worry about 30 seconds that means even at ISO 800 it is not really going to cause a problem.  There is even an option to include dark frames, which are frames shot with the lens cap on, so that even the tiny bit of noise from ISO 800 over 30 seconds will be removed.  With the higher end DSLR’s and the improvement of sensor noise reduction in newer DSLRs means that the ISO can be bumped even higher which will result in even more visible stars streaking across the sky.  You will need to find the balance for your camera based on how it handles noise. For this method it is necessary to use a cable release.  It could be done with a remote but then I would recommend shooting much longer exposures than 30 seconds and stacking those.  You will be shooting possibly hundreds of images so it is important to make sure there is plenty of space on your memory card.  To get started, set your focus and compose your shot.  Set the aperture to its widest and the ISO to 800 for starters.  Dial in 30 seconds for the time value and the drive mode to “continuous shooting” mode which allows for non-stop shooting when the cable release is locked.  I suggest doing a test shot first to see if everything looks all right before locking that release.  If anything is too bright then dial the ISO down.  Once you have taken the shots you will need to stack them using software.

foreground lit with xenon flashlight

We are pleased to announce that Trevor was invited back to Okinawa to teach another light painting workshop in May on the 4th and 5th. The tropical islands of Okinawa provide the ideal location for the workshop offering a wide variety of environments to work in from sandy beaches to ancient ruins.

Required Equipment
A DSLR (or film SLR) camera or a camera capable of taking long exposures.
A tripod
A remote or cable release(to enable exposures longer than 30 seconds)

Recommended Equipment
A flashlight
Dark clothing
Pen and notepad for notes

Course Outline
The main topic of the course is light painting which will include basic night photography. It is open to all levels of photographers but those with a basic understanding of photography will get the most out of it.

The first night we will look at the tools and techniques used in light painting followed by a brief slideshow to show their effects. We will then set up our cameras and head outside to try them out first hand. We will also cover getting correct exposures at night including adding supplementary lighting and practice that through a series of short exercises. Adding people into the frame with an off camera flash and balancing it with the background will also be covered. The night will end with a discussion of what we want to capture on night 2.

The next night we will head out to create our own masterpieces. We use the tools and techniques we practiced on the previous night and tie them in with the environmental lighting to create some fantastic light paintings. Working in groups, we will head out and capture a set of of images that we planned at the end of the first night. You will be able to take home a set of images that would not be able to get anywhere else.

This workshop is taking a learn-by-doing approach and you will get lots of hands on experience. It is open to all levels of photographers but those with a basic understanding of photography will get the most out of it. Having good understanding of light painting and night photography will help out all areas of your “regular” photography. This course is all about understanding light which is fundamental to any photographic endeavor.

“Class is from 4PM to 10PM on both days. Course fee is US$150. The workshop will take place in Ishikawa and in the Uruma City / Yomitan area. Participants can start booking places in March.” More info and booking here.

I will performing light art in real time during a live music show at the Apple Store in Ginza, Tokyo on April 17th. Admission is free and is bound to be good with a great line up of musicians. The official press release is below.

*THE FAST AND THE FLUTERIOUS: TOKYO DRIFT. 4/17/12. APPLE STORE GINZA.
TOKYO*

*WITH INTERACTIVE LIGHT ART BY TREVOR WILLIAMS AND SUPPORTED BY GRAPHICA*

*Tokyo-April 4, 2012*

“The Fast and the Fluterious: Tokyo Drift” will be anything but a typical
flute recital. Fluterscooter will play her own arrangements of classical
and pop music fused with live art and technology in her Japanese debut with
several pieces on the program being premieres in Japan. She will be
collaborating with famed Japanese beatboxer Dokaka, DJ Dave Clark III,
Taiko phenomenom Eva Kestner, as well as backup dancers, all during an
interactive light art performance by expert light painter Trevor Williams;
it will be an experience like nothing you’ve ever seen!

Trevor Williams blows our minds with his three-dimensional light graffiti.
Williams, who is originally from Canada, founded the group Fiz-iks, which
is based in Japan. For this event he has taken his techniques and applied
them to video allowing him to light paint in real time to create an
interactive light show. He developed a way to control the required
software wirelessly through his Iphone allowing him to perform with the
lights without being behind a control booth and opening up opportunities
for the audience to participate as well.

Knowing there was more to this interactive real time light art theme,
Williams called on some old friends at Graphica, a leading
DJ/audio/lighting design company, to kick it up a notch. Graphica decided
to create customized light suits for the dancers and will use a sound
system that is guaranteed to blow out some windows. In the end there is
going to a groundbreaking art performance during the flute music that
combines the organic nature of light painting and combining it with cutting
edge technology and making it all happen in real time in front of the live
audience.

Fresh to Tokyo from NYC, Fluterscooter (born Andrea Fisher), is a classical
and hiphop flutist, a 2 time graduate of the Juilliard School, and a past
collaborator with John Legend and 50 Cent. Having toured several times with
the Pacific Music Festival Orchestra in Sapporo, with Thee Phantom and the
Illharmonic Orchestra in Tokyo, and also invited to compete in the
prestigious Kobe Flute Competition, Fluter is no stranger to Japan, and it
has always been her dream to produce and play her own show here.

*End*

More info on Time Out Tokyo
The facebook event page
Will be featured in the Thursday, April 12 print edition of The Japan Times

Sure has been a while. Was great to get out again. Lots of exciting news coming so stay tuned.

I am extremely pleased to announce i will be hosting a light painting and night photography workshop in Okinawa, Japan.

A twister hits Japan!

Our first night out with a new toy we made. We are happy with the results and will probably post a tutorial on how we made it.

We were hoping for a near full but found cloudy skies when we arrived at our first location which was the top of a dam located deep in the mountains. The reason we chose this was because we can access the top of the dam freely with out any security or fences to go through. The thought of a large unprotected dam anywhere else in the world other than Japan is crazy. Usually people are not free to wander around anywhere and especially at night. After a couple shots the skies cleared up and we decided to change locations to a remote mountain temple for a shot with the large torii or temple gate which is the one pictured above. This test shot below was the first at the dam and as you can see the tool we had not quite mastered how to use the tool yet.

Here is the evolution of the shot in terms of composition

I left the camera to sit and capture the control center for the dam as we cleaned up after the shoot and prepared for the next location.

We get mails often asking us what lights we use to make out pictures. We use such a variety but the basics are here in the video below.

Light stencils are an easy way to add in graphic elements to long exposure shots. Basically, this is fired in the frame while the shutter is open during a long exposure. The graphic remains while the person and box is completely invisible.

Watch the vid and make a box as directed. Using any illustration program print out your design onto fine grade paper which is slightly heavier than regular copy/printing paper. I print 2 and paste them together but make sure they are perfectly aligned by holding them up against a bright light source. I laminate mine so they can be reused as they often rip when removed or changed but this is not a necessary step.

I usually set the flash to 1/8 which works well with the settings I use on my camera for light @painting. You may need to adjust this and I suggest doing a test shot before your light work to check the exposure of the stencil. Happy shooting!

Fiz-bird has had enough of his cage…

Shot in the mountains of Okayama, Japan at Hoshijinja. The dome and yellow circle were created with LEDs. A 500 lumen LED light provides all lighting for the location.