Now that you've mastered the basics, it's time to really start having some fun! Below are some of our favourite long exposure photography methods.
Long Exposure Traffic Photos 
This is a shooting style that always seems to blow people away. Try setting your camera up at near a main road or on a highway overpass (NOTE: Keep a safe distance from traffic). Using the above techniques for long exposure, take the shot when some cars drive past. Again, play with different shutter speeds as effects will vary, but what you will see with the correct exposure is red lines of car tail lights, but not the cars themselves. As you have probably gathered, some interesting effects can be achieved shooting trains, trams and even aircraft in this same way. Lights from emergency vehicles also offer a unique strobing effect as they speed past.
Painting With Light 
An extension of shooting traffic, painting with light is one of the most common forms of long exposure photography and is definitely the most fun. Once you have mastered the above techniques, painting with light is easy and can produce dynamic imagery. Simply set up the camera as above, and get the exposure for the landscape. Then use a portable light source such as a small torch, glow stick or sparkler to 'paint' in the space. By moving the light sources around you create trails of light over the picture.
You can also use portable light sources to illuminate certain parts of the image and leave others dark. Highlighting certain areas of an image can draw focus, create balance and symmetry, and dramatically effect mood. This image was created by firing a flash while going down the slide, while an assistant illuminated other parts of the play equipment with a torch. Of course, long exposure and painting with light is not the sole domain of landscape photographers. Ever wondered how nightclub photographers manage to get their subject in focus but also capture light trails? They combine both of the above painting with light techniques to achieve unique results. Using a fast flash will ensure the subject will stay frozen rather than blurred, while a slow shutter speed will let bright light trails reach the lens.
Using Neutral Density Filters
So far all of these techniques have involved shooting at night, but what if you want to get a slow motion shot during the day, such as photographing water flowing, without over exposing the picture? Enter the Neutral Density (or ND) filter. ND's screw onto the end of your lens like any other filter, however their particular purpose is to shade the lens to such an extent that you can slow down the shutter speed dramatically. Slowing down the shutter speed means you can depict movement in your image. The most common use for this is to depict something moving at speed, such as a car racing past. Another image you have probably seen a million billion times is the long exposure waterfall shot. The picture is perfectly exposed and the surrounds sharp, yet the water is all smooth and milky with no fine detail. This can be achieved with very clever exposure, but as it is supremely difficult to have the shutter open for as long as it's needed without over exposing the image, ND filters are used.
So there you have it; some of the easiest ways to get unique effects with your camera. Sure, they're not as instantly gratifying as taking a shot on your mobile and uploading directly to Facebook to be admired by your adoring public, but I think we can all agree that the effect is far more rewarding.
Until next time, Happy Shooting!