Fake fireworks spoiler! I liked this video even though it's faked with FWSIM software. Great visuals & geometry, I thought the spiral robot folks might like it and get some ideas. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LpMB1OZ53g
OK, so how do we embed videos in this newfangled forum?
Double your pleasure,
Double your fun,
Try two, yes two,
Scribblers in one!
I used double back tape to mount the Scribbler badge on the S2 and put it in flashing mode for multi colored light.
then I put electrical tape over the S2's LEDs and programming port. Really simple and kind of dorky but I like the results.
Carol,
I will repeat what I previously wrote on Facebook:
This is totally cool!!! It is Amazing! I think that you've just establish a new approach for Art, Technology, Photography and Math and algorithms! You have already described to me that method but I couldn't imagine such a result! Congratulations !!!!!
Please share with us some of your secrets from your photography techniques!
Great work Carol! I agree with Nikos about sharing how you got the great photos too!
Were you getting light bleed at the programming port? Is that why it is "blacked" out too?
What would using the LEDs on the S2 look like? Maybe Red Green Red and just cover the Blue? Or if you moved what was On and Off as you took the photo Red Off Off -> Off Red Off -> Off Off Red for example? (Could be achieved using the GUI only - with Spin an the S2 Object - you can control all the LEDs completely, of course).
I built a simple LED with a resistor attached on one leg that just plugged into the the Programming Port for an S2 "tail light" not too long ago... Hmmm? The original idea for the project was for S2 following S2 lesson that involved a simple external hack with a bit of "hardware work" - parts collection, Ohm's law, soldering, etc.
Okay - I have an idea to keep this going - hope to post soon..., but I need a "how to photograph" lesson Carol. Never done a time exposure on a digital camera!
Erco, I will be photographing a figure eight tonight. And yes Whit the programming port was lit up from light bleed. One reason I did not use the built in LEDs is they did not produce a real good looking light streak in the picture and they are way off the pivot point of the robot which changes the way the spirals look. You can see that in this picture where the light is only about 1/2 inch off the pivot point. I moved the light to a better place and will redo the spiral squares tonight also. I have to wait for night time to do the photography because there are too many skylights in my house to make any room completely dark. As for the photography I will get my husband to tell me how he set his camera. I know zilch about photography, it is his hobby. It was a time lapse which he started and stopped at the same time I started and stopped the robot. I think his camera is a Canon T4i and he had a Canon EFS 18-135mm lens on it mounted on a tripod.
It was such a simple idea and so easy to implement that I was startled at the results when I saw the first picture. I was originally only trying to see if a time lapse of a moving LED would work for using on a drone to make 3D spirals.
My hubby says he used "bulb and f20" and said camera people will understand that. It is Greek to me. (sorry Nikos).
Indeed! Also, what ISO setting did he use?
For those who are not camera people:
* Bulb basically means the shutter was manually held open for the duration of the run. You will see this feature on SLRs, though not usually the cheapest ones. Not sure about point-n-shoot types these days. If you don't have a bulb setting, you can usually get close with a long exposure setting (i.e. shutter priority mode, with the shutter speed set to several seconds).
* f20 results in two things:
* a large depth of field, so the LED should stay in focus the entire time
* lets in very little light. Normally, you'd use this kind of f-stop in sunny, well-lit conditions. In this case, it is helping to reduce the ambient light as much as possible (without also reducing the LED's light too much).
Note also that setting the ISO to something like 200 or less can also make a difference. In digital cameras, the ISO setting basically equates to gain control of the CCD. A higher number allows the CCD to pick up more light, but also more noise. Lower ISO settings are particularly important for getting good dynamic range during long exposures.
Edit: note that this is all a balancing act. In a case like this, the exposure time is about the only thing that is fixed. The choice of f-stop and ISO is going to depend on your particular setup. If you can block out all ambient light, you might be able to increase your ISO rating. If you are making the pattern over a very large area, where the S2 gets significantly close or far from the camera, you might need to increase your f-stop. On the other hand, if your camera is perpendicular to the drawing surface, you might be able to drop your f-stop to reduce your depth of field and make up for the increased light by reducing your ISO.
Edit edit: Also, you do *not* want auto-focus in a case like this. Make sure your camera can set a manual focus or focus lock.
I've disemboweled a Sharpie to mount a bicolor LED in it for use in the pen hole of the S2. Now I need to decide on how to time the light leads and find a batterry to fit in pen.
Thanks Erco for the link to some LEDs. I bought the last one that Radio Shack had and they are not available on line.
I am going to mount the LED to the top of the empty Sharpie. I need to find an elegant way to add the switch. The battery
can go in the pen. I want it to look nice and professional on my S2. Nikos is the one driving me crazy with his Elev-8
tricks! I am jonesing to get one asap.
Thanks Erco for the link to some LEDs. I bought the last one that Radio Shack had and they are not available on line.
I am going to mount the LED to the top of the empty Sharpie. I need to find an elegant way to add the switch. The battery
can go in the pen. I want it to look nice and professional on my S2. Nikos is the one driving me crazy with his Elev-8
tricks! I am jonesing to get one asap.
Use a bit of copper foil on the cap and body of the pen as a rotary switch.
Here is an idea to follow up on Carol's light scribbling with the S2 - you can see her above work on the Parallax Forums in the Nikos Fibonacci Spiral Challenge thread.. The little S2 badge (which she used for the LED) on the S2 got me thinking...
We all played with Spirographs (See Wikipedia - Spirograph - youngsters and the great gif) when we were little. Here is an S2 (the bottom is the ring - and travels in a simple circle) and the S2 on the top, the one riding on a platform is the wheel - spinning around an axis axis that travels a circular path.
A time lapse photo of this should be very interesting...via Carol and her husband photographer (bulb, f20, iso 100)
Ring size and speed and the spin of the wheel (the formula for the shape created - Wiki article has all this too.) could be adjusted to create various effects. Nikos' work on this thread will apply for this purpose. More to come when time allows - but this is the concept.
Sorry this is upside down - should be flipped soon...
Here is the Wikipedia gif (take a look to see the animation). In the post above the S2 on the bottom is the "Ring" and the top S2 (spinning on the platform) is the wheel.
The other photos show some other ideas and more... Super Spirograph shapes.
Think - spinning wheel traveling an oval ring or a spinning wheel traveling a triangle or star path in place of the ring.
Comments
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LpMB1OZ53g
OK, so how do we embed videos in this newfangled forum?
Done with an S2 and the S2 robot badge.
Double your fun,
Try two, yes two,
Scribblers in one!
I used double back tape to mount the Scribbler badge on the S2 and put it in flashing mode for multi colored light.
then I put electrical tape over the S2's LEDs and programming port. Really simple and kind of dorky but I like the results.
Go Carol Go!
-Tommy
Carol,
I will repeat what I previously wrote on Facebook:
This is totally cool!!! It is Amazing! I think that you've just establish a new approach for Art, Technology, Photography and Math and algorithms! You have already described to me that method but I couldn't imagine such a result! Congratulations !!!!!
Please share with us some of your secrets from your photography techniques!
Were you getting light bleed at the programming port? Is that why it is "blacked" out too?
What would using the LEDs on the S2 look like? Maybe Red Green Red and just cover the Blue? Or if you moved what was On and Off as you took the photo Red Off Off -> Off Red Off -> Off Off Red for example? (Could be achieved using the GUI only - with Spin an the S2 Object - you can control all the LEDs completely, of course).
I built a simple LED with a resistor attached on one leg that just plugged into the the Programming Port for an S2 "tail light" not too long ago... Hmmm? The original idea for the project was for S2 following S2 lesson that involved a simple external hack with a bit of "hardware work" - parts collection, Ohm's law, soldering, etc.
It was such a simple idea and so easy to implement that I was startled at the results when I saw the first picture. I was originally only trying to see if a time lapse of a moving LED would work for using on a drone to make 3D spirals.
Indeed! Also, what ISO setting did he use?
For those who are not camera people:
* Bulb basically means the shutter was manually held open for the duration of the run. You will see this feature on SLRs, though not usually the cheapest ones. Not sure about point-n-shoot types these days. If you don't have a bulb setting, you can usually get close with a long exposure setting (i.e. shutter priority mode, with the shutter speed set to several seconds).
* f20 results in two things:
* a large depth of field, so the LED should stay in focus the entire time
* lets in very little light. Normally, you'd use this kind of f-stop in sunny, well-lit conditions. In this case, it is helping to reduce the ambient light as much as possible (without also reducing the LED's light too much).
Note also that setting the ISO to something like 200 or less can also make a difference. In digital cameras, the ISO setting basically equates to gain control of the CCD. A higher number allows the CCD to pick up more light, but also more noise. Lower ISO settings are particularly important for getting good dynamic range during long exposures.
Edit: note that this is all a balancing act. In a case like this, the exposure time is about the only thing that is fixed. The choice of f-stop and ISO is going to depend on your particular setup. If you can block out all ambient light, you might be able to increase your ISO rating. If you are making the pattern over a very large area, where the S2 gets significantly close or far from the camera, you might need to increase your f-stop. On the other hand, if your camera is perpendicular to the drawing surface, you might be able to drop your f-stop to reduce your depth of field and make up for the increased light by reducing your ISO.
Edit edit: Also, you do *not* want auto-focus in a case like this. Make sure your camera can set a manual focus or focus lock.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/50-pcs-RGB-Full-Multi-color-Flashing-LED-Electronics-5mm-IC-/252267267733
If you need to drill a hole for your LED, check out these drills. I just ordered a set today. 115 pc for $28.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/191402817705
Carol - thanks for all the answers - make sense to me! My wife's camera will work. Love the Sharpie hack!
I am going to mount the LED to the top of the empty Sharpie. I need to find an elegant way to add the switch. The battery
can go in the pen. I want it to look nice and professional on my S2. Nikos is the one driving me crazy with his Elev-8
tricks! I am jonesing to get one asap.
Use a bit of copper foil on the cap and body of the pen as a rotary switch.
We all played with Spirographs (See Wikipedia - Spirograph - youngsters and the great gif) when we were little. Here is an S2 (the bottom is the ring - and travels in a simple circle) and the S2 on the top, the one riding on a platform is the wheel - spinning around an axis axis that travels a circular path.
A time lapse photo of this should be very interesting...via Carol and her husband photographer (bulb, f20, iso 100)
Ring size and speed and the spin of the wheel (the formula for the shape created - Wiki article has all this too.) could be adjusted to create various effects. Nikos' work on this thread will apply for this purpose. More to come when time allows - but this is the concept.
Sorry this is upside down - should be flipped soon...
The other photos show some other ideas and more... Super Spirograph shapes.
Think - spinning wheel traveling an oval ring or a spinning wheel traveling a triangle or star path in place of the ring.
By the way - watching this - filming it is very disorienting - especially with the lights on! You have to be careful not to fall over! No kidding!
That's cool , I love long exposures. You need to make a submission to...
http://forums.parallax.com/discussion/138125/erco-s-figure-eight-challenge#latest