Learning to play with low shutterspeed

This is one of my favorite things about owning a slr.. learning to use all aspects of it.
One step at a time.
Understanding shutter speed is one.
I'm getting there.. :)

Now.. June was probably not a very good month to attack this skill.. seeing as it is not even completely dark at midnight this far north :P

So I started on an overcast day at 11pm.
Stood my camera on its stand in my front yard and waited for cars to go by.
And waited.
Waited some more.

Click.

4 second exposure... hmmm...

Click. oh crap...

Motorcycle. Exposure 10 seconds.
And no he didn't make a backflip.. I bumped the camera...

Not enough cars. Really at this hour?!?
Odd.

So I moved next to the highway.
Not exactly a traffic jam...


I had a few tries.
Meh.. ok, but not brilliant.

Click.

Better... 6 second exposure.
Traffic both ways.
The dashed line? A bus with its signal on :)

I need to haul my gear to the pedestrian overpass in October..

Another night in my front yard.
Raining this time.
Completely normal to haul your gear out at nearly midnight under an umbrella.. right?
Right?


Click.

5 second exposure. I like how it looks on a wet road.

Another night.

11.30pm.
Two girls and three light sticks.

Let's wing one.

Click.

Ten second exposure, during which she moved twice.
Should have had a darker background.
Fun idea though.

Now we tried quite a few of these, but the problem was that it is really hard for anyone to stay completely still for five seconds.

Blur occurs.

But hey, these are still fun images.

Click.

5 second exposure.

Click.

5 second exposure.

It's an elephant!

The ISO on all was 100.

I plan to go to the amusement park in late August at night to get the movement of the lights there. Can't wait!