Make Some Luck This Year

by
posted on January 2, 2014
** When you buy products through the links on our site, we may earn a commission that supports NRA's mission to protect, preserve and defend the Second Amendment. **
2014_F.jpg

Here is a link to some of Harold “Doc” Edgerton’s iconic work at MIT, where he literally invented the camera gear required to accomplish the task, with film. Digital cameras were still the stuff of science fiction when he was launching bullets, but the underlying principle has not changed.

The camera’s shutter is too slow to “freeze” the bullet on the frame, so the images are taken in a dark room with the shutter open. Laser gates, sound or black magic then triggers high-speed flashes at the right moment. As you can see in this Finnish photographer’s work, the results with modern gear are stunning.

However, it’s insanely expensive, and if you’re foolish enough to attempt to build one of the new flash units on your own (the schematic is insanely simple), the amount of electricity stored makes touching the flash more dangerous than standing downrange. That rules out bullets in flight for me, at least until I hit the lottery, but I’m not going to give up taking photos at the range. Neither should you.

Last year I lucked into three photos that nearly anyone with a digital camera could  have captured-if they had it in their hands at the right time, and kept shooting. I’ve been told they’re the best I took last year (which isn’t saying much), and each and every one of them was an accident.

While at a Safariland seminar I captured the image at the top. I doubt that streak you see in the cloud of smoke is the bullet or vapor trail. If you look at the sun’s angle, it’s probably a bit of reflection from the bullet as it sped away. I would have never shot at that angle, even with the telephoto lens, but that was the only place to stand at the time.

At a 3-Gun Nation event in the summer I decided to focus on some of the shotgun targets. I kept the shutter button down and came away with maybe a dozen exploding clays.

In addition, I just happened to be behind the lens when an AR-15 spontaneously disassembled at another event. That’s getting lucky, short of the finely sandblasted finish on my camera now.

The moral of the story is to keep shooting, even when you’re not behind the trigger. Do it enough and you’ll catch some awesome memories, and if you’re lucky, freeze something special-even if it’s not a bullet in flight.

undefined 

Latest

Star Model B Ihtog 1
Star Model B Ihtog 1

I Have This Old Gun: Star Model B

Of the many Spanish-made firearms to emerge throughout the 19th and 20th century, one of the most recognizable is the Star Model B, largely due to its similarity to the Colt Model 1911.

New For 2025: Kimber Next Generation 1911

For its latest M1911 offering, Kimber Mfg. borrowed design elements from its double-stack 2K11 pistol to create what it calls the Next Generation 1911.

Review: Charter Arms Double Dog

Charter Arms is an American gunmaker that has offered its own versions of compact, double-action revolvers at fair prices for more than 60 years.

Rifleman Q&A: Mysterious “Broomhandle” Bring-Back

"My favorite gun is inoperable, so I have not shot it. It is one of two weapons that my dad brought back from the Philippines after World War II, the other being a sword."

New Jersey Town Supports CCW With Fee Refund

The city of Englishtown, N.J., recently made a move to reduce that financial barrier, sparking widespread optimism that a statewide, even nationwide, trend may be on the horizon.

Review: Savage Arms Revel

Lever-action rifles have experienced a revival in recent years, and Savage Arms is getting in on the act with its Revel series rimfires. To understand it, you may have to read (backward) between the lines.

Interests



Get the best of American Rifleman delivered to your inbox.