My new OMG DEFT, beamshots and other shenanigans

[Hellbore]

Hi all, I just got my OMG DEFT, the latest run which is a sort of hybrid cross between the DEFT FTP and DEFT HO, as described in this thread:
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=270118&page=5

Tonight we went out to the desert to take beamshots with my nephew's camera. He is getting started studying photography, and this is our first time taking beamshots, so bear with us!

It was also a VERY bright night, which I think worked against us to a degree. Full moon, bright, with some clouds to diffuse the moon. We could have gone hiking without flashlights, that's how bright it was tonight! But we had some fun, and got some pretty cool beamshots!

This mountain is somewhere between 3/4 and 1 mile away:






Beam shining into the sky



Shining down the road to the bend about 1/8 of a mile away



This cactus is about 100 yards away



EagleTac T20C2 MKII shining at the same target



Inova XO3 shining at same target



The city skyline in the distance looks cool



This is what it looks like when someone shines a DEFT at you from 1/4 mile down the road



Painting with light and long exposure







Now, in this shot, me and my nephew each put a piece of paper over our Maratac AA lights, and on low, we were using them to paint these stick figures on a long exposure... But as you can see, we got interrupted just as I was drawing the guy with the sword, and we had to stop... and run away!



Because of this guy! My nephew almost stepped on him! That right there is a rattlesnake



Fortunately he slithered off and didn't bite us! Funny, he didn't seem scared, or annoyed, or agitated in any way. Almost completely ignored us! Didn't rattle even when we got close by accident lol...


Anyway, there it is, our desert beamshots / shenanigans pictures! Hope you enjoyed them

 

[jhc37013]

That DEFT is bright and thanks for sharing the story, glad you noticed the rattler that could have spoiled the night trip for sure.

The stick men are cool but I'm still having trouble figuring out how in the heck you guys did it. Paper over Maratac on low is all I understood.

 

[CDP930]

Really cool shots...I should think about getting one of those DEFTs. Looks great

 

[jblackwood]

The DEFTs are all gone now. This thread has some of the nicest shots of the DEFT at work that I've ever seen! NICE comparison shots, btw. It really helps show what this light was designed for: Deep Extended Field Throwing of light!!! Very cool. :thumbsup::twothumbs

 

[LEDAdd1ct]

Great DEFT shots, and I really, really love those drawings you made on the long exposure. Watch out for those snakes!

 

[Chucula]

Haha awesome pictures thanks :twothumbs

 

[DM51]

Superb pics - very inventive photography by your nephew!

That Deft must be the nearest thing to a Maxabeam there is.

 

[Hellbore]

Thanks for the comments!

I should explain how the light drawings were made and an important distinction:

The light drawing of the words DEFT on the hillside, and the peace symbol on the cactus, were made by taking a long exposure (say, leaving the shutter open 10 seconds), while standing behind the camera and shining the DEFT towards the hill, or the cactus. The bright hotspot of the DEFT reflecting off of the hill or cactus creates the drawing.

The stick figures, on the other hand, and drawn by once again using a long exposure (say, shutter open for 20 seconds) but this time, my nephew and I ran out into the picture and shone the little Maratac lights TOWARDS the camera. Moving the small point of light seen by shining the flashlight toward the camera creates the lines in the drawing.

It was pretty fun, but could have ended in disaster with the snake. A little voice in my head told me to thoroughly inspect the area we would be walking around in before doing the stick figured drawing, but I said nah, we have been shining our lights there already and didn't see a snake, I'm sure if there was one, it would have rattled by now... I'm just glad that my nephew was able to spot the snake in his peripheral vision and not step on it! Good eyes for sure, I probably would have missed it. I also think if it had not been such a bright moonlit night, he wouldn't have seen it either, since our lights were on Low, with paper over the lens, not illuminating much really...

 

[^Gurthang]

HB,

Very nice pics. I really like your stick figure pic. Years ago when I was into photography big time several of us experimented doing similar sort of thing w/ lights, flares, anything that would light up. Sometimes we'd spend 1/2 hr composing a shot, then wait to get the film developed. You at least had the "magic" of digital photos....

Glad to see you didn't have any closer encounter w/ that snake... He was probably more disturbed by all the goings on than you were by his presence.

 

[jblackwood]

... I'm just glad that my nephew was able to spot the snake in his peripheral vision and not step on it! Good eyes for sure, I probably would have missed it. I also think if it had not been such a bright moonlit night, he wouldn't have seen it either, since our lights were on Low, with paper over the lens, not illuminating much really...

That's a strong case you're making for using a small headlamp whenever you're going to be using your thrower for other endeavors . . . yet another use for those little guys! I'm glad everyone came out of the desert safely. I'm a little envious since the Everglades is a bit inhospitable for too much flashlighting . . . too many mosquitos. At least none of them will KILL you like a rattler will, though! Also, it's pretty flat out there, except for the occasional mangrove, there aren't very many natural formations that can be lit up too well with my DEFT.

 

[Hellbore]

You make a really good point. Headlamp or some kind of shorter-range , floodier light would be really helpful if you are walking around at night with a DEFT. Why?

#1, the beam is so focused that if you are shining on something out a ways away from you, there is VERY little side-spill or flood at all, so you won't be able to see right in front of you, or at your feet, etc... you won't be able to see where you are going!

#2, if you DID try to just point the DEFT at the ground close to your feet, to see where you are walking...that really doesn't work well at all, because the hotspot is so bright that just reflecting off of the ground, it basically blinds you. You can't really stand to look at the hotspot very long when it's shining right in front of your feet, and it totally destroys any night vision so you can't see anything except that maybe 3" x 3" square of the ground haha...

So yeah... If you're walking around in the dark, use the DEFT to light things far away from you, use something more floody for up close!!!

The Everglades is a fascinating place though in its own right. We should trade places for a while lol... each could experience something different...

As for mosquitoes, well, I don't know if there were mosquitoes but there was SOME kind of flies that were just EVERYWHERE. We had some monsoon rains recently and it has been unusually humid this week, and the bug population just exploded! They were so thick they were getting in our noses and mouths, just breathing without sucking any in was a challenge at times.

I never saw so many bats around here, they were swarming around the street lights, feeding on the many bugs!

We also saw a TON of little desert mice, some kind that jumps crazy far and has a little tuft on the end of its tail! We didn't get any pictures, because they never stood still, but they were all over, even scurrying around right under our feet if we stood in 1 place for very long with our lights off! They didn't seem very afraid of us, and they didn't react predictably. For example, there was one of them that I was trying to herd towards my nephew so he could see it better, so I was shining my light on it and stomping my feet walking towards it, but instead of running away from me in the direction I was trying to herd it, it ran TOWARDS me, and when it got within a couple feet, it took one huge jump and jumped past me, between my legs! Crazy little hoppers!

Edit: I think I found what they were... Desert Kangaroo Rats! We saw tons of these:

Image from this good website about them:
http://birdfotos.com/misc/k-rats/k-rat1.htm

Cute little fellas, probably good eatin' for the snakes too

 

[saabluster]

:twothumbs Love it! That DEFT painted on the side of the mountain is cool. Also the one where the light is shining straight into the camera is remarkably accurate to what it looks like when shining it in your eyes just without the pain associated with it in real life. Thanks for posting those.:thumbsup:

 

[Hellbore]

:twothumbs Love it! That DEFT painted on the side of the mountain is cool. Also the one where the light is shining straight into the camera is remarkably accurate to what it looks like when shining it in your eyes just without the pain associated with it in real life. Thanks for posting those.:thumbsup:

Thanks, glad you like it. We could do an even better "hill writing" picture if it was a darker night though. The shutter has to be open long enough to write DEFT and in that amount of time, enough ambient moonlight comes in to illuminate the whole hillside so there is not that much contrast between the spots the flashlight hit and the spots it didn't. I imagine a night with no moon would yield fantastic results. Then again, it's nice in a way to be able to see the surroundings, so I dunno...

 

[ivorykid]

...
Shining down the road to the bend about 1/8 of a mile away

...

I really like this photo. Good composition of city, dark desert, and flashlight lighting.

Looks like good times. Thanks for sharing.

 

[300winmag]

Funnest beam shots I've seen :thumbsup:

 

[Dude Dudeson]

Funnest beam shots I've seen :thumbsup:

The DEFT has one of the most fun BEAMS to play around with, no doubt!

 

[LuxLuthor]

Funnest beam shots I've seen :thumbsup:

^ + 100 (since the DEFT is so awsome) Really great set of shots telling a great story.