A Shot Drop Shot

Fantastic shots , just started doing drop shots myself , hope someday to get shots as good as good as these , but it is a slooooow learning curve . may have to get a new timer , the egg timer doesn't seem to be accurate enough lol.
 
cornish chris said:
Fantastic shots , just started doing drop shots myself , hope someday to get shots as good as good as these , but it is a slooooow learning curve . may have to get a new timer , the egg timer doesn't seem to be accurate enough lol.
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Your egg timer might work if you release your waterdrop from an altitude of 3,000 feet. I tried using a sundial as a timer but got frustrated on cloudy days.

Let me know if you need some tips on dropshots.

While laser targeting this egg, a tiny spider decided to see what was happening.

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Spider omelette, anyone?

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Fishbait said:
The way to keep a thread alive is to always leave them wanting more!

Here's a better sequence that you may find satisfying.
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Yep definitely more satisfying :)

Loved the ones of the set up as well, I like seeing how things are done, even if I am never going to be able to do it myself!

I look fowards to seeing what you can do with 1/80000th, can I ask how/what it is that will be giving you that kind of duration?
 
ACW said:
Yep definitely more satisfying :)


I look fowards to seeing what you can do with 1/80000th, can I ask how/what it is that will be giving you that kind of duration?
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It is an external shutter developed by Cognisys,Inc.

It attaches to the camera and is externally powered.

The shutter is expected to be available early 2012.
 
just been reading through the thread and don't think I could add anything else that hasn't been said - simply amazing! :clap:
 
Great thread Fishbait, keep the pics and info coming!.. Really wanted to see that spider surfing the egg goo, that would have been awesome:LOL:
 
Jayst84 said:
Good technicals on the triggering, etc. I think you should spend a bit more time working on lighting to bring the photographic side of things up to the same standard and do justice to all the other effort you're putting in. (y)
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Thanks for the feedback.

This issue has been addressed on page #1 of this thread, beginning with post #19.
 
Jayst84 said:
Sorry, missed that when I was reading through. Still, better lighting wouldn't be difficult. Worth an extra two minutes if you're going to the trouble of all that.
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When you say better lighting wouldn't be difficult, I suspect that you don't understand what is involved in taking hi-speed images like these.

To capture a hi-speed event like this one must expose the image with a strobe capable of firing at 1/30,000sec or less. Because of the way the strobe is made, it is necessary to reduce output to 1/128th of full power to achieve this brief burst of light. Because the emitted light is so dim, it is necessary to place the strobe extremely close to the object without being in the frame and without being blasted by the projectile.

There are several other considerations when lighting these shots such as hot spots from reflection off the water and the protection of the equipment from water damage.

If you have the expertise and knowledge to set up the lighting for shots like this in two minutes, I would be very interested to hear your suggestions.
 
Wasn't meant as a dig.

I'm well aware of what's required to get the images. Light is light though, and where you place it and how you modify it has exactly the same effect, high speed or not. Yes you need the short duration, but you can still modify the light and control where it goes.

Plenty of people take very nicely lit and composed high speed photographs. :)
 
cant wait for the pics with the pellets colliding! this thread is a fantastic read thank you.
 
I've had some requests for posting my calculations used to program the 2 intervolometers used in the ballistic shots.

The formula v_f = sqrt(2*g*h) was used to calculate the speed of the falling drop. At a distance of 330.2mm the speed is 44.5mm/sec.

The formula t = sqrt((2*h)/g) was used to find the time (t) it took the drop to fall 330.2mm. t =4.54ms

How long the drop presents itself as a target for the projectile which is fired from a hard mounted gun was calculated by using v_f = sqrt(2*g*h) at 324.6mm then using t = sqrt((2(h-v_o*t))/g) where h is 11.2mm (drop diameter of 5.6mm *2). t =0.31ms.

Many people assume hundreds of shots are made with the hope of getting lucky. This is not the case. The whole process is carefully calculated and controlled to the point where the hit rate is close to 100%.
 
I don't really know what to say, these are amazing shots with a truly inspiring amount of thought and planning to get into the level of details and timing that you seem to have.

Very impressive stuff!
 
Mentalblock said:
Sorry if you've already answered this question, but was it your picture I saw in the Manchester Evening News last week?

Great shots.
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Most likely. The images have gone viral in UK and Germany. Even saw a publication in Nigeria!

Do you have a link to the picture you saw by chance?
 
Mentalblock said:
It was the Metro not the MEN!
I believe this was the article
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OK, thanks.

These images have gone viral world wide! I've seen publications in China, Thailand, Nigeria, Germany.....

Have yet to see a nickel from them. Someone is making money with my images!
 
I have some cool news about the water drop images in this thread.

I have just received confirmation from an executive producer that a video crew will be sent from Munich, Germany to my studio in New York in May to film a documentary video of my work for broadcast on a prime-time German TV program.

They will be shooting hi-speed video of the drop ballistics with a WEISSCAM HS2 hi-speed camera.

Super slo-mo video of a water drop being blasted with a pellet will be a mind-blower, for certain!
 
I was going to ask what you used as a timer, but I see it's a stopshot. I have a homebrew Arduino based timer with solenoid, phototogates etc. and have been wanting to shoot things for a long time. Waterdrops get fairly run of the mill after a while, these shots have inspired me to get my arse into gear and get some ballistic shots done this summer.
One kid and a pregnant wife kinda limit my time these days :)
 
Go for it, Danny! It's a real challenge to hit a falling water drop with a pellet. The drop presents itself as a target for just 31/100,000ths second. That's a small fast moving target that is gone in an instant.

If you have any questions just let me know.

My current experiments are with forming soap bubbles filled with CO2, cryogenically freezing the bubbles with liquid Nitrogen, then blasting them with a pellet. Good results so far.
 
Interesting news regarding my water drop ballistic shots. I have been contacted by a television producer in Germany who is sending a crew from Munich to my house in New York to video a documentary on the drop shots. They will be shooting ultra-hi-speed video of the shots.

The documentary will be broadcast on a prime-time program in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria.
 
ABSOLUTELY mind blowing images.

Love your photos and but over that I respect the calculations that you've done to get the hit ratio down to almost 100%.
 
Wonderful images! Most look more like scientific or engineering research results than art as such, which from your description is exactly what they are, but as an engineer I'm in awe of the technical prowess shown, regardless!!

Stunning stuff!
 
alchemistkevin said:
ABSOLUTELY mind blowing images.

Love your photos and but over that I respect the calculations that you've done to get the hit ratio down to almost 100%.
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Thanks for your kind comment, Kevin. Once I started taking a systematic approach to the process and did the maths, the hits started coming.
 
Southdowns said:
Wonderful images! Most look more like scientific or engineering research results than art as such, which from your description is exactly what they are, but as an engineer I'm in awe of the technical prowess shown, regardless!!

Stunning stuff!
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Thanks, Mark. You are quite correct in that the images are an experiment in physics, ballistics, and precise timing rather than fine photography.

Many have suggested giving more attention to the photography but I feel that shooting them the way I have leaves no doubt that they are genuine and not manipulated in any way.

You can look forward to seeing the shots in high-speed video in a few weeks.
I think the video will be a mind-blower!
 
wallyboy said:
i admire your skill and dedication, we need more characters like you, not worried about sharing your work, keep it up fella
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Thanks, Walter. I am planning a series of very interesting shots that will be captured on high-speed video as well as still shots. I plan to keep shooting for a long while. The best is yet to come!

I appreciate your taking time to post. It is gratifying to be recognized for the work.

Here's a fisheye lens shot of the drop rig depicting all the power supplys , valves, solenoids, relays, intervalometers, gun, strobe, and miles of interconnecting wires needed to make this thing work. This is from the testing and calibration of the timers. The finished version is a bit more tidy.

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That looks like a sofa to the left of your table. Best hope nobody's watching TV while you're doing these shots!
 
This was worth waiting for! A video production crew from Germany travelled to my home in New York on Monday to capture video of my shots at 4000 frames per second.

The results are spectacular. Here is a link to one of the clips. There will be seven more all from a different perspective uploaded soon. Enjoy!
 
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