What happens to your string at release

[Greg Ragan]

#4918

I took some vid with my Iphone shooting my HH Tembo with B50 string and 630 grain broadhead tipped arrow. I was astomished by what the string looked like against the sky at release.

Here is a screen capture:

Here is the vid:

So today I recreated the shot with the skinny FF string that I got with the bow….similar results. I think the B50 is quieter so I will stick with that.

screenshot:

Vid:

Crazy huh 🙂

[Jason Wesbrock]

#35280

That’s because of how a digital camera’s sensor captures a frame. In reality, a bow string does not look like that during the shot.

[Ben M.]

#35354

Wesbrock, can you explain a little more? ‘Cause those pics look pretty convincing, but this is something I know virtually nothing about.

[Jason Wesbrock]

#35424

In layman’s terms, a digital image is not really one image. It is a stitched together mosaic of individual images (pixels) captured at different exact points in time. Better, faster cameras can capture the pixels of a frame very quickly. Slower cameras, like those found on phones, are significantly slower. That’s why the string appears so distorted.

Look at the first photo. His string would have to stretch to almost twice it’s length to look like that for real. Perhaps not the best angles, but here are a couple videos showing exactly what happens to a bow string during the shot.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0PE_98UO3s

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iIMpLv6U67w

[Ralph]

#35459

My camera in my backyard caught this of me one day. Odds of timing????? Also notice what the bow quiver and arrows are doing. Pardon the dropped release hand, duh!

[Greg Ragan]

#36471

Wow…I didn’t notice the arrows in the bow quiver till you pointed that out….no wonder a bow quiver can add a little noise sometimes!

[James Harvey]

#36488

That girl’s bow arm is made of stone!

[Ben M.]

#36544

There is some sort of conceptual leap I cannot seem to make here. But, such is life. If the string did not occupy the space in which you see it, then however did the camera come up with the image? Then again, the bow seems distorted so why not the string?

R2, I remember that picture. Pretty amazing timing.

[skifrk]

#36560

Ben, the best way to explain how a digital camera works is that it is composed of an array of pixels. Each pixel at a moment in time captures what it sees and sends to the central engine that creates the image you see on the screen. So if the string moves through each pixel but at different times then you get this bounce back from the recreation of an approximate picture. That is why the old slow motion cameras went for high speed shutter to capture as happening

[Bruce Smithhammer]

#36631

Whew. I’m relieved that this isn’t what is actually happening to my bow upon release (check out the lower limb):

[David Petersen]

#36649

You’re slipping Bruce! We’re getting dangerously close to an actual picture of the infamous alleged international jewel thief! “They” are always watching. Be careful! 😆

[Bruce Smithhammer]

#36689

David Petersen wrote: You’re slipping Bruce! We’re getting dangerously close to an actual picture of the infamous alleged international jewel thief! “They” are always watching. Be careful! 😆

I only said it was my bow….8)

[David Petersen]

#36714

Very well, but a man of your age and dignity could use more hair on his face. And it’s pretty good camo, at least before it goes white. 😆

Now, getting serious and returning to the topical question–What happens to your string at release?

Easy … it slaps the heck out of my bow arm! 😳

[Ben M.]

#36824

Bruce, that picture is so bizarre and amazing! What makes it so good is that the camera did that by itself–no photoshop. Someone should make a whole portfolio of high-speed digital images like this. I bet they could come up with some really mind bending stuff. (dwcphoto?)

Okay, you guys convinced me. It’s the camera, not the string. It seemed plausible…

Anyone else have pics like this?

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