Table Of ContentM INVESTIGATION OF THE TECHNIQUE AND APPLICATION
OF HIGH-SPEED PHOTOGRAPHS
A Thesis
Presented to
the Faculty of the Department of Cinema
The University of Southern California
In Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree
Master of Arts
by
Ralph Neal Tudor
January 1950
UMI Number: EP42696
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This thesis, written by
Ralph Neal Tudor
under the guidance of /lIS.... Faculty Committee,
and approved by all its members, has been
presented to and accepted by the Council on
Graduate Study and Research in partial fulfill
ment of the requirements for the degree of
Master of Arts
January 24, 1950
Date.....................
Faculty Committee
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER PAGE
I. THE PROBLEM AND DEFINITIONS OF TERMS USED . 1
The problem , ♦ 2
Statement of the problem 2
Importance of the study . 2
Method of investigation . • 3
Organization of remainder of thet hesis . 3
Definitions of terms used.... 4
High-speed Still Photography 4
High-Speed Motion Picture Photography , 4
Microsecond - 5
Time-compression 5
Time-expansion 6
Self-luminous , 6
Frame frequency , 6
Chemical Flash 7
Optical Compensator , . . . 7
II. BACKGROUND OF HIGH-SPEED PHOTOGRAPHY 8
III. HIGH-SPEED STILL PHOTOGRAPHY , . . 23
IV. HIGH-SPEED MOTION PICTURE PHOTOGRAPHY . . . 40
V. LIGHT SOURCES FOR HIGH-SPEED PHOTOGRAPHY 64
VI. EXPOSURE DETERMINATION 76
iii
CHAPTER PAGE
VII. EXPOSURE RATS DETERMINATION, DATA INTER
PRETATION, AND SUBJECTS FOR HIGH-SPEED
PHOTOGRAPH!.......................... 86
Exposure Rate Determination . . . - 86
Data Interpretation , 89
Subjects for High-Speed Photography . 91
VIII. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS.............. 93
Summary............... 93
Conclusions..........- 93
BIBLIOGRAPHY........ 96
LIST OF TABLES
TABLE PAGE
I. Illuminants Used for High-Speed Photography 70
II. Integral Reflector Bulbs , 71
III. Values for K , 83
IV. Subjects for High-Speed Photography 92
LIST 0F FIGURES
FIGURE PAGE
1. Muybridge’s Method for Making Series Pictures 12
2. Running Horse Taken by Muybridge , 12
3. Multiple Image Picture by Marey 14
4. Marey Camera Set-up 15
5. Marey Camera . . 15
6. Fastax Cameras , 21
7. Eastman High-Speed Camera 22
8. Eerr Cell Hlectrooptieal Shutter , 25
9* Shadow (Dvorak Method) , 31
10. Shadow . 31
11. Schlieren Method of Toepler 32
12. Schlieren . . . - 32
13. Wind-Tunnel Schlieren Photography 33
14. Strobe Light Photography 34
15. Detonation Camera 37
16. Stroboscopic Motion Picture Camera , 41
17. Rotating Lens Camera , 44
18. Scophony Camera Optical System , 46
19. Suhara Camera Optical System . 46
20. Rotating Prism Optical System 4S
21. Fastax Camera Interior 50
22. Characteristic Curves of 35 MM Fastax Camera . 51
FIGURE
23. Optical Principle of the Miller and Bowen
Cameras
24. A Multilens Unit and Its Images on a Slit
Showing the Method of Image Dissection
25. Interior Lighting Set-ups
CHAPTER I
THE PROBIEM AND DEFINITIONS OF TERMS USED
There has long been available to the scientific in
vestigator a tool for the examination of very minute matter
and phenomena. This tool, the microscope, has made it pos
sible for the scientist to delve into the mysteries of the
extremely small by enlarging particles of matter to the
point where they could be observed by the human eye, or
could be recorded photographically by cameras made a part
of the optical system of the microscope. Thus that which
was unknown became known. This was made possible by the
tool enabling man to magnify spatial relationships hereto
fore too small to be observed by human eyes alone.
Another field of the great unknown has been (and is)
the spatial relationships and rate of movement of matter in
very fast moving phenomena. In this case the problem of
observing is the inability of the human eye to observe
highly transient phenomena, such as an explosion, the move
ments of a humming bird’s wing, the disintegration of
breaking glass, the movement of a bullet in flight, the
turbulence of the air flow around a body moving rapidly
through the air.
All of these phenomena occur too rapidly for the
human eye to observe in detail, if at all. A tool for mag
nifying time was needed. The scientific investigator turn
ed to photography for the answer to his problem and found
the answer in high-speed photography.
\ THE PROBLEM
Statement of the problem. The purpose of this study
is (1) to consider the historical background of high-speed
photography; (2) to discuss the various types of high-speed
motion picture cameras and allied equipment currently in
use; (3) to consider the practical application of high-speed
photography as used today by research and development organ
izations; and (4) to consider current trends in the develop
ment of high-speed photographic equipment.
Importance of the Study. We are entering the super
sonic era. Only recently has man been able to travel faster
than the speed of sound. This is the beginning of the age
of atomic energy, jet propulsion, rockets and guided
missiles. It is imperative that research engineers utilize
high-speed photography as a technique of gathering informa
tion concerning the materials and machines of this new
super-sonic era.
Photography itself, as we know it, is just a little
