Some common misconceptions about high-speed photography are that it's only for experts and that it requires specialized and expensive equipment.  The HiViz site is dedicated to dispelling those myths by providing ...

• Tools -- instructions for setting up and using your own high-speed imaging system, including triggers, flash units, cameras, and timing devices
• Activities -- guidance in photographing and demonstrating bursts, pops, snaps, smashes and splashes
• FAQ -- answers to frequently-asked questions about cameras, flash units, cameras, and timing systems
• Links -- high-speed photography resources on the web
• Galleries -- portfolios of exemplary student work
• Projects -- in-depth photographic studies of the "unseen" world

Our Name

Why do we put the word, visual, in High-Speed Visual Imaging? Many people think that high-speed phenomena must be photographed to be seen. In fact, such fleeting events as balloon bursts, rebounding tennis balls, and liquid splashes can be seen with the human eye under the illumination of a brief burst of light. While we can't show you live demonstrations here, we do provide video clips that show you what you would see and hear. We also provide descriptions of how to perform some demonstrations. (see Teachers) and how to produce your own videotapes of high-speed phenomena. (see Video).

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Our Logo

The splash of a drop of liquid is perhaps the most recognizable and prevalent of all high-speed images. A. M. Worthington first photographed splashes more than a hundred years ago. His book on the subject, A Study of Splashes, is a classic, although it's not well known to the general public. The person who made the image of the splash coronet familiar to the general public was Harold Edgerton, former MIT professor and father of high-speed photography in the 20th century. He spent years trying to photograph the perfect splash. 

We added our own twist to the photography of splashes and chose the image shown to the right for the HiViz logo. The multiple-image photograph of a milk  splash was taken by Brett Goldstein and Loren Winters at the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics. The use of colored filters on 4 flash units provided visual separation of overlapping images. For more information on how this photograph was taken, click here.

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Use of Our Materials

We provide our materials for non-commercial use especially by students, teachers, and hobbyists.  We require that you ask our permission for such uses as publication or exhibition in either printed or electronic form or for any use intended to generate income or publicity.

We want to know about your high-speed photography projects. We're happy to provide advice and support as needed. Your work could even end up being displayed here.

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The Author

Loren Winters, a high-school physics teacher and creator of the HiViz site, has been mentoring middle- and secondary-school students in high-speed photography projects since 1984. He has conducted workshops and presented public demonstration lectures in high-speed photography throughout the country. Dr. Winters teaches high-speed imaging as well as physics at the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics in Durham, NC. His high-speed imaging students start out the course by taking jumping self portraits like the one to the right. The sound of a hand clap at the peak of the jump sets off a sound trigger which discharges a flash unit to capture the action. Check out some recent projects by NCSSM students.