About this limited edition photograph:

The light painted photograph “Trout Run Trail Tunnel” was created on the Trout Run Trail to the west of the Seiwer Spring’s Fish Hatchery in Decorah, Iowa.

To create this light painted photograph I placed my Canon T3i camera on a tripod and I used a long exposure of 709 seconds. To create the green spirograph effect I taped green LEDs to a 3ft diameter circle made of plywood. I attached a handle to this circle so that I could roll it down the trail, and I zig-zagged my way towards the camera during the long exposure. I created the red lines that line the tunnel by placing a red colored gel filter over my flashlight and drawing lines up the wall and across the ceiling. My assistant Ian Tindall assisted me by casting light onto every other square that makes up the retaining wall in the distance. Ian’s flashlight used a magenta colored gel filter. Finally, I wrote out the words “Trout Run Trail” using a red LED inside of a ping pong ball. 

This photograph came off my camera as-is, and involved zero post-processing or Photoshop.

In 2012, Trout Run Trail Tunnel was the winner of the October 2012 Light Painting Photography Contest. 

Nocturnal Designs © 2012.