Homemade Batsignal Reaches the Clouds (and how to make an image projector for yourself!)

In this video I test my DIY bat signal powered by the incredibly bright Imalent MS18 flashlight against the clouds. I also show an easy way that you can build your own image projector using a few common items. This is a great project to learn the basics of how lenses work, and can be used to build your own mini bat signal!
The MS18 flashlight was given to me by Imalent for use in this project. www.imalentstore.com/products...
A special thanks to my top Patrons: LVE, Enzo Breda Lee, Jon Hartmann, TheBackyardScientist & Eugene Pakhomov! If you enjoy these videos please consider supporting my efforts to continually improve them: / nighthawkprojects
Thanks for watching!
-Ben

[@Nighthawkinlight]

In case you missed my previous video about building the bat signal: kzbin.info/www/bejne/q2KncqqDZ9eod6s If you enjoy these videos and would like to support my efforts to continually improve them, consider supporting my channel on Patreon: www.patreon.com/NightHawkProjects

[@t400ml]

Really cool, have you considered submitting this to Daily Dose of Internet?

[@JAKOB1977]

How would the Acebeam W30 laser flashlight work in this regard.. though very tight beam?

[@XXCoder]

COOL! I wonder if you got any complaints from neighbors or something with that light?

[@flojotube9323]

@@XXCoder - who gives a shyt?? What a snowflake minded question...

[@XXCoder]

@@flojotube9323 I'm not sure what set you off? I live in a city, and wondered what difference there is. I sure as heck can't shine something that bright here without police coming.

[@diradosveta]

Did he show up tho

[@cseblivestreaming8073]

He must have with that bright light

[@MrChanw11]

He attracted Moth man

[@joeferguson2187]

snow. snow he didnt.

[@cseblivestreaming8073]

@@MrChanw11 Ok so here‘s my theory: batman is a bat and the batsignal actually just attracts a ton of insects so batman can feast upon this delicious meal already prepared and focussed in one spot

[@adamvalt6609]

uz vidim, co bude dalsie viedo

[@amyshaw893]

Get this man a rooftop in the city and an overcast day

[@i_fish6657]

Overcast night why would you do it during the day, batman's sleeping during the day

[@amyshaw893]

@@i_fish6657 well you don't want to accidentally summon batman when there's no crime, he'd probably be quite annoyed

[@1999colebug]

Too bad airspace over cities are usually congested w/ planes :(

[@LC-bv1gk]

don't forget the WWII mega search light.

[@LC-bv1gk]

@@i_fish6657 of course, he's bat.

[@AlextheguitarFreak]

after watching the new hacksmith video just now, this version is even more impressive, being far more portable and a clearer projection as well.

[@briancortez6135]

Completely agree with you man

[@zeroy]

thats what I just thought! much simpler to do and carry also

[@YoJesusMorales]

I'm guessing youtube brought this back up for me because of that video, though in the hacksmith video they do have the little logo at the front of the projector.

[@randybobandy9828]

That because hacksmith is a hack 🤭

[@christiancepeda5457]

I AGREE

[@willredfox7536]

its incredible that this sole gentleman just made a better job than the whole hacksmith crew 😄😄

[@ranselcruzcolon5837]

Josue Ordóñez! Hacksmith that amazing job also

[@willredfox7536]

@@ranselcruzcolon5837 of course bro.

[@kaws3076]

There’s was awful lol

[@zimzimma2.0]

​@@ranselcruzcolon5837 if u say so

[@5h4n368]

batman is going to be pissed when he shows up and there is no emergency.

[@billweasley1382]

Just give him a jar of mayonnaise with a tight lid to open.

[@glenngriffon8032]

Batman showing up in the mountains like "Aw come on Jim, what are you DOING all the way out here?"

[@whuzzzup]

Well he will meet Ben, so he will be fine.

[@Ohwhale79]

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 RIGHT???

[@shaunanakin]

"The batsignal is not a beeper."

[@secularstormchaser0074]

What would be cool is making it an actual movie projector, and projecting a film into the clouds

[@Pyxis10]

And then the Mpaa would come for you.

[@aserta]

Doesn't work. Not in the focus range.

[@Vladimir_Kv]

It's possible. Take and disassemble an "MP3" player with video capabilities and a suitably sized screen, peel one of the LCD's layers and you'll get a transparent screen layer. Then just install it inside this tube and voila. The only concern would be heat of the beam melting the screen but a couple of powerful fans directed at the screen can mitigate that. But it would be blurry.

[@gormauslander]

@@Vladimir_Kv I believe they refer to that as an mp4 player, but yes

[@frijoli9579]

@@aserta did you watch the video?

[@jonnyreverb]

This is the best video on cloud projection I have seen on KZbin. That being said, I have operated lasers for shows since the 90s, and you will not see the image from the city projected on from the outskirts of town or anywhere farther than 1/2 a block from the projector. This effect only works near the projector, when it is shining on the flat bottom of a relatively rare type of cloud. The results you got were much better than average. Under perfect conditions, the audience in the back of the arena couldn't read the text projected above and behind the stage. We could capture video from the stage that implied it was a clear image that the whole city could see, but going to the back of the arena or the parking lot made the image an unreadable smear.

[@b1gamer68]

Mans beat the whole hacksmith channel 😂

[@Eric_Pham]

So this is how they send files to the cloud

[@Ahmed-Youcef1959]

Hhhhhhhh

[@arielshpitzer]

now i have what to do with my NFT's....

[@patman0250]

What are you talking about bro, the cloud is an internet service not actual clouds jeez way over your head dude.

[@thatminecraftplayer8767]

@@patman0250 r/whooosh

[@thedoctor0892]

@@patman0250 shame on you for not getting the joke

[@AntVenom]

I wish I could like this video twice. That was awesome!

[@THESLlCK]

ey its generic minecraft youtuber

[@Artemis-zl5cs]

oh shit, its antvenom

[@seadragonet1738]

oh wow! antvenom! cool

[@a7G-82r]

antvenom... i havent heard that name for at least 8 years

[@seadragonet1738]

why not?

[@laurensschroder5560]

Who's here after @Hacksmith Industries made theirs? Great video by the way and less complex then the Batsignal Hacksmith Industries made

[@philiplosansky7191]

At this Port Hacksmith Industries built a Bat Signal, i wrote them that they don't have the first working one :) Good Job

[@matthewreynolds8068]

Inexpensive, diy, AND educational? Dang that took me back. 😭 RIP Grant Thompson 🙏

[@OlivierGomis]

The fact that you're able to produce such good image without a 4k honestly pisses me off. Amazing video as always.

[@Nighthawkinlight]

I love when people notice that. Good 1080p footage beats crap 4k footage any day.

[@JubbLaRacing]

4k is overrated.

[@StepOrDieFR]

@@JubbLaRacing not no but 4K in youtube is a piece of shit ^^ Real 4K on a good 4K screen is most beautiful but 1080P is very sufficient in 80% of the use it is only for watching films or playing a certain very graphically advanced game that 4K has a real interest

[@kenf3539]

You should see a flower photo I have hanging on my wall. It is an 11x14 (close to A3 international size) that looks great next to film and digital SLR photos. It was taken with a 2 MP camera and printed with a dye sublimation printer. Good equipment and technique is valuable.

[@MetallicaFanSandman]

@@Nighthawkinlightwas wondering the size lens to the pringles can?

[@RaoDGuitar]

That was so cool! As a kid I always wondered how the batsignal would work in real-life (I kinda assumed it wouldn't be as easy as in the cartoon). To see it actually working is amazing, thank you for showing this!

[@alexanderteambillywynn6900]

This just feels like one of those “the camera does not do it justice” things. It looks so cool on video I can only imagine in person.

[@MatthewA412]

Imagine using multiple colors to make a ufo appear on the clouds 😂

[@Ammar.D]

Some people would start a cult and worship this ufo 😂😂

[@FL4SH3]

NightHawkIngLight: Challenge accepted!🦸‍♂️

[@merxellus1456]

i dont even remotely understand how ur gonna show an UFO using coloured leds, thats basically a High powered Projector. And using this flashlight for a Projector light would surely burned the projector LCDs mirrors.

[@Pyxis10]

Project a hologram?

[@lewisdoherty7621]

​@@Pyxis10 That is what those supposed images of UFO's the navy took are. The navy admitted the videos are real, but didn't say what was seen. Defense contractors know what they are and test them on our pilots. Lasers are used to generate false targets to confuse enemy pilots. There are stealth aircraft that are real aircraft which are designed to appear invisible to radar and then there is the opposite deception system making non-existent aircraft appear to exist.

[@roccoborghetti4693]

Your comment about “having good weather to project onto” near the end of the video is easily explained. There’s so much smog and pollution in the air surrounding Gotham that it’s nearly always cloudy at night, making it easy to shine the Batsignal on.

[@PlasmaChannel]

I bet that scares the hell out of every real bat at night. Intense!!

[@BuckHelton]

On behalf of every kid who watched Batman in the 60's, and tried to do this with the old school Eveready flashlights back in the day, Thank You!

[@quackpack4796]

"Controlling the weather on the other hand...is a little less realistic" No worries, Gotham is forever shrouded in grey clouds; Tis their curse. That and the 10,000 supervillains that roam the streets without a care or worry.

[@Voron_Aggrav]

Pollution and Corruption work hand in hand

[@nunyabiznes33]

Well it is built on cursed land

[@passiveftp]

I believe China has cloud seeding machines, Google it :)

[@abdulmuthalib8036]

you got jakarta to do that. we got thin smoke as cloud

[@SkatePunkBanana]

I mean Gotham has been portrayed by Pittsburgh and we never see the sun here so its not that unrealistic for it to be an overcast day whenever a crime is committed.

[@RogueShadowTCN]

So, when is the LCD screen going in. For movie night. For the whole darn town.

[@Rotem_S]

You could probably use something similar to a regular projector with this setup, it might even work with a regular projector and this flashlight as the light source

[@channelofmanytopics5891]

YES please do that. Heat might be an issue though, so you would probably need a fan blowing on the LCD.

[@grn1]

Can't remember which channel it was (DIY Perks maybe) but I remember seeing a video where they took the screen out of a 'smart' phone and used it as part of a projector. I wonder if/how using a physically larger screen would affect the image quality. In that video they projected light through the screen but it may be possible to get better results by reflecting light off the screen similar to how some holograms are made (I forget the technical term for it and can't remember which channel I saw the holography thing on, I've got too many subscriptions that may have covered it).

[@Jay-nh8kl]

The snow makes it look like magic!

[@MattWhitmanTMBH]

You are a good person and you make things that make me happy. Nice video amigo.

[@maxcap60]

I noticed the hat logo first thing in the video

[@mikicerise6250]

This is devilry and witchcraft!!!! God never meant for us to tamper with such things and you're all going to hell!!

[@maxcap60]

@@mikicerise6250 But it almost seems like he’s shining a light through the darkness. Also I can send you to some information that tells you how you actually get to hell. And it’s a lot easier than that. You simply do nothing.

[@mikicerise6250]

@@maxcap60 SATANIC SORCERY ALL OF IT!

[@RAndrewNeal]

@@maxcap60 I have a feeling it's a troll.

[@milenmonev2803]

Better than The Hacksmith :)

[@tylre]

In a world of infinite scrolls and overwhelming quantities, this is very high quality content! Thank you!

[@GadgetBoy]

It's amazing how far you've come since teaching people how to make fireworks in your kitchen.

[@jackchn23]

THIS is what KZbin was made for! Bravo!

[@JustinDaze]

How epic would it be if you could project a movie on some clouds. That was a fun watch.

[@IvanOoze1990]

Could project some Christmasy stuff on the side of your house. "edit" even better project Santa on his sleigh and move him like he's driving it through the sky with his reindeer.

[@Brian-ti7xm]

*gotham was literally always cloudy. Always. Due to smog, fog, and a constant high humidity* hey bro can you post the thumbnail without the words? That photo is absolutely amazing. Awesome. I'm infatuated with it, such art.

[@McPlaySpot]

Not the sequel we deserved , but the one we needed. Thanks for the DIY!

[@reverendfawkes6138]

I wonder what your neighbors thought! "Well, there it is. Batman. Friggin' Batman. Might as well, though. I mean... it /is/ 2020."

[@Simon-bo6fv]

that's so cool. The Hans Zimmer-esque music was a really nice touch too!

[@JohnMadeit]

On my to make list. I think this would bring a smile to a lot of people's faces

[@Doughy_in_the_Middle]

December Snow + Batsignal + Theme Music made me realize: Batman Returns is my favorite Christmas movie.

[@nickg5250]

This channel never fails to impress! Going to make one of these projectors myself

[@AleksUsovich]

Really love the cool cinematic intro at the beginning of the project! Fantastic project as always. Gotta say that magnet idea to hold the projected image is genius!

[@mica4153]

the volumetric shadows in the snow are so awesome

[@drinnerd8532]

Can you imagine walking outside and seeing that? That would be sooo incredible!!

[@darthvader2995]

Thats a good signal, especially for target practice from the death star

[@catfish552]

"Target the Bat Signal, single reactor ignition."

[@senordd]

I didn’t think you could actually project a bat signal into the sky visibly in real life.

[@joagargo01]

That BAT Signal is AWESOME!!!!

[@gunnarbiker]

Damn. Freaking genius using old school simple technology. Love it.

[@twocvbloke]

The folks up on the ISS must have been wondering who on Earth (badum-tish!) was calling for Batman... :P

[@gormauslander]

Unfortunately the image was only 150' wide. We need to go bigger

[@davidsen1805]

Me: "Hmm how expensive is the big flashlight?" *checks amazon* Me: "haha nope"

[@Nighthawkinlight]

It's actually a pretty good deal considering it's literally the brightest flashlight you can buy. The best of anything doesn't usually come cheap.

[@davidsen1805]

@@Nighthawkinlight I don't doubt it, super cool project!

[@yaykruser]

@@davidsen1805 lol, thats more than half a months salary!

[@glenngriffon8032]

@@Nighthawkinlight I would still like to buy two to mount on my car for those pesky drivers who never turn off their brights.

[@dimesonhiseyes9134]

You can actually make your own super powerful light out of basic fairly cheap parts. It doesn't have the same form factor but it's still a pretty usable form. I'll see if I can find the video.

[@fightingviking7968]

Finally something really useful on KZbin!!! I love it!!!

[@peteandsebastianshowsuperf3624]

By far the best video I've found yet on this. Clear, concise, no wasted time. Thank you Sir, I've subscribed.

[@blackrockseco2684]

I’ve been meaning to build an art piece for years that relies on these concepts. Thank you for the excellent introduction

[@ThistlesGarden]

Love seeing you re-designing these projects with around the house items.

[@gfhrtshergheghegewgewgew1730]

i don't know how i missed this project when it came out, your neighbors (and the FAA) must love you

[@poggerwhite]

I came here and was just gonna skip to the end to see it, but your explanation of how to make the projector and the cool things you can do with it had me super interested

[@Techie_ASMR]

He makes everything better!!!!

[@lewismassie]

There's been this post floating around of a guy guiding an Uber Eats driver to his house using a flashlight beam, and I kinda assumed it was you at first

[@cwharton]

I just found your channel and I am so thankful I did. You are an amazing creator with each video as good as the last. Time to binge-watch your videos. Thanks for the great content.

[@muffty1337]

Simple + effective = Awesome And your bird deserves its own channel.

[@CSDonohue11]

All though it does rain a lot in NYC and even more often there is cloud cover. Those beautiful blue sky’s on 9/11 are rare. It had stormed the night before on 9/10 though and that’s why the Sky’s were so clear. Often it storms & snows for days though.

[@danielhaupt2066]

it came out very well, and those small versions are super easy to make!

[@mr.a.d574]

You are simply superb. Miss a teacher like you during my school or college days.

[@Blargthehandsome]

beautiful shots! the snow really made it cinematic!

[@Advoko]

Ben, mystifying your neighbors in the previous episode wasn't enough for you, now you had to mess with the alien astronomer's minds! )))) p.s. Loved a simple and elegant magnets' solution!

[@blubb7711]

Don´t call the Overheadprojektor old, its still state of the art modern media technologie according to german schools.

[@DUKEisALIVE]

Echt so hahahah wir haben sogar einen professor in der uni der sie noch benutzt

[@michim162]

So ist das nicht mehr, nicht da wo ich referiere

[@NinoJoel]

Ha Ha so true

[@FL4SH3]

@@DUKEisALIVE But in Germany we call it Polylux.😂

[@TheEbola1994]

@@FL4SH3 you mean in east Germany... Polylux ist die alte VEB Marke

[@AirCommandRockets]

Simply Awesome! Put a smile on my face.

[@dickterpene8697]

Wow, that magnet trick is genius.

[@Just_Some_Guy_with_a_Mustache]

It's all fun and games until your friend rudely leaves in the middle of a conversation you were having with them the moment they see it...

[@ianphilip6281]

That footage is gorgeous with the snow! You must be really happy with how it came out. Great work.

[@snigwithasword1284]

Really cool watching the snow caught in the beam! Wish I had seen this a few years ago, I made a plywood sasquatch silhouette by shining my flashlight into a carboard box with the design cutout the opposite side. Without a lens the result was very blurry and there was a heckuva lot of guesswork tracing it out!

[@dianeandmichaelkenny9121]

What FUN! Gotta get our friends together so we can all try this.

[@unvergebeneid]

Next project then: a huge smoke machine that can produce low-hanging clouds on command. They never show it in the Batman franchise but it stands to reason that it's there 😄

[@dipootube]

I really enjoy this! I didn't expect that would be possible in the beginning. thanks for sharing this.

[@cocospops9351]

My five year old doesn't know who batman is but I think she'd still love this. Will give it a go 👍

[@CSDonohue11]

Nice! 👍 That’s Dope.

[@wishiwasabear]

Luckily for batman: Gotham is always cloudy, which is a result of a combination of constant bad weather and pollution.

[@pattheplanter]

And Mr Freeze being in residence.

[@grantmccollum4499]

I was having a bad day and then I noticed you uploaded a new video. These always put a smile on my face. Thank you.

[@pot_dot]

i wonder if any plane flights saw that when you filmed it. what a great story the passengers would have to tell

[@NandR]

I use slide film in my cameras and would love to try one of the images in your projector. I bet the whole 6x6 image could fit inside that big tube.

[@forgedinferno5033]

you should wave this thing around in a big city like LA or New York and watch the internet freakout

[@meszarosmate4629]

I know im late, but how people are not trolling with this? I mean with the springles can option you can draw penises onto building for really cheap, damn why dont i live in a big city

[@ngotranhoanhson5987]

@@meszarosmate4629 I checked online, the low cloud base often hovering around 6500ft, impossible to touch. This man is just so lucky that he got a closed cloud to film.

[@pewpandagamermom]

I can't wait to show my kids this update 😍

[@RandomKSandom]

Thank you very much for the follow-up. This project very much deserved it.

[@jimburton5592]

Hey, just want to take this opportunity to shout out the awesome content you put out. Always a 100000 lumen bright spot in my day when you post.

[@Voudoo1]

Suggestion :replace the batman sign, connect it to your phone. Create a second projector, and communicate with someone else in an other city. Texting in the clouds

[@vertigoderviche]

the sky is the limit (?)

[@xenonram]

Connect what to your phone? You missed a critical part. You'd need a transparent LCD screen in the tube, and a way to mirror your phone screen onto it. It's a lot more difficult than that.

[@vedanshtripathi5617]

This wasn't recommend, i searched for it and enjoyed every bit

[@JustAnotherMaker]

I’d love to see how this looks from some distance away. Nice build and great result.

[@qvatch]

could be interesting to try it with different cloud types, I would suspect the angle viewing distortion is from the volume being illuminated, and some clouds may be denser?

[@1.4142]

Imagine what a light show it would be if everyone had one of those

[@superkaboose1066]

the pringle idea is just stupid smart, so good and simple

[@ncnuggets]

Funny thing not so long ago, this topic specifically came to my mind for whatever reason and I didn't think it was possible. Thanks for proving me wrong.

[@joshhhhhhhhhhhhh]

who else is here after watching the hacksmith claim nobody else has made a working bat signal? hacksmith could barely get his big blurry flashlight to project clearly onto a the side of a flat building and he has the nerve to call this a lie before shilling for big banks.

[@YoussoufDJEZIRI]

Thank you for calling Batman, may he save us from 2020

[@ellenj8896]

LOVE the magnet idea!!

[@midwestpoolbuilder]

Super cool and educational video!! Learn something new every day!

[@axebomber2108]

The bat shape is even clearer than the ones in the Batman movies that try to make it look realistic by making it look poorly defined.

[@dimesonhiseyes9134]

Using this as a "microscope" is actually a pretty cool idea.

[@pattheplanter]

Augmentoscope? Plethynoscope (like plethora)? Thalloscope?

[@gormauslander]

Macroscope?

[@dimesonhiseyes9134]

@@gormauslander that's a much better term.

[@pattheplanter]

@@gormauslander In some accents that would sound exactly the same as microscope.

[@gormauslander]

@@pattheplanter which accent?

[@tomchurchill5593]

Genius! Both videos are amazing! Well done 👏

[@jonathanglock1574]

Bat Man" The night is darkest just before the dawn" Thank You!

[@ccortez392]

I wish I could have seen people reacting to this.

[@subliminalvibes]

Batman is pissed. He's been driving around your area for the past two weeks trying to find the source! 😅

[@garyz777]

You...are a piken GENIUS! I know this came easy to you but I could have NEVER figured that out. I'm sure the bat signal was a real treat for your neighbors. Major kudos to you for figuring this out and showing us such a cool image. I really needed that :)

[@CTMagnus]

Wow Ben another great project, I love this Idea!!! I may have a great idea but only time will tell how great an idea it really is.