“This needs a good understanding of the physics involved and a certain amount of faith, balls of steel, or simple stupidity.” – Peter Terren, Tesla coil tinkerer.

Bunbury, Western Australia: Backyard physicist Peter Terren has combined his love of electricity with a passion for photography to capture some incredible still images of electricity in motion.

Check out the gallery, and learn a little more about Peter Terren’s technique, after the jump.

Terren uses a Tesla coil to boost mains power to 500,000 volts and then captures the sparks on camera with long exposure shots; combined with a rotating color filter in front of the camera, this makes for some breathtaking pictures. Terren estimates that his hobby costs about as much as running a car each year.

[Tesla Downunder, The Age]