Using an LED Light wand to create unique light painting portraits in-camera
Model Credit: Emma (@emmaarayray)
Photo by Me: Mike McGee (@mikemcgeephotography)
All shots: f/22, 5 second exposure, ISO 100
In case you missed it, I did a full write up and review of the Savage RGB Light Painter Pro LED Wand back in November. Since then, I have had multiple photoshoots with it, and it continues to be incredibly fun and creative to experiment with. Such a fun device!
For this shoot with Emma, we were planning on shooting a rave style shoot with various vibrant festival-style outfits. (Have you seen her amazing rainbow shoes??) So the LED light wand was used here to play off of the vibrant wardrobe colors and do a little light painting in the background.
It should be noted that all of these shots have the light painting done in-camera. This isn’t a photoshop composite done in post. Rather, this is a single shot, with the lighting being a mixture of strobes and a long exposure. All shots were taken at f/22, 5 second exposure, and ISO 100. When taken in a completely dark room, (and having the model stand as still as possible) adding the strobe allows the initial blast of light to “freeze time” and provide a proper exposure for the model, while the wand is waved in the background or foreground for the desired light-painting effect.
What makes this even more fun and creative is the ability to change the wand colors on-the-fly, and to dramatically change the look of each image simply by choosing a different LED color. As you can see below, in some shots the camera settings and background are all the same, the model’s wardrobe is the same, and even her pose is the same, yet, the only change is from the colors of the wand.
Thus, I was able to yield a completely different creative look from shot to shot, all from a different light painting color or wave technique. It makes it experimenting with different colors and wand moves a must. For example, I never thought the solid yellow LED wand color would work, but not only did it work, it worked amazingly well! Sometimes you have to have try something new and test it out, and I’m glad I did.
If you have any questions about the technique, or want more information, please post a comment/question below and I’ll be happy to answer any questions.
Here are some shots from this series:
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4 Comments
WOW!
I am a new photographer and I just invested in a really great camera and I am ready to get creative and I found you!!! I have a few questions regarding your strobe light that you used for the wand pictures. I am not familiar with this type of lighting?
Also, did you have someone in the background wave the wand around like that? How did you not get them in the image if so? Or did you photoshop them out? I am really interested in doing a series similar to this with my own style.
What are your favorite color lights to use that would be on a newbie budget?
I SO look forward to hearing from you!
I am about to start doing boudoir photography and want to implement this style with mixed lighting and doing different creative things! Not too many people are doing this… well just you from what I can find!
THANK YOU!
Hi Faliesha. Thanks for your kind words and I’m glad you liked these creative shots.
Yes, there’s someone in the background waving the wand while the model stayed perfectly still. That person was me! 🙂 Your need to setup a tripod to take the shots, and then I was behind the model and as the shutter was open I waved the wand around. Because I had the light facing the camera, and because I was moving, I won’t appear in the shots, on the light trails from the wand.
In terms of favorite colors, there are really no rules. It’s fun to simply experiment and try out colors that play off of the model’s wardrobe, styling, etc. Have fun!
Hi Mike, I sent my question via your contact page, but then saw that I could post a comment here. I am a relatively new Savage Light Wand user. I love your small, tight patterns. I have not been able to achieve this look. When I wave the wand behind my subject my patterns all turn out large and sweeping and fill the frame, even though I try to move quickly and make them small. Am I too close to the camera, or is there something that you can suggest. BTW, we are almost neighbors; I am in San Jose.
Hi Susan, just be sure to adjust your aperture to ensure that everything is in focus. Start with f/16, and then possibly even f/22 like I did with these sample shots. The smaller aperture will keep nearly everything in focus, and require a longer shutter speed. However, since you’re light painting, the shutter can be open for 5+ seconds and be fine. Hope this helps.