The Atlantic International Balloon Fiesta is happening this September in Sussex, here are some tips on getting great photos of the balloons! I hope you get blue skies (and no wind) so they actually get airborne!
CAMERA SETTINGS
ISO: You can use 200 if there is lots of light, 400 if it’s overcast/darker.
SHUTTER SPEED: 1/250th or 1/500th (PREFERRED) should be sufficient as the balloons don’t move really fast.
WHITE BALANCE: I would use the balance for the light you are shooting under to get accurate colors.(daylight-daylight balance(sun) cloudy-cloudy/overcast) Sometimes the auto whitebalance will skew the colors to compensate for a large area of a similar color.
LENSES
Bring a variety of lenses, from wide angles to your best telephoto. That way you are covered and can get wide shots as the balloons rise, they swap to the telephoto for the long shots.
LIGHT
Light is extremely important to getting good photographs. Full sun is the best, but you must use it the right way. You will get the best light with the sun behind you, shining on the balloons. Below are two shots of the same balloon, but taken from different angles to the light. The one on the left, the balloon is backlit. Metering from just the balloon gave proper exposure for the balloon, but the sky becomes washed out. The one on the right has the sun shining on it, providing a nicer light (although the sun is a bit filtered through the clouds, so the light isn’t as direct and not as bright as the light on the sky)
MORE TIPS BELOW!
I hope you find these tips useful!
If so, it would be awesome if you would check out my LearnPhoto365 Photography Assignment Generator Apps on the app store and the Google Play store, a unique photography app that's meant to inspire you to take great photos!
Perfect for anyone taking part in a Photo 365 challenge, there are over a hundred individual assignments and hundreds of thousands of potential random ones. Versions available for both iOS and Android including free versions so you can try them out! Full details, including reviews and tour videos of the apps can be found at www.learnphoto365.com/apps Even if you only download the free version that would help get it up the app store lists!
SHOOTING TIPS
Get there early! Balloons are supposed to take off at 6:30am and 6pm, so get there early to get into place. You can also get some set up shots. Once the balloons start inflating, they will go up fast.
As they inflate, you can focus in on the bright colors, lines and patterns in the balloons.
You can also play with perspective with other balloons in the air. In the photo below, you can see a small balloon on the bottom left side.
Once they are up in the air and flying away, look for some interesting compositions. You can try using lots of empty sky for emphasis, using the thirds rule, look for lines, shapes and patterns. There will be lots of balloons in the air, find a good angle to get a variety of them in the frame.
Once they are up in the air and moving away, you may want to hop in the car and drive towards the landing area or try to get some shots on the way. Look for a nice farm or natural scene to frame up and have the balloons fly through.
Hope these tips prove helpful!
Noel
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Photographer and teacher
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Although they say they’re going up at 6, this morning it was closer to 7:30 – but you still have to get there early.<BR/><BR/>OR – be somewhere on the flight path so you can get them coming over head. They ALWAYS fly over the Kennebecasis River.
hey noel,<BR/>great to see you blogging.<BR/>keep up the good work as i will be checking back alot.<BR/>Rob
Hey Rob<BR/><BR/>Thanks for checking me out. Figured I might as well join the blogging…now of course there is expectation to update!!!!