The Background

You want to decide what else should show in your photograph besides the light drawing. The background in most of our drawings look totally black. Many artists want a background to show as they incorporate that with their drawing. Also consider whether you want the artist to in the picture. You can have it both ways.

Most of our drawings have a totally black background. To achieve that with as little post work as possible we start with a very dark room and hang a dark cloth behind the artist who also wears black. After that I eliminate any remaining light using the black eyedropper in the levels tool in Photoshop and maybe the rubber stamp to clean up any unwanted reflections. This technique can give you almost unlimited drawing time.

If you want the background to show, there are many ways to accomplish that. Photograph dimly lit scenery at night and adjust your drawing time through trial and error. You can also "paint" background scenery with your flashlights. That 3 million candle power light can come in handy here, but any flashlight will give you some affect. Use gels to add color.

Remember your camera flash. You may be able to configure your camera to flash once in the beginning, middle or at the end of of your long exposure. This works great to illuminate the artist in the act of drawing.

Next - The Artist

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