VFX Atlas
H 138 / 3211960s

Slit-Scan Photography

Slit-scan photography. 1968: Star-Gate sequence. Afterwards, science fiction and title design.

Typeface · Orbitron

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968): Star Gate. Temporal effect: still image or image sequence.
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968): Star Gate. Temporal effect: still image or image sequence.Warner Bros.;image distributed for Museum of the Moving Image exhibition via NYC Tourism; Courtesy Warner Bros.; no open license stated.View source ↗

Prompt

Apply Slit-Scan Photography with luminous color ribbons stretched into deep perspective corridors, elongated surface bands, and continuous exposure trails. Draw streaks from existing colors and align them with the scene's vanishing directions, using saturated spectral highlights against dark recesses while preserving recognizable central forms. Keep the original subject and composition.

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Identify

Luminous corridors and elongated colored surfaces form seemingly endless tunnels.

Principle

Illuminated graphics are exposed to light through a narrow slit1 for an extended period. A moving camera or original image stretches the light into perspective paths.

Example

Douglas Trumbull and Stanley Kubrick: Star-Gate sequence in 2001: A Space Odyssey, 1968.

Try it out

Follow the vanishing point2. What traces create the illusion of rapid movement?

Background

Earlier photographic slit-scan processes; Trumbull's famous film adaptation for 2001: A Space Odyssey. 1968: Star-Gate sequence; followed by science fiction and title design. The entire Star-Gate montage combines several processes. Not every abstract color image within it is a slit-scan.

Recognize: Bright corridors, stretched color surfaces and seemingly endless tunnels. Mechanism: Illuminated graphics are exposed for an extended period through a narrow slit while the camera and/or original image is moved. Light is stretched out into perspective paths. example: Douglas Trumbull / Stanley Kubrick: 2001: A Space Odyssey, 1968. Practice: Trace the vanishing point: What traces create the illusion of a journey into infinity? Sketch how a small detail of color can become a long trail of light. What movement seems to be moving towards you?

Illuminated graphics are exposed for an extended period through a narrow slit while the camera and/or original image is moved. Light is stretched out into perspective paths. Bright corridors, stretched expanses of color, and seemingly endless tunnels. Follow the vanishing point: What traces create the illusion of a journey into infinity? The entire Star-Gate montage combines several processes. Not every abstract color image from it is a slit scan.

Distinction

The entire Star-Gate montage combines several methods. Not every abstract color image resulting from it is a slit scan.

Aftermath

Digital space-time slices and time-shifted strip processing are related but technically different methods.

Further examples · 7 images

Keyboard eq1985
02 Keyboard eq1985A black and white image displays hands with unnaturally elongated fingers resting on a computer keyboard. It demonstrates slit-scan photography as the fingers appear stretched into vertical paths due to movement across a scanning sensor.Glogger · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Portrait of Sergio Valle Duarte
03 Portrait of Sergio Valle DuarteThe portrait exhibits characteristic lateral smearing and spatial distortion caused by a slit-scan process. The middle section shows how stationary parts of the face are stretched into paths when the subject or camera moves.Andrew Davidhazy · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Oscillograph Cinematograph Camera
04 Oscillograph Cinematograph CameraThis early scientific camera uses a continuous film strip and a narrow aperture to record light over time. It represents the technical ancestor of the slit-scan apparatus later adapted for cinematic visual effects.Unknown · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
Line scan photo of Shinkansen N700A Series Set G13 in 2017, car 11
05 Line scan photo of Shinkansen N700A Series Set G13 in 2017, car 11A high-speed train is captured using a line-scan camera, a modern digital form of slit-scan photography. The continuous horizontal composition shows the subject in profile with a static background, illustrating the capture of motion through a narrow aperture.Dllu · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
AI illustration: Elongated luminous corridors stretch toward a central vanishing point
06 AI illustration: Elongated luminous corridors stretch toward a central vanishing pointElongated luminous corridors stretch toward a central vanishing point. The streaked colored surfaces mimic the perspective paths created by exposing light through a narrow slit with long exposure.Illustration generated for the Atlas (AI)
AI illustration: A technician operates a camera rig featuring a vertical light slit
07 AI illustration: A technician operates a camera rig featuring a vertical light slitA technician operates a camera rig featuring a vertical light slit. This depicts the practical setup where a camera moves toward a narrow opening to streak light onto film.Illustration generated for the Atlas (AI)

Sources