The first and most important part of this story is that it was a group effort. Setting this record was a massive amount of work, without all of us working together this most certainly would not have happened. January 6th 2014 Light Painter Jason Rinehart (inspired by Andrew Wells “Century Of Light Orbs” Project) put up a post on Facebook asking “Anyone local be interested in calibrating a World Record?” Little did Jason know that post set into motion a series of events that would lead to 12 Light Painting Photographers from all over the United States meeting in a farmers field in the small town of Floyd, Virginia exactly 6 months and 13 days later to set the First Official Light Painting WORLD Record creating 200 Light Orbs is a Single Photograph!

The first thing we had to do was pick a date, after some debate July 19th, 2014 was the agreed upon date that the attempt would take place giving everyone plenty of time to schedule flights, get time off from work, and schedule time away from other obligations.

Next of the agenda was finding a location. Securing a location that is open, dark, and level enough to create 200 Orbs in a single exposure is not easy. The location also had to allow for a bunch of Light Junkies camping and spinning lights all night long. Many of us were located on the East Coast of the United Stated so Jason Rinehart, Jeremy Jackson and Aaron Bauer searched and searched and found a few suitable places but they all fell through for one reason or another. Jeremy Jackson had a friend with a piece of land near his home in Floyd, VA it was a pretty central location for everyone involved so it was finally secured, however the owner understandably didn’t want the event turning into a Light Painting Woodstock so a limit of 12 people was established.

The Orb Makers:
Jeremy Jackson, Christopher Renfro, Jason L. Rinehart and Aaron Bauer worked on building the “Orb Making Devices” that would be used to create the Light Orbs. Many designs were discussed everything from the traditional taped up LED light string to some super complicated mechanical devices. Jeremy and Chris came up with a genius design, The final Orb Maker was a series of metal and PVC pipes with a LED light string on the inside connected to speaker wire on one end, a counter weight on the other end and a old car window crank handle to make the spinning easy with an on/off switch in just the right spot! Hours and hours went into creating 12 Orb Makers and many thanks go out to Jeremy Jackson!

Most of us arrived a day early on July, 18th to get everything prepared and to get acquainted. The first day the weather SUCKED it was a dreary day with constant drizzling rain; despite the weather a lot of prep work happened on July 18th. We tested and made final adjustments on the Orb Making Devices, the base camp was set up and the location in the field was selected. That night we gathered together around a fire to come up with a final strategy to accomplish the goal of breaking the World Record!

During the daylight hours of July 19th, 2014 thankfully the weather was better with clearer skies. Much preparation was left to do, we marked off the lowest section of flat land in the field in a rectangle shape 80’ wide by 160’ long. We posted a small yellow flag every 8 feet to mark the center location of the orbs that we would create, the record breaking image was set to be 10 Light Orbs wide by 20 Light Orbs long making a total of 200 Light Orbs in a Single Photograph.

The diameter of each of the Light Orbs was approximately 7 feet wide, we allowed for a 1 foot space in between so that the Light Orbs would be easily distinguishable from one another in the final image. The grass in the field was really high so Jeremy and Jason used weedeaters to mow the field around EACH of the 200 flags in a circular pattern to allow the Orb Making Devices to spin freely.

Other than the grass and the weather, another challenge was to find an angle high enough that would allow for all of the Light Orbs to be seen by the camera, to accomplish this there were a few different strategies. Jason Rinehart used a ladder and climbed high into a tree to find his angle.

Myself (Jason D. Page), Aaron Bauer, and Jeremy Jackson climbed to the tops of our trucks and extended our tripods as high as they would go so that they would be able to get an angle that would allow the camera to see all of the Light Orbs created. Everyone else moved around the field to find the angles they thought would look best.

As the sun started to go down and the light faded we took test shots to see how long the exposures could run with the amount of ambient light that was in the area. It was a very dark and desolate location, there was no moonlight and very little light pollution so the exposures could go for 30 minutes or more if needed without being over exposed. While some of us took test exposures others worked with their Orb Making Devices to make sure everything was working properly and they had the feel of how to make an orb with this new tool that many had never used before.

Just after the last bits of sunlight faded everyone was in place to break the record all lights were turned off and everyone’s camera shutters were opened. Dressed all in black the first victim, Aaron Bauer, walked into the scene, stood on the first marked location, illuminated his Orb Making Device and created the first Light Orb by standing on the marked location, spinning the hand crank in a circular motion, while rotating his body 360 degrees to create the Light Orb. After the first orb was created Aaron then moved to the next marked location a row ahead as another light painter came in and repeated the same process on the marked location one row across. We created the Light Orbs in staggered positions so that we would not block each others light from the camera’s view.

Once all of the Light Orbs were created the shutters of the camera’s were closed and the 200 Light Orbs were captured in a single photograph. We decided to create the image a second time, this time using handheld flashlights to illuminate the scene and some of the trees in the background. During both exposures we successfully created 200 Light Orbs in a Single Exposure! Each light painter had slightly different settings on their shots but the “Official” image for the Guinness World record was a 1651 second exposure, at F8, and ISO100.

We decided to break this world record because we are all extremely passionate about the light painting art form. The hope of this project is that by having a record in the Guinness Book of World Records we will gain more exposure and introduce more people to the light painting art form. It was also a great reason for all of us to meet for the first time in person and work together collaborating on a project to progress Light Painting. Besides that it was F@#$!*% FUN.

A HUGE THANK YOU to our Guinness World Record Witnesses Jon Beard and Nicole Pradas!
For More Check out 200ORBS.com

Two Light Painters from India have broke the “Most Light Orbs in a Photograph” Guinness World Record. Sridhar Muthukrishnan and Sures Narayanan have captured 1350 Orbs in a single photograph. This is the 3rd time the record has been broke since the original 200 Hand Spun Orb record that was set back in 2014. The orbs in this image were created using a mechanical orb making device that was pulled across the frame during a single long exposure. Congratulations to these two for setting the bar even higher, WHO’S GONNA BREAK IT NEXT? Below is the making of video, Enjoy.

Light Painting Artist Peter Solness has started to take his Light Painting in much more public and inclusive direction. Thats not to say that he has moved on from the Illuminated Landscapes he is known for but this light painting work is a long way from the solitary action our art form can sometimes be. Peter has started creating large scale light paintings in public spaces, sharing the art form with people that have little to no experience with Light Painting. The results are pretty amazing! Check out the video and images, and read on to find out all the details in the interview below…

LPP ∇ Hi Peter I am really enjoying with your new Group Light Paintings in Public Spaces but before we get into that can you tell me a little more about yourself, specifically your background with photography and Light Painting?

PS ∇ I bought my first serious camera as a 16 year-old schoolboy way back in 1974. It was a Nikonos II underwater camera and I used to swim out at popular surfing locations and shoot from the water.

Surfing photography was a good teacher. I learnt that getting a good surfing image took a lot of planning, travelling, determination and good luck. At one stage I began to experiment with shooting surfers at night. I attached a waterproof flashgun to my Nikonos II and set up night surfing sessions with local surfers. It was a crazy thing to be doing, floating around in a dark ocean being smashed by inky-black waves, but the reward for such extreme photo sessions was capturing something completely different from your everyday photo (not unlike the pleasure I get when doing my light paintings today).

The results of my night surfing photos were finally published in 1977. It was the first ever feature article about night surfing and there was a real fascination about the photos at the time.

From 1980 to about 2005 I followed my dream of working as a photojournalist. I shot assignments for many magazine, newspaper and corporate annual reports both in Australia and internationally. It was a great experience.

During this time I had a number of opportunities to experiment with long exposure photography and light painting techniques. For example in 1980 I worked at an underground mine in outback Australia. A photographer there showed me how to light-up huge black spaces where ore had been extracted during the mining process. He would walk around with a Metz 60 flashgun and light paint these pitch-black chambers using up to 50 separate flashes during a long exposure. The result of all that accumulated exposure made the space look as bright as daytime. I began using that technique on numerous industrial photography assignments over the years.

Around 2005 I noticed things were really starting to change in the photography business. I realised my livelihood as a photojournalist was coming to an end, as newspapers and magazines started cutting back on budgets and sacking staff photographers. I was frustrated that I had so many skills but was not able to use them anymore. I was in my mid 40’s and I wanted to keep doing interesting photography so I started to dabble more in light painting.

I began using a mini-Maglite to draw outlines of historic Aboriginal engraving sites carved into sandstone rocks near where I live in Sydney. I realised that light painting made it possible to reinterpret a place in a very particular and unique way.

In 2009 I then started applying torchlight to trees and rocks and sought to create mysteriously beautiful images of the Australian landscape by blending torchlight with ambient moonlight. From this series I began to build a new website called Illuminated Landscape www.illuminated-landscape.com which has been very successful.

The photos from the Illuminated Landscape series sold well as fine art prints to both private and public collectors and I won several prestigious landscape photography awards. Through this period I also began to run light-painting workshops. I have since taught hundreds of photographers the art of light painting and it has been a thrill to inspire so many people.

LPP ∇ The group light paintings that you have been creating are absolutely incredible, was the ‘Field or Orbs’ your first Group Light Painting?

PS ∇ The ‘Field of Orbs’ wasn’t my first group light painting event, but it has been my most ambitious and successful.

The Field of Orbs was very special as I conceived the idea from the start and kept total control over how it should be created and what sort of outcomes I wanted to achieve. It is very thrilling to see something that existed in your imagination come to life so publicly and with such energy and enthusiasm. It also allowed me to set a new benchmark for the way light painting can be used for public enjoyment. I especially want to acknowledge the amazing orb images of the East Coast Light Painters and Andrew Wells whose work provided the original inspiration for this event.

Previously in 2009 I did a large-scale light painted image as a global environmental art project to promote the 350.org climate change movement. I directed 150 people holding glowing lanterns to walk around a marked pathway over a 45 second exposure period to create the number 350. The image was very successful and is still used as a key graphic on the 350.org home page seven years later.

LPP ∇ Were the participants of the Field of Orbs project part of a photography club or something like that or were they just random people interested in making art?

PS ∇ The Field of Orbs was created to celebrate the International Year of Light and I received support from government agencies wanting to get the general public involved in the celebrations. I realised that having 100 volunteers spinning orbs would be a great way to get people from all sorts of backgrounds excited about creating public art and experiencing the magic of light painting. So we listed the event with an online booking agency called Eventbrite and within days the event was fully subscribed. The organizers actually had to stop promoting the event, as they were worried about the crowd becoming too big to handle.

LPP ∇ Woah, so how many people were involved?

PS ∇ In the end we had 100 orb spinners, 200 photographers and around another 200 spectators.  I think a lot of the photographers came from Meetup website groups and camera clubs who had read about the event in the promotional publicity and realised that it would be a unique event to photograph.

LPP ∇ How did you get that many people to participate let alone actually understand what they were doing?

PS ∇ As this was a public art event I was very interested in the public participation aspects of the event, rather than just getting a great photo, so I decided not to get too fussy about everyone doing a perfect orb. I knew from my previous workshop experiences that orbs always look great in photos anyway and I imagined 100 of them spread across a valley would look awesome, even if they were not as perfect as I would have hoped. Indeed there were a lot of very clumsy orb spinners on the night, but I made sure I arranged some of the neatest orb spinners to stand up in the foreground to help ensure the photo’s success.

LPP ∇ How long did it take to put this project together?

PS ∇ Fortunately I had about 5 months lead time, which meant I had ample time to make up the lights and trial them before the date. I made every light by hand, which was a slow process.

LPP ∇ You created several group light painting images were they all done on the same night, or over a few nights?

PS ∇ Yes I used the opportunity to try other light painted images on the night that I thought might look good. One was the Ring of Fire where I got my 100 ‘orbsters’ to circumambulate a wonderful domed building in the park called the Federation Pavilion. There was an interesting atmosphere in the crowd as they did this. People started to sing and speak to each other expressing a real sense of togetherness. It was like a spontaneous ceremony.

I also tried an idea I called the River of Light where I got the 100 orbsters to wind their way slowly up the valley like a river.

Finally I got everyone to stand for a group photo holding their lights up to their faces like candlelight. The mood in the crowd was wonderful. The whole event took less than an hour but it was really unforgettable.

LPP ∇ This work is very different from the solitary act light painting tends to be, what inspired you to take this direction with your light painting work?

PS ∇ Although my art practice as a light painter requires me to generally work alone, I have been moving away from just doing solitary acts of light painting and looking at ways to bring that ‘magic’ of light painting to new audiences, in areas such as public art performance, child education and art therapy.

It is obvious to anyone reading this interview that light painting is an incredibly magical process. Through my experience as a workshop teacher I have seen how people respond to light painting and how universally appealing it is. From kids to the elderly, there is a joyful intrigue and sense of play when people are introduced to a light painting session. I really feel such positive outcomes should be explored more fully, hence I’ve been exploring participatory projects.

I have also started developing light painting workshops with disadvantaged people who are needing activities to improve their self-esteem and social engagement. Light painting can be a really powerful tool in showing people a different way of seeing themselves and the world around them.

LPP ∇ Absolutely, can you tell me more a little more about these workshops and how the idea was sparked?

PS ∇ I have an 8-year-old son and when you are around kids you get to see how much pleasure they get out of playing with lights. I have been thinking for a while about how to use light painting in schools to develop imagination and creative expression. I did an event at a primary school (kids 5-11years old) annual art show recently. The good thing about it was that the kids love playing with lights but they didn’t really understand what the final image would look like. So it really blew them away when they saw what they had created.

LPP ∇ Is it more difficult to work with the kids or is it more fun because of all the energy they must bring to the work?

PS ∇ No doubt working with kids is much more chaotic. You just need to not expect too much and keep things simple. I’ve found it’s best just to let the kids have some fun and keep firing the shutter, as you are bound to get a few interesting images. The way the kids use their lights creates a unique expression of their chaotic youthful energy.

LPP ∇ The images are just awesome, and it’s just so damn cool that you are inspiring so many people to try light painting. Thank you for the work you are doing and for taking the time to answer some questions!

PS ∇ Thank you.

Congratulations to Light Painters Satwik Sharma, Ankur Bansal, Sanchit Kapur, Shobhit Tiwari, Jeswin Rebello and Arun Pandit for now holding the official Guinness World Record of 900 Light Painted Orbs in a single exposure as seen in the above image!

First let me give a little back story on the Light Painting Guinness World Record… The quest to get a Light Painting World Record all started back in 2011 with Andrew Wells when he single handily created 100 Orbs in a single image in his Century of Light Orbs Project. Andrew should have had the first ever Light Painting World record in the Guinness Book back in 2011 however he didn’t have all of the documentation that Guinness requires. Andrew might not have made the book because of technicality but he was the first. Then in 2014 a group of Light Painters (myself included) set out to break Andrew’s record and to “officially” get the first Light Painting Guinness World Record in The Big Book! Together the East Coast Light Painters created 200 Orbs in a single image. Now the record has been shattered with 900 Orbs in a single image from a group of 6 Light Painters from India! The Indian Light Painters created 900 orbs in a single exposure using a very smart approach and some good old DIY Light Painting innovation, read on for all the details from group member Dr. Satwik Sharma!

LPP ∇ Congratulation on being the new Guinness World Record holder for the most Light Painted Orb in a Single Photograph! Can you tell me who all were involved in creating the record?

SS ∇ We were a team of 6 guys. Myself (Satwik Sharma), Ankur Bansal, Sanchit Kapur, Shobhit Tiwari, Jeswin Rebello and Arun Pandit

LPP ∇ How many orbs did you create in the record breaking image?

SS ∇ In the record breaking image we made 900 orbs. Though we did create a second image that day, and in that we made about 1450 orbs. But sadly, both the cameras recording the video, were interrupted mid-way, so we couldnt submit the footage from it to Guinness.

LPP ∇ How many attempts did it take?

SS ∇ This was our second attempt. In our first attempt we managed close to 600 orbs (594 to be precise). But me, along with a couple of team mates, were not satisfied with the pictures we got. So thought of making the attempt again. And with a new attempt, the target number of orbs was also increased to a minimum of 900. In our second attempt we did a trial run first, and made 210 orbs in that trial run. Adjusting the exposure we made the final run, and succeeded in making 900 orbs. In the second attempt the number was raised to 1500. Sadly, the batteries started to run out, by the end of the second attempt bringing down the number of orbs to about 1450. So we abandoned the third attempt.

LPP ∇ I know that you had tried to break the record once before in a different way. Can you tell me about that experience?

SS ∇ To be frankly speaking, our first attempt was heavily influenced by the ideas of the East Coast Light Painters World Record. So we tried replicating those tools, and those methods. And thankfully, we had the help of my Alma Mater, Sainik School, Kunjpura. We gave a crash course of light painting and making orbs to about 100 students over there (or as much as we can teach in an hour). After dinner, we had them gathered at the school grounds, and we did our attempt. The most amazing thing about this failed (partially) attempt was the enthusiasm and energy of the students. They seemed to be even more eager to break the record than we were. I still remember what one of them said to me after the attempt “Bro, This was an awesome experience! Why don’t you come back in couple of months with more preparation, and we will make a record of 2000 orbs” It still gives me the goosebumps. That was the level of enthusiasm I saw in the eyes of the students. And it is something, I would love to see again and again. To teach them the joys of waving lights in the dark, and see those lights magically form Art.

LPP ∇ Thats really cool I would say that was a success just for the experience! The idea of making the orbs smaller was a really smart way to go about breaking the record how was the idea of making the miniature light orbs introduced?

SS ∇ After that attempt, we started analysing the shortcomings. Where did we go wrong, and how can we improve upon them. One thing was sure, the way we had gone about with the first attempt, that way was good for only about 300-400 orbs. Because as the number or orbs start to increase, the orbs at the back start to become less distinguishable from the nearby orbs. As I was adamant on creating a minimum of 500 orbs, we needed an elevated platform of about 150 feet to overlook a big flat surface, to get the proper angle. But, as we could not find any place like that, we moved to the next logical choice. Decrease the size of the orbs. The radical idea of reducing the size of the orbs was proposed by Ankur Bansal, and it was readily accepted by the group. But, as we had never seen a tool which would create miniaturized orbs, let alone create more than 500, it presented a new set of problems. So after brainstorming for a couple of days, we came up with the design of the tool, and started working on it.

LPP ∇ Can you tell me a little more about the tool you guys built, it looks like a piece of DIY Light Painting genius… was it computer controlled, hand controlled, or a bit of both?

SS ∇ From the outset, we had planned to make the attempts with as much frugal resources as we can. For the two attempts we made, our total expenditure did not cross the $200 mark (excluding the air tickets, ofcourse). With such a shoe-string budget, using a computer controlled tool, was out of question. Also, it was out of the area of our expertise too. Our tool was made of wood, PVC, and simple DC motors. And was controlled manually only.

LPP ∇ So who did what in the group, how many people did it take to operate the orb tool and how long did each orb take to make?

SS ∇ Out of the six of us, Me, Shobhit and Jeswin, were handling the cameras. I was on the highest perch, while Jeswin was on the other platform. Shobhit was on the ground, clicking pics and making video for use in the video presentation. Ankur, Sanchit and Arun were involved in manually making the orbs and moving the tool in unison. The tool made 30 orbs at a time, in about 30 secs. It also needed to be moved to the next marked location, after making a row of orbs. We made a total of 30 rows of light orbs.

LPP ∇ What was the most difficult part of the process?

SS ∇ The most difficult part of the process was the complete lack of knowledge on how to go about it. We would create one tool, build it up from scratch, test it, and after finding one fault or the other, junk it. Also wiring up the whole tool was a mess. DC motors we got our hands on were not standardised. One would run faster than the other, the other would be slower. It was a complete nightmare. And above all, we had no mechanism whatsoever to control the speed. So it was just a game of mix and match, trying all sorts of combinations to get the motors running at optimal speeds. On top of that we made the mistake of using aluminium core wires. Aluminium having higher resistance than copper, would make the matters even worse. The current and voltages just seemed to vary at every single point.

LPP ∇ I know you needed to have a high angle to capture all the orbs how was the location selected?

SS ∇ By the time we started looking for a location for our second attempt, we had decided on miniaturizing the orbs. So we just needed a flat surface with some kind of platform with a minimum height of 25 feet. We found a flat ground, with double-storey houses on three sides giving us a height of about 35 feet on one side and about 20 feet on the other. That was sufficient for our attempt, and few test pictures from these vantage points just proved it.

LPP ∇ How long was the exposure for the final image?

SS ∇ The exposure of the final image was 830 seconds.

LPP ∇ What was the best part of the experience?

SS ∇ The best part of the experience. Now that is a difficult one. In our first attempt it was definitely the smiles on the faces of the students. In the second it was the bonhomie developed between people from different distant parts of India, who had gathered in a small town in North India, with one goal in mind. 900 ORBS!! (or more)

LPP ∇ Thank you for taking time to answer these questions and Congratulation again! You guys crushed the record! I guess the East Coast Light Painters better get to work 🙂

SS ∇ Thank You.

P.S The East Coast Light Painters Still Hold the First Light Painting Guinness World Record. HA HA.