I'm not much of a night/lowlight shooter, so this was really a new thing for me..... but certainly one I'd like to explore more. I'm posting these for anyone who cares to see them, but for zhounder especially.... cause he was there with me shooting the same exact things. These are a couple from the first place we stopped at ... In any case the first image I believe was tripod mounted (thanks for the use of the tripod Michael). Focus is a bit soft... and I wish I had used a longer shutter speed to capture the whirl of flame..... Second, hand held.... lots of whirling fire, unfortunately cut the top off.... soft focus(ugh), but like the compo, and the way the pylon he is standing on leads diagonally into the image. More to show as time allows.....

Should also say not too much done for adjustments here.... slight tweak in ACR (Adobe Camera Raw) but otherwise, pretty much as from camera.

Duh!! Man the guy is hot! And NO pun intended! O_O Erm....yea...well...huh...oh!! Yes! Cool shots! LOL!! Oh my oh my!!! Ok, mmmmmh, I can't wait to see Zhounder's shots and see how u 2 shot this differently! (with maybe a better view of the guy? Yes? No? Oh well!) O_o Erm....

This is something that imo takes the most practice.Unless you do 100's of them to actually know right what to expect,there will always be a guessing game on if they turn out. even with a digital and viewing the image after the shot in LCD it is hard to tell if you nailed it.That plus you do not get a second chance of the same thing happening again.I wold make saturation adjustments if it was mine,because I am not fond of the orange that low light shots produce. The second one you sure nailed the flame right....and is unfortunate about the missing top.The first one is brilliant as you got the flames and those lighter ones under the main flame.That is excellent to look at. Crop the sides a bit and it is the winner.

pity - the only major thing I miss is the right focus; you can't see it on the digital display; manual focussing with a tripod is a nightmare with those moving artists; only chance - also for better cropping - is to use serial shots; you need a big big portion of luck too to get these right I guess...

I like both images, though I agree with Doug about the saturation. Pitty about the cropping too. All that fire in the second photo is really cool, but that first one has something special that I can't quite identify. And PascalE, calm down woman! I have a website for you if you really need it! ;]

Pascale, I agree ..... a hunk-a hunk-a burnin' love..... couldn't really see what he looked like when I was shooting. But got these up into the computer and just melted..... heheh.... To crop or not to crop? Agree Doug, although maybe not both sides.... crop off the right, so he isn't quite so centered, would probably be what I would do were I to crop. @gwfa..... agree completely..... the soft focus in these is what's really killing it for me. Wish Donald was around for advice, his fire shots are always so sharp.

hehe... yep... HOT! stuff... been said... so i'll just nod in agreement...

Melted! Ah yes!! I bet...that's exactly what I'm doing when I look at these! O_o LMAO@Kort!! Thx dear! U're a friend! ;P

These are cool! Would like to see more of them... Nods in agreement with Pascale This guy is pretty hot! Brenda :)

LOL@Brenda!! More pics, more pics, more pics!! C'mon guys!! Show us more of that hearthrob! ;)(spelling?)

Message edited on: 06/02/2005 14:48

I remember one I lucked out on,but did not like the orange so I adjusted it to sepia.This was my best flame shot...

Oh wow!! Wicked shot Doug! But the guy isn't as appealing! LOL!

ROFL@pascale!! sorry for the extra ebot but you're too funny! (yeah, i remember that one Doug! :)

Thxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Cyn! :) Sorry for the extra ebot?? Is that such a pain for u guys to receive ebots??? O_o Just wondering! ;)

wow this is real hot stuff......pufffff, I mean the fire not that HUNK !!!!! wink wink

I really like the 1st one. Something like this would be so much fun (and challenging) to try and capture. Nothing like this goes on in my small Southern town of 40,000.

no, not really... not anymore since getting highspeed... i just can't help but still feel a bit guilty every time i generate one that has nothing to do with the topic... but then how would you know i was sitting here laughing at your comment :D...

LMAO!! Exactly!! And aren't the forums supposed to be for "communication"? ;)

That is a really great shot Doug..... but I would really like to see it in color. I'm not a big fan of orange lit images either, but.... flames are orange.... the sepia doesn't seem quite right to me.... but really I think it's just a matter of personal aesthetics.... it's still a great photo no matter what color it's in.

This post has really sparked my interest in trying to shoot some fire scenes. Seems like a question of ISO vs. shutter speed, or how to balance the two. Wow I just realized one more advantage of digital. I can't believe I never thought of this before although I do it all the time. Changing the film in your camera at will! What does this have to do with these great shots above...Um I always have a hard time deciding on grain(noise) or image sharpness in low light situations especially with moving subjects. Will have to propose as a Monthly Challenge to really work on it.

Two more thoughts for the record.. I think fire scenes should have orange and blue in them IMHO , and ebots... I love them, helps me stay in touch with you all:}

Ah yes! We do agree here Jim! About everything, digital and ebots! ;)

I love them Michelle! It was an honor shooting with you. Tips the hat and bows...

'chelle - Really good for being new to shooting fire. It really is one of the hardest things you can try to shoot. You can't trust a meter, it's usually dark so it's hard to judge focus and for the most part, you really don't see what the fire looks like until after the image is taken; which I think is what makes it so much fun and so wonderous - it's like long shutter night cityscapes. I wish I could give you a secret recipe, but I don't have one. :) I think one of the greatest things I ever did was to get into night street photography. It had the side benefit of teaching me to shoot under adverse conditions with slow shutter speeds. Hmmm ... pointers: - I guess I'd say most important is that you have a good, solid base to shoot from. Your shooting form is really important. If you are near something you can brace on, use it (wall, lamp post, whatever). - In the dim light, your instincts will be to really open up your aperture, but fight it until you are really comfortable with night shooting. Yea, you'll get your shutter speed up and reduce motion blur, but your DOF will be so shallow it'll drive you crazy. - Realize that most fire performance starts out with the brightest fire, most light. As the performance progresses (and this happens fast) the light dims as the fuel is used up. Adjust your exposure accordingly - Prefocus and go manual. Lock on with auto-focus if you have to, but then switch to manual. Fire can screw with autofocus. - Anticipate what they are going to do. Watch for changes in movement and points where they'll slow or freeze their own motion. Hope that helps. -=>Donald

Donald, thank you! These tips do help. Planning on going back again a time or two (have to check on scheduled dates)..... will keep these things in mind, as I'm shooting. Different guy in these last two..... handheld.... about 1/20-1/30 of second, 400 iso, f/2.8

I wish my hands were that steady! My shots of this guy weren't this good. Well done Michelle! Donald, thanks for the tips! Don't know when I will get another chance to shoot fire but when I do your suggestions will come in handy!

tips definately noted... TY!! ;] may add it as a challenge choice... hopefully no one will burn their house down