As the hot weather drives me to the basement, I have revived an interest in smoke photography. Incense sticks are used as the smoke source. Two LED studio video lights, GVM SD200D and Chinese no-name 135W. provide side lighting. Black foamcore and corrugated cardboard are used for background and for side baffles to reduce air cross currents. Incense smoke moves rapidly necessitating hundreds of images to find ones that provide interesting abstracts. "The Gift" is a composite of two. From the originals, you can see that considerable exposure correction, cropping, and cleanup of extraneous smoke is necessary. Nothing was added to the original images. It is just smoke with wonderful soft translucency and sinuous motion. Nikon Z7 with Nikkor Z 50 mm f/1.8 lens. Exposures were ISO 1600, f/8 for depth of field, and 1/250 second to stop motion. A plus is the great aroma now pervading the basement.
4 comments posted
Yan Zhao
Good idea, Karl, for abstract art creation. Good technique, as always. I may chose only one piece, likely the one from the root to form a neat blooming look with interesting shape, then give enough negative space in near black color for contrast. -Yan Posted: 07/05/2026 21:17:24
Lauren Heerschap
Very cool. Sinuous shapes and movement keep me wondering what my brain will identify. Keep experimenting! I think this should be a series... Posted: 07/13/2026 23:33:20
Karl Leck
This idea has become a series of hundreds of images, most of them deleted, in natural color as shown here and in added color via RGB LED lighting and tricolor (red, green, blue) filters on the camera lens. Stay tuned. The variations are endless. Posted: 07/14/2026 12:20:27
Judith Lesnaw
The clearly defined lines and stark black background are striking and create a playground for the imagination. I see a seahorse flirting with a shy Betty Boop. Technically excellent and artistically fascinating. I cant wait to see what comes next. Posted: 07/17/2026 00:00:09
