Ominous Night
Winter. The cold air punched me in the gut. On such a night, I found myself exploring an old, abandoned war fortress, remnants left by the civil war. I was there to capture the night’s eerie and ominous mood. But, something felt wrong. Having never ventured to such a place before, I didn’t know what to expect. The derelict nature of the old war fort was something straight out of a horror movie. There were several entrances, locked doors, and tunnels traveling to unknown haunts. While most were locked or welded shut, a few gates hung open, a foreboding warning to those willing to enter. Not knowing if anyone was lurking within, I tiptoed quietly with my flashlight in hand, peering through the gates and hoping I was alone before beginning my shoot. On the far end of the fort, I arrived at a gate with what appeared to be a screwdriver barring it shut from the inside. Was there someone lurking there? Through the perforated gate, I lit the dreary staircase curving around a corner into nowhere. Suddenly, there was a shift in the light and a sound of heavy movement. I was not alone. I silently hustled to the far end of the fort, waiting for something (or someone) to burst out of the gate, chasing at my heels. I waited, but there was no one. I then heard noise from above, from the upper level of the building back near the woods. Perhaps I really was being followed. Fear crept in, but it was only a herd of deer. Should I head back? Foolishness prevailed. I still wanted to capture two prized shots. Without a sound, I snapped the photographs and made my way out of the fortress. Back in the safety of my Jeep, my mind turned back to the screwdriver-barred gate. What was behind that door?
It’s amazing how the light of the day can alter the scene of the night. I returned to the fortress the very next afternoon, intent on retracing my steps and discovering what was behind that door. The fort looked much less ominous now, and I made a beeline for the door where I had heard the noise. Closer examination revealed that it was welded shut, the screwdriver the lone remnant of a wayward attempt to pry it open–likely by a group of misguided youths up to no good, or merely a well-meaning photographer going to odd lengths for the perfect scene. I laughed at myself. No one was coming after me after all. Upon further exploration, I found two open doors leading to graffitied rooms, concrete falling from the walls. The rooms were dark with only a little light seeping in, so I adjusted my camera settings and shot a few ghostly photographs for this column.
Have you ever noticed how horror movies are often filmed at night? The night invites the unknown and the expectation of danger. What you can’t see is forfeited to your imagination. The night convinced me someone was camped out in those tunnels, that I was in danger. My imagination took hold of the night and ran wild. Likewise in photography, the darkness allows the photographer greater control over the light and affords easier manipulation of the mood and what is captured. In pitch-blackness, only the illuminated is captured, giving you absolute control over the scene. It helps you as a photographer to project your imagination upon the viewer and create an intense emotional reaction.
For these photographs, I set the scene and fashioned a number of props by hand. For example, to capture “The Winning Hand,” I attached two playing cards to a clear, plastic rod, and holding the rod in my hand, I feigned a tossing motion to make the cards appear suspended in air while I light-painted the shot. I used a tool called a black fiber optic light brush, a dimming brush I snagged from a website called Light Painting Brushes (https://lightpaintingbrushes.com). The brush attaches to a flashlight, and, using an assortment of colored gels cut to fit between the flashlight and brush, I brandished the brush in assorted ways to paint ghostly figures into pitch-blackness, or into minimal light.
To shoot the ghostly figure unraveling into the drain, while using a camera remote, I stood against a wall holding the brush one inch from my body. With a sweeping motion, I painted the parts of myself that I wanted in the photograph. Not forgetting my brushing hand, I switched hands during the shot to ensure I illuminated both hands fairly. To hide my lower half and create the ribboned, unraveling effect, I stood back and shined the light against the wall where I had previously been standing. I then swept the wall with light in a similar fashion as I had my body, but this time using a swirling motion. This produced the ribbon of light and removed any trace of me the camera would have picked up. Remember, light eliminates darkness, so darker objects in the frame won’t be captured in your image. Next, I continued plying the brush in a broad, circular motion, narrowing my movements as I funneled toward the drain. The light from the tip of the brush created the blue ribbon you see in the photograph. This was all captured on one photographic frame. It took around a minute and a half to shoot on bulb mode, with an ISO of 100 and an f-stop of eight.
For the “Headless Flame,” I used a white fiber optic brush that cast a greater amount of light and added a yellow and red color gel to produce the color of flame. I stood in front of the camera, and holding the brush behind me with the tip pointing toward my body (and toward the camera), I brushed behind my entire body with a whipping motion to create a silhouette of flame around me. The camera only captured the lit flame, and not me, since I was in darkness and my silhouette was in light. Once the flaming figure was complete, I left the scene and gave the camera a few moments to capture the background, still leaving the shutter open. This created a transparent effect, allowing the viewer to “see through” the ghostly figure. In this shot, I stopped short of my head to create a headless figure, adding to the creepiness factor. This was all shot on one photographic frame taking around one minute to shoot on bulb mode, with an ISO of 100 and an f-stop of ten.
A few tips on how you can create your own ghostly photographs:
Scene is everything. Create a story behind each shot by using the props, the environment, and your character’s expression and body language to set the scene. This will provoke a greater emotional impact on the viewer.
Light is everything. The darker your environment is, the greater control you will have over the light and over the photograph you are trying to create. In some shots, like “The Winning Hand,” I shot the photograph in a pitch-black room. In others, like “The Unraveling,” I made the environment as dark as possible, then adjusted the camera settings to compensate for the lack of pitch-blackness.
Tools are everything. You can only do so much with a flashlight and flash when trying to light-paint ghosts and create eerie scenes. Take the time to find the right tools, and the possibilities will be limitless. Again, my go-to resource is Light Painting Brushes
(https://lightpaintingbrushes.com).Safety is everything. When venturing into deserted places–like abandoned tunnels or war fortresses–make safety a priority. Check it out in advance during the day, make sure you’re not breaking any laws or entering a restricted space, or grab a buddy to join you.
Imagination is everything. Find a way to exercise that imagination. I sometimes put ideas on paper before shooting and know in advance what I wish to capture; other times, I just go out and start shooting, often with a half-conceived notion in mind and allow it to develop organically. I find changing up my approach allows me to exercise different creative muscles.
There are many haunting images you can create with the right tools and an imaginative spirit. Sometimes, it takes a strike of good luck and stumbling upon an old, forsaken war fortress to drum up the excitement and imagination to capture that perfect, ghostly shot.
365 Art+ Magazine Case 13: Friday 13