C. H. Photography: Motion In Stillness

We often think of a still image as a fraction of a second frozen in time, as that is most often the case. There are images though, that are much longer than a fraction of a second and can reach lengths of sometimes hours. These long exposure lengths are most often done at night or in dark places as a means of making still images with very little light. As a consequence of leaving the shutter open for so long any movement in the frame becomes blurred. Water can look misty or glassy, lights streak across the frame like lazers, and objects take the shape of their movement rather than their still form. What is interesting is to use this same affect, but in a well lit environment. To do this you must darken the light coming through the lens using a Neutral Density Filter or ND Filter. This is basically like putting a pair of sunglasses on your camera. The end result is a drawn out splice of time that not only gives you an image of an object or scene, but records patters of movement. The image takes on a mood that feels as if time has stood still for all but a few. Waves crashing against rocks near an old village in Sicily gives you the impression that the water of the Mediterranean rushes on as the village stands still against history. Clouds fly past Big Ben in London as the tower stands firm through the ages as a monument to the British Empire. Trees sway in the wind back and forth again and again as an old bridge stands firm. Time becomes motion in stillness.

- Cefalu Waves - Sicily, Italy -