Some Philosophical Aspects of High-Speed Photographic Instrumentation

Morton Sultanoff

The sources of uncertainty in the interpretation of photographic records obtained by many of the techniques employed in high-speed photographic instrumentation are examined. The need for a good physical understanding of the events being studied is shown to be an essential requirement in the analysis of the photographically recorded luminous output to that event. — Difficulties which arise in the analysis of rotating-mirror streak-camera records are described and the simultaneous use of associated equipment to overcome these difficulties is recommended. The need for “mental conditioning” to avoid the pitfalls of misinterpreted high-speed photographic recordings is demonstrated. The nature of the cameras, the recorded light and the physical characteristics of the events being studied must be carefully analyzed to avoid typical misinterpretations, several of which are illustrated in this paper.

Print ISSN
Published
1961-01
Content type
Original Research
DOI
10.5594/J14375