Justin Quinell: The Longest Exposure Photographs in the World

Harold Eugene Edgerton's bullet-time photographs exposed a new world possible with high-speed photography, but what about the opposite effect? What if you could take a picture that took more than an hour, or even a day to expose? Justin Quinell did that with what is arguably the longest exposure photograph in the world.

Justin Quinnell is a photographer and teacher who's dabbled in all sorts of weird photography equipment, but he is more known for his specialty long exposure photography. His long duration images are made with pin-hole cameras, a type of simple camera. As its name suggests, a pinhole camera has a small opening on one side, which is the only way for light to get into the box. The light then paints the scene onto the opposite side of the camera. Because of the tiny aperture of this camera, it can take quite some time before an image is made.

In Quinnells' case, some of his photographs took over 6 months to complete. Because of the extreme length of time required to make his pictures, it's possible to see the different paths the sun makes as it crosses the sky in different seasons. While the whole process might seem too technical, Quinnell explains that even the simplest tools such as aluminum cans and gaffer tape are enough to create these spectacular images. Below are a few more examples of his "Solargraphs".

More of Justin Quinnell and his amazing Solargraphs can be found on his website. Those looking to try their hand at making the longest exposure photograph on their own can follow Quinnell's instructions here. If you're wondering what to do in the time it takes to make these long-term images, check out Harold Eugene Edgerton's high speed photographs here.