Imaging & Setup
This photo was captured on a Canon EOS R50 with an RF 50 mm f/1.8 STM lens at ~0.3 m, f/8, 1/40 s, and ISO 10,000. Post-processing in Luminar Neo enhanced contrast and preserved the characteristic neon-red and argon-violet tones.
Physical Phenomena
The image depicts a cold, weakly ionized, non-equilibrium plasma sustained by a high-frequency RF field applied to a central electrode. Electrons in the neon–argon mixture are accelerated to energies sufficient for collisional ionization at streamer heads, while radiative recombination produces the visible redish-violet glow along the filaments.
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I like how you had a deep black background that helped create the contrast in the image.
Really cool image of such a unique flow! I think it would be cool if you could change the cropping of the image to really highlight the natural symmetry of the plasma ball!
I think that you chose your camera settings well. However, I wonder what would it would have looked like if you increased your aperture and decreased your shutter speed so you could capture a single instant more easily. The longer exposure looks really cool though!
I think the symmetrical aspect and color contrast of this image is really striking.
The lighting and shot are the most impressive part of this image, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a plasma ball look like this before. I especially like the clouds forming where the tendrils meet the glass.