Light Up The Darkness

Light Up The Darkness, a photo by [Nocturne] on Flickr.

Again something i've been meaning to do more of, get infront of the camera and do more self portraits at night, quite a skill as well I might add, star trails portraiture is quite tricky, this one is actually quite a lot of photoshop so I am sorry in advance, this is a composite of 3 images. Thanks to Phil for lighting the shot of me. The other is of the Truck from the same trip, and the final shot is of some Light Writing my wife did for me.

Light up the darkness is one of my motos for Noctography, I think it works well on many levels.

"The people that are trying to make the world worse never take a day off, why should I? Light up the darkness."

For me Night photography isn't a hobby, it's not even something I do to pass time, it's something I have to do, I am compelled to do it, I have to, it is an addiction and a lifestyle. It consumes me, it is inside me and I belong to it. It has a certain power over me that I cannot resist. It has brought me to the edge of destruction and back, it has nearly ended my life and I still lust after it, night after night.

I don't know if anyone else feels this way?

All Through The Night

All Through The Night, a photo by [Nocturne] on Flickr.

I would like to include a welsh hymn here that is quite close to my heart as it was my Grandpa's favourite.

He died over 10 years ago now, and when his photography passion ended, mine began when I enherited his camera equipment. He was a photographer, an astronomer and a night photographer. I wish he was still here to enjoy these night shoots with me.

All Through The Night.

Sleep my love, and peace attend thee
All through the night;
Guardian angels God will lend thee,
All through the night,
Soft the drowsy hours are creeping,
Hill and vale in slumber sleeping,
I my loving vigil keeping,
All through the night.

While the moon her watch is keeping
All through the night;
While the weary world is sleeping
All through the night;
O'er thy spirit gently stealing,
Visions of delight revealing,
Breathes a pure and holy feeling,
All through the night.

www.noctography.co.uk

The Fire Chief

The Fire Chief, a photo by [Nocturne] on Flickr.

I've really got in to my simple lighting, and letting the stars and the subject mater do the talking. Some times a lot of coloured lighting can draw away the fact you are at such an amazing place. A lot of light painting takes place in peoples gardens and they get just as much praise if not more. I think we traveled a total of 250 miles for this place. I've never got the lighting right on this thing either in the past. The colours never mix well because of the colour of the truck itself, so I went with the natural flash gun white, really bring out the decay. Let the stars do the rest.

Enjoy


www.noctography.co.uk

It's Finally Here

It's Finally Here, a photo by [Nocturne] on Flickr.

I don't know if any of you rememeber, but not long ago I announced that I had one of my pictures on an album that will be sold in shops worldwide coming out soon.

www.flickr.com/photos/light_painter/5497091481/in/photost...

Well my few copies arrived yesterday and it's amazing. Here it is in the flesh.

Original picture can be seen here

www.flickr.com/photos/light_painter/558051224/in/photostream

Album can be bought here if anyone is interested

www.amazon.co.uk/Mysterious-Power-Ezra-Furman-Harpoons/dp...

Inside The Murder House

Inside The Murder House, a photo by [Nocturne] on Flickr.

Nah I'm just joking, but The owner hung himself in here, then there has been something like 5 more reported suicides in this house. Now when ever someone goes missing they come here first!

While me and Phil were here, a car pulled up at the entrance blocking both our cars in. After a few minutes they got out and looked in Phil's car window, by this point we were about 15ft away and Phil turned his torch at them, they crapped their pants ran back to the car then drove off without using the clutch, heard it grinding all the way down the road. Then they drove past another 3 times before pulling in again, by this time we were sat at the cars. Then they got out and it was 3 scared girls and a gay guy, asking us if we had been inside the "haunted scary house" they had a look from outside the fence and swore they saw someone, laughable really. When non-explorers or people who are not photographers go to these locations, we are so de-sensatised to these places it's no big deal, then you see people lose their minds over it.

www.noctography.co.uk

The Mail Man

The Mail Man, a photo by [Nocturne] on Flickr.

From my last trip to the digger graveyard with Phil and Fran. This wasn't suppose to be the last shot of the night, but we all got very cold and achey so we called it a night and started the 2 odd mile hike back to the car before the 2/3 hour car journey home.

Royal Navy Mail Truck

www.noctography.co.uk

The Colonel

The Colonel, a photo by [Nocturne] on Flickr.

Another shot from the digger graveyard, focused on star trails more than light painting. I was happy with this photo I got of this last time, so I went for a different angle with really simplistic lighting and a star trail.

www.noctography.co.uk

The Officer

The Officer, a photo by [Nocturne] on Flickr.

Me, Phil and Fran took a trip to to the digger graveyard. Haven't bin in a few months and it was really starry so re-shot a few things but with a star trail. My camera was acting a bit weird at the start of the night because somehow my camera had managed to change shooting styles in my bag so everything was 3 stops darker.

www.noctography.co.uk

Light Painting Photography - 18 of the Worlds Best Artists

Light Painting Photography - 18 of the Worlds Best Artists, a photo by [Nocturne] on Flickr.

I love it when it find stuff like this floating around the internet.

Light Painting Photography - 18 of the Worlds Best Artists

If you can't view it large here is what the text says.

"Light Painting Photography has been around since 1914 when Frank Gilbreth first use the form to study the motion of manufacturing and clerical workers. Light painting photography is also known as light painting, light drawing, light writing, light graffiti, light art, light art performance photography, LAPP, camera painting, and kinetic photography. All of these names are, in one form or another, long exposure photography. In Light Painting Photography the artist is leaving the shutter of the camera open for an extended period of time and using various lights to create color and design within the frame. Shutter speeds for light paintings can vary anywhere from 5 seconds up to 5 hours or more. To be a true light painting photograph the image must be created in one single frame without any post production manipulation whatsoever, a.k.a. NO PHOTOSHOP. Proper light painting photographs are known as SOOC or straight out of camera. This is a list of 18 of the worlds best light painting photographers."

"Chris Benbow: Chris, a.k.a. Nocturne, has coined his own term for his style of light painting photography its called noctography. Chris’s style is influenced by one of his favorite light painters Troy Pavia."

The list also includes:

Eric Staller
Dean Chamberlain
Vicki DaSilva
Troy Paiva
Patrick Rochon
Aurora Crowley
LAPP-PRO
Lichtfaktor
Chanette Manso
Dana Maltby
Jason D. Page
Janne Parviainen
Trevor Williams
Michael Bosanko
Guilhem Nicolas
Jake Saari
Jeremy Jackson

All of these people are my friends and are amazing artists, we're more like family, related but seperated at birth, we all have this connection and that connection is light painting, It brings is together as a cummunty.

Everyone on this list is a huge inspiration to me and hopefully one day we'll all get to shoot together.

Untill then keep on Lighting Up The Darkness my friends.

If you would like to see the other work here is the website I found this on - www.tripwiremagazine.com/2011/04/light-painting-photograp...

www.lightpaintingphotography.com

www.noctography.co.uk

www.luminarymovie.com

No Sledging!

No Sledging!, a photo by [Nocturne] on Flickr.

Does as it says on the tin, NO SLEDGING! I was saying to Phil if you were the farmer and you woke up one morning when it had snowed and your feild was full of idiots sledging you'd be pretty annoyed. haha

We took ages composing this trying to get it right, in the end we ended up sitting in the road.

www.noctography.co.uk

Blades of glory

Blades of glory, a photo by [Nocturne] on Flickr.

I love this place

A4

A4, a photo by [Nocturne] on Flickr.

Insurance Scam

Insurance Scam, a photo by [Nocturne] on Flickr.

As it was full moon I stayed local again and went to this house i've been meaning to go to for a while now.

Apparently an insurance scam gone wrong, a guy burnt down his own house for the insurance and they wouldn't pay out.

Now I believe it has been sold off at auction, bought by a developer, it will be knocked down and a few new houses to be built in its place, such a shame people get greedy.

www.noctography.co.uk

Stairway to nothing

Stairway to nothing, a photo by [Nocturne] on Flickr.

Stayed local the other night and I'm happy with this.