Set up a dart board on a table, put lights all around it, then used a shutter release cable as I dropped darts onto the dartboard from above, to simulate throwing them. (I had no help for actual throwing, so I had to resort to this method. I can guarantee that the darts *were* moving, and it was *extremely* hard to use a cable release to grab this shot! Hundreds of tries..) I used a flash with a 1/8000 shutter speed, and the background was far enough away to stay completely black.
post production: brightness/contrast, USM, noise reduction, some cloning to get rid of annoying background artifacts, cropping, and resizing.
Statistics
Place: 9 out of 170 Avg (all users): 6.7089 Avg (commenters): 7.0588 Avg (participants): 6.5487 Avg (non-participants): 6.8548 Views since voting: 5697 Views during voting: 546 Votes: 237 Comments: 30 Favorites: 4 (view)
Ok.. for everyone that was wondering.. I DIDN'T CHEAT.. exactly.
I wasn't throwing the dart at the dartboard, but instead, was dropping it ON to the dart-board. However, it wasn't an easy shot to do still, and I have a couple of outtakes to show you.
This is an outtake of the shot I submitted... showing a slightly weaker compositional shot.
This is an outtake from when I *DID* capture the dart after it was thrown (by my roomate). However, because of the background on this one, (plus the other dart), I chose to re-do the shots the way I did them instead.
Anyway, so I did capture the dart *in* mid-flight.. there were no strings.. I didn't balance it on anything, no tricks. It was moving toward the dart board, and I took over 200 shots to freeze it where I did, and finally get what I wanted.
Thank you to everyone that made this my highest placing entry, that gave me the highest rated shot for my camera, and generally made me feel really good :)
I keep looking for strings or something ... Nice image. Too bad that closest side of the target is so blurry. Not sure if cropping would help or not. But, it IS a cool image. Good luck with the challenge.
Very nice. All around I like this image very much. The only negative I can say about this image is the lighting...its a bit too harsh for my taste. Though technicaly I understand the need when using high shutter speeds. Its just a shame that you came away with that highlight on the dart shaft.
This meets and surpasses the challenge. My question is: was it thrown in the direction it is travelling or was it thrown up from the bottom? Either way, you get bumped upwards. Good image.
Cool idea, you captured the motion perfectly. Minor point, but I would have lowered the light on the dart board and blured it by using a wider appature to narrow the DOF. This would minimize the distracting nature of the board. 6
My only complaint about this shot is that the lighting is a bit harsh. Other than that, this is a well conceived photo and a great example of freezing motion. Very nice job.
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