How to take hazy photos?

See beautiful abstract photos of smoke on white or black background. But how to shoot smoke, because it is so elusive and so unstable? Actually, everything is easier than it looks.

Therefore, in order to shoot smoke, we need:

1. camera with good lens definition and focal length of 24 ~ 70mm；;

2. External flash on the remote control;

3. tripod;

4. Black background with a size of at least a1-a2;

5. The method of installing the background is to fix the background and just pick up a piece of paper in a stable position;

6. Waste newspapers and lighters or matches;

Attention! Observe the fire safety rules and thoroughly ventilate after smoking every 10- 15 minutes.

So let's get started!

First, it is best to smoke out the room, so it is easy to put the tuyere at the end (let the smoke rise directly), and then it is easy to ventilate the small room. There is also water, sink, range hood, fire source and garbage in the kitchen at any time. You can dim the window, or let the natural light shine through the window.

Second, install a fixed background to make it uniform (no creases and creases).

3. Install the camera on a tripod and adjust the height so that the background fills the whole picture space.

4. General exposure settings: aperture F8.0-f 16, shutter speed1100-160 seconds, ISO 100-200 (specific settings depend on light conditions.

5. Turn on the flash and synchronize. Flash mode-manual, and the power varies from116 to 1/64, depending on the lighting conditions (it can be adjusted when shooting).

First, please set the white balance. You can choose flash or automatic white balance value (it doesn't matter if you shoot in RAW format). To get a more accurate white balance:

6. 1. Aim the flash at the black background.

6.2. Disable autofocus on the lens (enter manual focus mode)

6.3. Make sure that the black background fills the whole picture.

6.4. Press the shutter button to take photos with a black background.

6.5. Then select "Manual" in the white balance setting. In the camera menu, we search for "manual white balance". Press or to select a photo with a black background and set it to white balance mode.

Seventh, now we expose the lights. Place the flash on a stable surface (table) and direct it so that it shines on the side of the camera, but does not touch the background. Set the zoom parameter of the flash to 70.

Values of mm or more are very useful for creating narrow beams.

8. Select the initial setting (from above) on the camera, and then switch back to autofocus mode.

9. Put the paper newspaper (glossy magazine is best not to be used) in the tube, put it on the hand sticking out between the lens and the background, and aim the lens at the tip of the newspaper. Conduct tests-

Check whether the flash direction is correct and the exposure setting is correct. Make changes if necessary.

Ten, after the settings are ready, go to the most interesting! On the one hand, the newspaper is gently lit, and the maximum amount of smoke appears at this time. Press the shutter button at the same time (don't forget to focus on the top of the newspaper). Let's see the results.

Repeat the experiment to get good results.

12. Smoke the room every 10- 15 minutes. After the shooting, carefully put out the lit newspaper with water and put it in the trash can. After shooting, open the doors and windows for 20-30 minutes to eliminate the burning smell in the apartment.

Practical advice: during the filming, I found that when you light one side of the newspaper, then turn it over, and the burning is over, it is best to get smoke.

You can also control the smoke by moving the newspaper in one direction or the other.