Replacing paint with light, David Gilliver.

Last time I travelled home I picked up 'Gallery', Guernsey's local style magazine.  It was free and I thought it might make a good read for the trip back to Southampton.

As I was flicking through, I stumbled upon an article about a practicing photographer who lives and works in Guernsey.

His profile read..
David Gilliver - Hijacks the Night.  'Finance Worker by day, light painter by night'

Across the double page spread were images he'd taken at locations around the island.  What was interesting about these is that they are all shot at night time, incorporating the idea of 'painting with light', otherwise known as 'light graffiti', a technique I have also previously experimented with.

Here are some of David's photographs..

Electric Vazon

Race Of The Ribbons

Rainbow Road

Assault And Battery

Cornered

Some questions taken from the magazine article:

The Frog

How many nights do you go out to photograph?
I would say that on average I try to venture out 2 or 3 nights a week.

What's the longest period you expose your shots for?
30 minutes, although most of my images are created using expose lengths between 3-10 minutes.  It all depends on what light is available on any given night.
Do you need any special equipment for this type of photography?

The essential pieces of equipment are: camera, a tripod, and a cable release and different light sources I feel I need to in order to pull off the light painting that I am trying to capture.

Night Twins

What is Light Painting?
Light Painting, light drawing or light graffiti, is a photographic technique that relies on using long exposure times coupled with a hand-held light source that is used to 'paint' within the photograph while it is being taken, usually outdoors and at night.  Once the exposure has started, the photographer can then use a variety of light sources to literally 'paint' within the picture frame by walking around the landscape.  The nature of the long exposure means that the photographer remains invisible whilst creating the most surreal effects, and when coupled with the striking natural backdrops of Guernsey, the most extra-ordinary light images can result.

Where do you take most of your photos, do you have any favourite locations?
All of my Light Paintings to date have been created in Guernsey and I spend many hours each week walking around the Island scouting for new locations in order to familiarize myself with the location.  Certain locations are on the edge of a cliff, so it is pretty handy to know the location well before setting up in the dark!

Vazon Electrode

Can you explain the technique of light paintings?
There is a lot of kit required to create light paintings that can cost anything from a couple of hundred to thousands depending on how much you want to spend.  I normally try to dress in black or very dark clothing to help minimise the chances of being made visible to the camera during the shoot.  The shots are very dramatic.

How do they make you feel when you look at them?
I am still amazed by the whole process of light painting every time I venture out to make new work.  Even though I have been making light paintings for approximately 2 years now, I still feel a real sense of excitement every time I walk back to my camera to view the finished photograph.  I find the Orbs particularly mesmerising and very calming to look at.

Waiting For The Tide To Return

What kind of reaction do you get from people when you show them your work?
Reactions always vary, but thankfully most people who are not already familiar with light painting are quite amazed by the whole process when I explain it to them and they see the finished product.  I am still amazed by the actual process myself every time I venture out on a shoot - there is something quite magical about it.

Some of my work has also been met with a certain level of scepticism, as I think some people are not convinced that I do not use Photoshop to add the lights to my images.  I guess I should take that as a compliment though, and I can whole heartedly confirm that I create all of the lights you see in my photographs on location, and no trickery is ever used to add or subtract any lights from my photographs.

''My favourite locations are dotted around the coastal areas of the Island, as these tend to offer the most dramatic backdrops for my work.''

More of David's work can be seen on his website www.davidgilliverphotography.com

When I was studying A Level photography I generated some work similar and also used light to draw on a dark 'night sky' canvas.  My project was Image and Text and at this stage it was very much down to experimenting with techniques in order to find out what worked best.

I really enjoyed this but it was definitely a huge challenge.  I found it hard to write the words backwards at such a fast speed (before the shutter closed).  I hope to try some more in the future, maybe at Guernsey coastal locations like David.

Here were some of my successful pieces..