Balloon Pop 2000fps

[[I am resubmitting this single shot of the full sequence to display on the High Speed Photography group. Apologies for those of you who have seen this sequence before ]]

See [link] for the full sequence of shots, and [link] for a video of the shoot.


We filled four balloons with a similar amount of water and hung them from custom-built scaffolding so they hung equally. We then shot them from close range using a small crossbow (shot by a licensed Pro. Please don't try this yourself, as owning and firing a crossbow is illegal without a license in many countries).

We recorded the balloons, and also the boxes behind the balloons where the crossbow bolt eventually hit. I don't have the footage available, but an interesting thing to see was that when the bolt hit the compressed card and wood surface, a small ring of water exploded off it; remenants of what clung to the shaft from it's journey through the balloons!

Anyways, with the naked eye, you cannot see how water retains its shape for the brief moments before it breaks. As a liquid, the molecules of water do have a weak bond between one another which are easily broken. For a few brief miliseconds, with the use of camera technology, you can see the water still holding those bonds and retaining the shape of the now absent balloon.


Basic Camera Specs
Camera Model: SA2 prototype (now commercially available)
12-bit CMOS camera with a PL lens mount

Top Resolution: 2048x2048px
FPS at top resolution: 1000fps

Highest fps available: 10,000fps
Res. at highest fps: 512x416px

Resolution used: HD standard (1920x1080px)
fps at HD Res: 2000fps