Archery / Photography question........

[Violator]

....and to the EXPERTS I go...........
My youngest Son & I are into bowhunting. Today, while practicing, we were dicussing the possibillities of "catching" the bowstring in mid-range between the release and the bow.
My thoughts here are MANY.
A good bow these days will send an arrow at 300+ feet per second - how fast does the string itself move to propel the arrow at those speeds?
I tried to explain, to my Son and my co-worker, that to take this shot (photo) you would NEED a VERY bright area to allow for a VERY fast shutter speed, and the timing would HAVE to be INCREDIBLE!!!!
I was thinking about using my remote, but the wire is only 3 feet long. I am pretty sure that I could operate the remote AND my release at the same time - tricky but I think - possible.
Have any of you seen ANYTHING close to this, or possibly DONE anything like this?

[krb]

....and to the EXPERTS I go...........
I tried to explain, to my Son and my co-worker, that to take this shot (photo) you would NEED a VERY bright area to allow for a VERY fast shutter speed, and the timing would HAVE to be INCREDIBLE!!!!

Wrong. You need a very dark area, a long shutter speed, and a flash that is connected to an IR laser beam. This is the setup that is used for those shots you may have seen of things like bullets in flight.

[Violator]

Wrong. You need a very dark area, a long shutter speed, and a flash that is connected to an IR laser beam. This is the setup that is used for those shots you may have seen of things like bullets in flight.
OK, I understand, but......is there any way I can get results close to that without any high tech ($$$$$) gear?

....
.......and THANK YOU for the help. :D

[arrgeebee]

If you're shooting a camera with decent frame per second specs you could try to time it right. Spray and pray I think they call it.

[krb]

I was just looking for it. All you need is a skyscreen like is used for a bullet chronograph. Instead of having two screens and measuring the difference between them you jsut need one that is tied to a flash.

[Violator]

If you're shooting a camera with decent frame per second specs you could try to time it right. Spray and pray I think they call it.
That's what I figured.....kinda like the "water drop" shots, eh?
I'm using the XTi,...fastest it shoots is 1/4000th....What would YOU consider "decent frame per second"?

Thank you for your help.

[krb]

Here's the one I remember looking at: http://www.hiviz.com/kits/products.htm

[tkoutdoor]

That's what I figured.....kinda like the "water drop" shots, eh?
I'm using the XTi,...fastest it shoots is 1/4000th....What would YOU consider "decent frame per second"?

Thank you for your help.One more than the camera that you're holding in your hand when you want to shoot the shot... :cool:

[Violator]

One more than the camera that you're holding in your hand when you want to shoot the shot... :cool:
......and.....that answer is pretty vague.

Thanx for the link "krb" from the quick look I gave those - they are CHEAPER than I had expected. I book-marked that web-page.

[AdamLewis]

What are you guys talking about with dark areas and flashes and photocells?

Its moving at 300fps...Not 300miles/s

Just do the math. If the arrow is moving at 300fps, then the string must reach a maximum velocity of 300fps as well. Theres no magic to it.

At its maximum, the string will have moved .9" in 1/4000 of a second.

Just get your camera and work with some timing. Try counting down from 3. Thats what Ive done to get muzzle flashes from firearms.

[Violator]

What are you guys talking about with dark areas and flashes and photocells?

Its moving at 300fps...Not 300miles/s

Just do the math. If the arrow is moving at 300fps, then the string must reach a maximum velocity of 300fps as well. Theres no magic to it.

At its maximum, the string will have moved .9" in 1/4000 of a second.

Just get your camera and work with some timing. Try counting down from 3. Thats what Ive done to get muzzle flashes from firearms.
We were trying exactly that technique....but we still couldn't get the timing down. And yes I did the math, but on thing you seem to be overlooking is...in order for the string to propel the arrow at 300fps, doesn't the string actually move at a higher rate?
I realize that it won't throw the math off THAT much, but still I believe it is right.
I found a cable release that has a cable 32' long online - I still think I can operate the bow string release and the cable release at the same time.

[Violator]

I told my Son, right from the start that this was going to be VERY similar to the "water drop" shots....the only REAL difference is....our arms will be MUCH more tired shooting DOZENS of arrows than dropping HUNDREDS of water drops.

[PhotosGuy]

Wrong. You need a very dark area, a long shutter speed, and a flash that is connected to... ... a black string that pulls out a non-conductive strip from between the jaws of a wooden clothespin which has contacts connected to a PC cord. I'd use a PC cord that has one end similar to a male AC plug.

[AdamLewis]

We were trying exactly that technique....but we still couldn't get the timing down. And yes I did the math, but on thing you seem to be overlooking is...in order for the string to propel the arrow at 300fps, doesn't the string actually move at a higher rate?
I realize that it won't throw the math off THAT much, but still I believe it is right.
I found a cable release that has a cable 32' long online - I still think I can operate the bow string release and the cable release at the same time.

No.

Why would it move faster?
And, if it did move faster, when the arrow left the string, why would it immediately slow down?

If you tried that method and youre not getting it, you need to adjust your timing. You may want to hit the shutter right before you get to 1 (or 3 depending how you count).

[SoccerRef]

What are you guys talking about with dark areas and flashes and photocells?

Its moving at 300fps...Not 300miles/s

Just do the math. If the arrow is moving at 300fps, then the string must reach a maximum velocity of 300fps as well. Theres no magic to it.

At its maximum, the string will have moved .9" in 1/4000 of a second.

Just get your camera and work with some timing. Try counting down from 3. Thats what Ive done to get muzzle flashes from firearms.

An object moving almost 1 inch while the shutter is open will blur significantly. The reason for the dark room and a flash is because the flash can actually happen more quickly than the shutter. The dark before and after the flash won't affect the photo, and the flash "Freezes" the action, not the shutter.

"Timing" has everything and nothing to do with capturing that shot. What I mean by that is, the "Timing" (as you pointed out) has to be faster than 1/4000 of a second. The timing MUST be PERFECT (i.e. timing has everything to do with getting the shot). Timing anything that exactly WILL NOT happen without some technical help... unless you are VERY LUCKY (i.e. timing has nothing to do with getting the shot)!

I am certain that the shots we have seen like that (i.e. bullets out of a muzzle) are shot using cameras that shoot several hundred or even thousands of frames per second. Think High Speed Movie Cameras, and LOTS of CA$$$$$H!!!

[tracknut]

You could use your very long shutter release cable, and set it about 3" in front of the arrow...

Dave

ps, you may only get one shot out of this plan