Shooting Bikers at Night with DIY Black Light Flashes and Colorful Paint

Brazilian sports photographer Marcelo Maragni likes to do experimental photography in addition to his “ordinary” sports photography. Earlier this year, he decided that he wanted to try to capture action shots at night with ultraviolet flashes and colorful paint.

Broncolor sells a UV attachment for its flash systems, but that one costs over $1,500. Maragni decided to go a DIY route instead, and created a homemade alternative by slicing up black light bulbs and using the glass as a filter for his normal studio flashes.

He then invited some young downhill bikers from the area, found a nice outdoor course, and held a nighttime photo shoot with colorful paint on the bikes, landscape, and athletes. Here are some behind-the-scenes photos showing the shoot in progress:

And here are some of the photographs that resulted:

Here’s a behind-the-scenes video showing how Maragni turned his idea into reality:

You can find more photographs from this photo shoot over at Red Bull Photography.

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Image credits: Photographs by Marcelo Maragni and used with permission. Behind the scenes photos by Marcelo Machado