Light painting with drones

Part of my experiments series.

This week my dad forwared me an article about Reuben Wu’s photographs using drones. His photos are stunning - check them out.

They reminded me of a project I’d helped on years ago with some friends - which we’d not told anyone about - so here it is.

Back in 2012/2013 my friend Tim had the idea of using drones to paint with light. A really simple idea, but we’d not seen anyone do it before. We were excited. Together with another friend Henry we spent a few evenings hacking on some drones to see what could be done.

We struggled with the stability of the drones and ultimately didn’t take the project as far as we hoped - these are some of the shots from our experiments.

A photo taken in a dark warehouse from above, looking down. There’s a single blue line of light snaking from the floor to the ceiling.

2013/03/12
30s at f/6.7, 38mm, ISO 200, Nikon D800

A photo taken in a dark warehouse from below. There’s a single blue line of light drawn erratically in the center.

2013/03/12
30s at f/6.7, 24mm, ISO 100, Nikon D800

A photo taken in a dark warehouse from below. A green light is in the center in a cross shape.

2013/03/12
30s at f/6.7, 24mm, ISO 200, Nikon D800

Part of my experiments series. Shot in London.