I have a great deal of interest in digital photography, but my life is as crazy as anyone else’s. My son, family, and work keep me busy from dawn to midnight every day. I’ve never had time to cultivate any photography skills, even though I’ve always been very interested, sitting on the edge of my seat, if you will, for a chance to take some digital photos in order to learn a little about how capturing light can create astonishing works of art.

My interview with Matthew Danser had given me my long sought “excuse” to try out some photography techniques. But it also required that I put in an honest effort. The thought in the back of my head: These photos are going to suck. Probably a lot. And they will most likely be seen by the thousands of people who visit this blog monthly. Second gulp.

But I’m the kind of person so riddled with ADHD that even my paranoia about being judged on a mass scale can only last about three minutes before the audacity to try anything resurfaces and action is taken. So here’s what happens when a total amateur who has no idea what he is doing tries to “Paint with Light.”

A one-dollar flashlight from – you guessed it – the Dollar General. One dollar. Even. Gotta love it. Especially since it’s all I could afford, seeing as how I’m still paying off the aforementioned Nikon that I bought to take photos of our baby son. (True, a million pictures have been taken of him during his first year-and-a-half on Earth. However, 999,999 of those photos were taken with an iPhone. Go figya.)

THE PLAN, STAN:

The plan was to wait until it was dark in the apartment and do some light painting. I knew that I could use the Shutter mode on my camera to set it to take exposures of up to thirty seconds. I saw that my camera also had an option for bulb release, so, invoking Danser, who recalls how his girlfriend had to hold down the button on his camera for a full thirteen minutes, I determined that if I asked really nicely, I might be able to persuade my wife to hold down the trigger to get exposures longer than thirty seconds. Otherwise, thirty seconds was my window of time to do all the light painting I could.

I started off pretty timidly. I had seen photos online in which people used long exposures to create squiggly lines. The most popular examples are pictures of traffic at night, headlights and tail lights streaming, giving you a sense of the fluid motion of busy intersections. You’ve also seen those nature pics in which streams and rivers and clouds and stars become gauzy with movement because of long exposures.

But what I really like about Danser’s work is the use of color. The effect of running inside the hut and popping off red-gelled flashes shown at the beginning of this blog post (Matthew Danser! And happy lightpainting, everyone!

When lights go out in one room that is a clue that something is wrong within the wiring of that particular room only. However, if the whole house goes out, this can be serious. Generally a homeowner will look out the front door to see if any of the neighbors have power. He sees the lights on everywhere and then asks the person in charge of bills if they paid the electric company. After those options have been confirmed, the next call should be to your local licensed and bonded electrician.

What kind of services do we provide?

We can investigate the problem and repair the wiring on contemporary as well as antique light fixtures. It doesn’t matter if the home is 100 or just 10 years old. Things can happen even to newer residences. It is no secret that certain critters can get between the interior and exterior walls of your home and make a feast of wiring. It is not unusual to find a deceased rodent that unintentionally bit into high voltage. This doesn’t mean your house is dirty or your housekeeping is below par. It just means these animals have been around for hundreds of years and have perfected their craft in order to feed themselves.

We can get to the root of your issues with chandeliers, wall sconces and generic ceiling lights. It does not matter if they are traditional or halogen.  You will be happy to know that we can also repair the lighting in your china cabinets, book cases, wall units and any piece of furniture that has a lighting feature. If one of these pieces has recently been moved to a new location or even for cleaning, wiring can become loose.

What about exterior lights?

No one wants to walk up to their home in the dark or enter a garage when the lights are out. While you might be a bit intimidated, the likelihood of someone stepping out of the shadows to attack you are slim. However, it is best not to tempt would-be muggers. Get those lights repaired right away.

Homeowners can count on us to complete, install or repair their landscape lighting. This adds value to a home and also gives the homeowners a sense of accomplishment. The same goes for the front lights. We can help you convert a gas lamp post into an electrical one. If you have one that runs on electricity and it no longer works, we can investigate and repair it.

It is true that most of the electrical problems you have in your home will need to be taken care of by a licensed electrician. However, there are various smaller problems that you can easily and safely troubleshoot. Here are just a few:

This can be quite bothersome and yet pretty easy to troubleshoot. Begin by checking that the bulb has been screwed in correctly. It needs to be in all the way. If that is in order, check to see that the wattage is correct for the fixture in which it has been fixed. If the wattage is not right, that can be causing overheating and it can even lead to a fire. In the event that the wattage is correct, just replace the old bulb with a new one. If the light is still flickering, then it is possible that the electrical outlet or the cord has a problem.