More Fourth of July, a photo from Virginia, South

Photographer's Note

This is my second fireworks shot from the Fourth of July. This was taken near Fredericksburg, Virginia at an area called the Lake of the Woods. I was in bulb mode and I was just firing my remote trigger, the Nikon MC-36, at the start of the firework and not letting go until it was done. As you can see this was taken at the very end of the blue hour. This was taken with my wide-angle and cropped a good bit to make the composition more interesting, hopefully. Taken after 9pm.

happypoppeye, ChrisJ, mpsf, Tue, ramesh_lalwani, carper, john_c, plimrn, papagolf21, Emile, jjbach, Jeppe, jhm, Didi, alvaraalto has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

Cormac (26565) 2007-08-21 18:24

Wow, this is a real beauty! The lone starburst of fireworks stands out amazingly well. You also handled the exposure very well, as the colour of the firework is very visible and not blown out. I like those tiny clouds (or are they smoke from the fireworks?) nearby, which reflect the light. Great work!

ChrisJ (172430) 2007-08-21 19:07

Hi Stephen

I like the strong color contrast between the amber fireworks & navy blue sky. Not an easy shot to take & this is a superb result. Good to have the fireworks off center too. Simple but effective compo. Well done!

devimeuxbe (58557) 2007-08-21 22:51

Hi Stephen
It's a nice composition looking like a modern painting. Colors are nice, sharpness excellent and the cropping interesting.
Bertrand

mpsf (731) 2007-08-22 0:03

Hola Stephen, no hab燰 visto nunca una fotograf燰 de fuegos artificiales tan perfecta. El enfoque, los colores, la nitidez y la precisi鏮 con la que est� tomada, pues no le faltan detalles, incluso el humo que deja tras de s�. Mis felicitaciones desde Espa鎙.
Pilar

cessy (13647) 2007-08-22 0:05

in geneva, for how many years there used to be a 4th july celebration by american people living here. but not this year. no budget they said :D.
nice catch of this beautiful fireworks

danyy (0) 2007-08-22 0:32

Bonjour Stephen,
Minimaliste, on sait toutefois que les photos de feux d'artifices sont difficiles � r嶧liser, je n'en ai fait d'aillleurs qu'une seule fois, pas exp廨ience, mais je ne me sens plus attir�.
Ca ne manque pas de nettet�.

Bien amicalement.
Daniel.

danielswalsh (13597) 2007-08-22 0:45

Nice shot Stephen!

I like the placement of the fireworks in the frame, and the hint of remaining blue in the sky compliments the shot. I like the slight streaks of coming off the bursts as well.

Nice one!
- Dan

PixelTerror (0) 2007-08-22 2:36

Hi Steve,
Nice explosion you got here, and festive with the red touch, nearly not polluted by smoke, framing wise would be better I think with some more space at the bottom.
Have a nice day,
JEan-Yves

happypoppeye (4819) 2007-08-22 2:46

Usually I don't like "fireworks in the sky" type shots without a point of reference on the ground for some sense of scale, but I have to say, this looks great.

Your composition, with the burst off to one side, in a tight crop, is both original and very aesthetically good looking. Your timing was perfect, catching the burst at just the right moment. The colors and clarity are amazing. The single elemant I like most about this photo though, is the clouds and deep blue sky in the background. Most fireworks shots are taken after sunset or "the blue hour" giving an all black background. This one adds a great element of originality just by being able to see the clouds and blue in the sky.

On another note, and by comparison, I think this shot is much better than your first one. Not that the first one is bad, but this one is so much more "focused", detailed and has much better deep, saturated colors that make the colors of the firework just pop out against the sky. In my opinion, of course.

Great work.
John

Tue (93412) 2007-08-22 3:28

Hej Stephen,
A very good capture of the fireworks. You placed it well at the left hand side of the photo. The dark blue colour of the sky is also beautiful. Very well done and thanks for sharing!
Regards,
Lars

ramesh_lalwani (3213) 2007-08-22 5:11

Hi Steve
Great shot.congrats

crckt (7222) 2007-08-22 5:38

Hi Stephen,
I am a fan of firework shots! I enjoy taking these kind of shots. What I like most in this shot, is the brilliant blue sky!
Well captured,
Shaeri

feather (51130) 2007-08-22 6:53

What beautiful minimalism Steve. The bulb mode shooting worked well as the light trails seem just about right. Judiciously cropped
Kath

carper (96) 2007-08-22 7:21

ant artful firework Stephen,
good quality, well captured and good point of view, good photojob, have a nice day.
gr. jaap

john_c (24666) 2007-08-22 7:54

Hi Stephen,
This minimalistic shot is quite effective. Quite an idea to catch the tail end of the blue hour, as you were able to blend the blackness of the night descending with the last vestiges of light. The expolosion of light is nicely off centre, and I like this slightly panoramic format. A nice one, Stephen. Cheers.
John

plimrn (21344) 2007-08-22 12:19

Hi Steve,
Thanks to your good notes, I now know how to take perfect fireworks; all I have to do is a get a remote controller. I heard they were quite expensive mbut it looks like they're well worthwhile with the stunning detail you show here. You even captured the smoke. Just lovely. HLj, Pat

papagolf21 (152607) 2007-08-23 1:20

Bonjour, cher Stephen,
Une fleur dans le ciel sur un fond d'heure bleue. Quelle magnifique prise de vue.
Excellent cadrage et belle mise en valeur.
Amiti廥.
Philippe

Emile (20352) 2007-08-23 9:06

Hola Stephen.
Very well captured at the blue hour, love the different colors of the firework and the illumination of the nearest clouds. very good shot.
Best regards.

jjbach (9326) 2007-08-24 2:44

Hi Steve,
Another wonderful shot with fireworks. The colours as well as the framing are fantastic. I'm a little bit jelous, because I didn't have the opportunity to capture fireworks too, up till now. Maybe in the future. Thanks for sharing!

Regards

batalay (41261) 2007-08-24 6:18

Hello Stephen,

This is another classic Fourth of July fireworks shot. The Nikon D200 in conjunction to the MC-36 has served you well. I cannot see how this could be imporoved.

Warm regards and best wishes for a good weekend,

Bulent

Jeppe (18654) 2007-08-24 14:07

Hi Stephen
A fine and simple compostion to give us that fine firework. Seems I totally missed all opportunities of this kind of photos this year :-(
tfs
Jeppe

jhm (211738) 2007-08-25 0:28

Hello Stephen,

I find fire work always very extraordinarily through the intensive colours and the splendid black background, very well done.
Thanks for sharing.

Have a nice weekend,
John.

Didi (61589) 2007-08-25 9:38

Hello Stephen
Plus 10 days is the French revolution feast.
Very interesting frame in the blue hour.
it's possible to add more with a longer exposure.
Cheers.

alvaraalto (42804) 2007-08-25 14:52

Hi Stephen,
I think firing a remote trigger suit with fireworks. Still I think this kind of pictures are amazing to me.
groet Rob

Kenny10pin (19301) 2007-08-26 22:26

great shot of this firework, looks as though we have done almost the same by posting fireworks at the same time, well odne

jemaflor (148214) 2007-08-27 3:04

Hi Stephen,
Nice night shot, firework is well taken, good sharpness and light capture.

MikiM (1924) 2007-08-31 3:40

Hello Stephen,
This color compbination is my favourite orange and dark blue - so it was an easy win for you!
The panorama format is very interesting - next year I'll borrow it if you don't mind.
Have a nice weekend!
Mikl鏀