How to do smoke photography - SAM YARI | Director & Photographer

When you look at photos of smoke, you may think that it is impossible to capture such photos yourself, but in fact, it is not that difficult. You just have to be patient because the ratio of good images to bad ones is very low.

You need the right settings to shoot smoke. This form of photography is done indoors, so it is a good way to save time when you are stuck indoors. It does not just kill time, it can also be very satisfying. Do not let the settings scare you because you only need cheap house products.

There is no right or wrong way to photograph smoke. That is to say, there is no right or wrong way to photograph a smoke trail. Try to experiment with smoke. Experimenting will give you that great image, that great angle, and that great lighting.

Smoke photography, which is the art of photographing the pattern and movement of smoke, is a challenging project which, if performed properly, can have dramatic and artistic results. Due to the nature of the smoke, it is difficult to capture it on film, and its photography needs more preparation than other subjects. Nevertheless, smoke photography can only be done with the right equipment and camera settings, the right scene setting, and the right environmental controls.

Table of Contents

Equipment for smoke photography

Here is a list of things to grab:

• Smoke sources like sticks of incense, or something else that creates smoke
• Tripod or anything that can hold an incense stick.
• Black (or very dark) backdrop. 80x80cm is large enough. Two small black sheets can form a rectangular snoot.
• A power controllable flash
• Remote
• Desk light
• Camera. If possible, use a mobile zoom lens. This helps minimize the required backdrop and makes it easier to control the compositions.
• A DSLR with a good lens and a macro lens makes things much easier.
• Lightroom
• Flash color filters
• A trigger
• Extra memory card. For smoke photography, you normally capture many frames.

The right camera setting for smoke photography

1- Use the right format

Some particular camera settings will make it much easier to photograph smoke, and this includes the format you use and the exposure settings.
• Always shoot in RAW format, as this will produce higher quality photos and will make your post-processing much easier, and gives you as much information as possible. Anyway, if you do not want to edit your images, you can consider JPEG.

2- Adjust the exposure and settings

For the best results, you will need to adjust and set your aperture, ISO, white balance, and shutter speed. This will help keep your camera focused, reduce visual noise, and guarantee that you get optimal lighting for your shoot. If you are using a tripod for your smoke photography, set the camera on the tripod directly in front of the incense and:
• Set the aperture to f/8 or f9, as this will ensure the camera can focus precisely on all the smoke.
• Set the ISO to 100 to reduce visual noise.
• Set the white balance to either auto, shade, daylight, or tungsten. Take different shots with each and see which one you like more.
• Set the shutter speed to alter the smoke. You can use any shutter speed setting for your smoke photography. But the value you choose determined its appearance. Set your shutter speed between 1/160 and 1/200, and make sure your flash is set to the same. Any setting from 1/30th to 1/8000 helps you keep the smoke’s detail.
Whereas, as you go slower than 1/30th, you will begin to recognize the details disappear. When you keep the shutter speed open for a few seconds, you will end up with wispy effects, it does not make a difference what type of object you are shooting.

3- Set up the room

• Choose a smoke source. One of the favored smoke sources for this kind of photography is incense. As a single stick burns just for around 45 minutes and gives you lots of time to take a few great photos. Instead of incense, You can also use candles or any other smoke source.
• put your smoke source on a table. Choose a wall for your backdrop and put a small table in front of it. Put the incense or the candles on the table, about one meter in front of the wall.
• Hang a black sheet or cloth behind the smoke source.
• Set up a lamp
To photograph the smoke, it must be properly illuminated. Take a halogen spotlight or a light lamp and place it in front of the table, to the right or left of the incense. Consider incense as the center of a clock and the wall as noon.
• If necessary, place the lamp on a separate table so that you can aim it correctly.
• Point the light directly at the smoke source.
• When this is finished, aim the camera slightly upward so you no longer see the top of the incense.

4- Adjust the brightness and contrast.

You can use a photo editing app to touch up photos, make some changes, or change them completely if you want. Adjusting the brightness and contrast is a key touch-up that makes the smoke brighter and the background darker, and the added contrast makes the smoke seems more prominent against the background.
• Go to the Image tab, then choose Adjustments, and then Brightness and Contrast.
• Adjust the levels by manually changing the numbers, or moving the sliding scale until you find the contrast you want.

5- Take photos.

Now that you have all your setup complete, start with a few test shots and then adjust as needed. You may need to adjust the flash (and thus the shutter speed), and may the white balance. Take as many photos as you like when you make the settings to your liking.
When you take a few photos, if you are looking for a special effect, you can use air and movement to change the shape and direction of the smoke.
To move the smoke, you can blow on it, blow it, or just move to disturb the air.

Post processing smoke photos

For most photographers, while smoke photography, the fun begins in the post-processing stage. You can remove areas of unwanted smoke, and change the contrast, levels, curves, or other aspects until your highlights and shadows reflect the look you want. The possibilities are endless.

Creating attractive smoke photos with negatives

Turning your shots negative create awesome effects. Turning photos into their negative version is easy.

• Go to your Tone Curve section Lr and see it to ‘Linear’ if it isn’t already.
• You can click the ends of the line and move them to have effects. Drag both ends of the line to an opposite corner. While moving the left bottom corner, you will see the photo become white. Then drag the other corner to the bottom right, and the photo becomes negative.
•In addition, you can just move the left lower end of the line to the top left of the curve and after that drag the middle of the line down to the center. It will up the saturation and yet provide you a negative, with softer edges and a not very white background around the smoke lines.

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5 ways to add smoke to your photography

As a photographer, you know that smoke can add a dramatic or even cinematic element to any photo. It is good to know that there are many ways to add smoke or fog to your photos. Here are different ways you can add smoke to your photography to create a more cinematic atmosphere. Most importantly, remember that you should always have water and a small fire extinguisher near you when using smoke. Safety is number one and never leaves a mark. If you use a smoke grenade outside, be sure to let it cool down and take it with you to throw away. Also, keep in mind that smoke directly on the ground can stain the ground.

1- Smoke Grenades

Advantages: user-friendly, thick smoke, multiple colors to choose from, no electricity needed.
Disadvantages: Strong odor, can stain the floor and clothes, becomes expensive, just outdoors.

Smoke grenades are preferred because they do not require electricity, they have multiple color options and smoke outputs to choose from. You can have a small burst of smoke or a long, thick stream of smoke. But first, they ignite, so you have to be careful where you use them and always have some water around you. Don’t use it on a dry field. It may also be expensive if you buy a lot of them, but as far as smoke grenades are concerned, there is no better brand than Enola Gaye.

2- Dry Ice

Advantages: User-friendly, no electricity needed, can be used indoors and outdoors with water.
Disadvantages: Does not work without water, stays low to the ground, difficult to store.

Shooting with dry ice is fun to has an interesting creepy effect because it is unlike a fog machine or a smoke grenade, it stays low. However, most people cannot store dry ice, so you should buy it not only on the day of photography but just before because a piece of dry ice will disappear in a few hours unless stored in a suitable container. No one is going to carry a huge container of water around them, so you need a puddle of water or a low creek to use outdoors. Dry ice can burn your hands, for this reason, always wear gloves when handling it.

3- Fog Machine

Things you need: Fog machine, fog fluid, generator for outdoor use.
Advantages: user-friendly, safe, thick smoke, no strong bad odor, stain-free, cheap.
Disadvantages: Needs power, only comes in one color.

Fog machine produces lots of thick smoke for a long time, but the biggest drawback is when you use it outdoors, where you do not have a power supply to connect, you need a portable generator. You need something lightweight enough to carry and yet powerful enough to power the fog machine. The fog machine itself and fog liquid are not that expensive, but if you need a generator that will do your job, you don’t have to spend lots of money.

4- Atmosphere Aerosol

What you need: An atmosphere Aerosol can
Advantages: Safe, user-friendly, no electricity needed, usable indoors and outdoors, odorless, mobile.
Disadvantages: Expensive and low volume of smoke

Atmosphere Aerosol is used to photograph toys. It stays in the air for a few minutes, creating a dreamy effect if good sunlight enters through the window. However, backlighting is needed to view haze or fog. The position and amount of light determine the appearance of the fog or haze. It is easy to carry, non-toxic, and a spray bottle will last you a while.