On blurred motion and light streaks

[Garlic City Grandpa]

Hi, all. I've been experimenting (with mixed results) using slow shutter speeds, e.g. 1/15-1/20, and a tripod (or at least a surface where I can brace the camera), where I have stationary objects clear and people, cars, etc. blurred. What I'd like to do is find out how to try to capture in one image a moving object's (person, car, what-have-you) motion (blurred) then the same object when it's stopped. I realize that this is a matter of chance unless I set the shot up. The only thing that comes to mind is using the camera's bulb setting and having the aperture as small as possible to avoid blowing out the picture. In the same vein, I'd like to learn how to take light streak pictures of moving cars and get an image of the car (ghostly-looking, I imagine) in the same image. I've been very successful in capturing the streaks, but I'd like to also incorporate a car (or cars) creating the streaks as well.

Thanks all for your assistance and advice.

[nathanbarlow]

I believe the 'ghosting' effect you are talking about is achieved using lighting. I have read an article on how changing the shutter curtain sync from 1st curtain sync to 2nd curtain sync can cahnge the direction of the 'blur'. Eg drop a ball, and on one setting the blur will be above/behind, but the other setting it will be below/infront (which is 'wrong' unless you want it to look like going up).

The way i understand it is that you want your flash to fire near the end of the exposure. eg say a 2 sec exposure of falling ball, if you fire the flash as the shutter opens, the blur will occur after the flash and therefore when the ball is higher. Vice versa for flash at end of exposure - the blur will be above/before

This is all theoretical, as I dont do flash photography (have no flashgun compatible with my DSLR). Just read an article on motion blur with flashguns as it looked interesting

Hope that helps, and anyone - feel free to contradict/correct me

Cheers
Nathan