Posted by Derek Sedillo on September 5, 2006 at 2:48 PM
Hello,
I was wondering if anyone went to the Balloon Classic in Colorado Springs this weekend? The weather wasn't the greatest until yesterday. While not 100% nature photography, balloons make a nice subject in a natural environment.
It was my first time there. I really had to work at convincing my wife it would be worth waking up early to see.
Once we were there with our three small children she was really glad I talked her into it.
I am sure some of the local photographers got way better shots than I did. I think I have a better idea of where to shoot and what to look for next year.
Next time I will probably leave my CP filter off as it produced uneven skys with my wide angle lens.
Posted by Rick Dunn on September 5, 2006 at 3:22 PM
Very cool, Derek. From your images, it looks like dunking the basket into the lake is a "normal" thing? Great skies to contrast with the ballons. Yes - polarizers and wide-angle lenses are a tricky combo.
Posted by Derek Sedillo on September 5, 2006 at 4:40 PM
Thanks Rick,
It was actually quite impressive to watch. At first I thought the croud was rude or something because they kept shouting "Go in the water!" But after a while I realized that this is just part of what these guys do to wow the croud. I have heard of other events like this in other parts of the state as well like Telluride, Steamboat Springs, Denver, etc...
I had not experienced the uneven polarization problem this much before with my wide angle. Of course I was shooting alot more clear blue sky in the frame than usual. The other thing I was wondering with a CP is although it cuts glare, doesn't it also limit reflections as well? In this case more reflection is better, but not the glare. This should apply to mountain/lake reflections as well.
Do some of you remove the polarizer when shooting reflections?
Derek
Posted by Rick Dunn on September 5, 2006 at 6:44 PM
Water balloons...
A CP has the strongest effect when the lens is at a 90 degree angle to the sun, less as that angle approaches 0 or 180 degees. Since a wide angle lens can incorporate such a large angle of view, it's likely that varying degrees of polarization will be captured, as in your images. I rarely use a CP for skies when shooting in Colorado - the sky already comes across as a deep saturated blue in most shots.
A CP will modify/limit distracting reflections from water. I don't know the science behind it, but the CP will not eliminate a reflection of an object (e.g., a mountain) from the body of water. In fact, by eliminating reflected ambient light, the mountain reflection may actually come across more clearly and saturated. Might have something to do with the fact that the light is already being reflected from sky to the mountain, the mountain to water, and then water to lens; it may no longer be polarized at that point. I'm out of my league at this point...
Posted by Mel Ladewig on September 5, 2006 at 7:42 PM
Derek,
I was kicking myself Monday morning for not getting up and going. Now I'm double kicking myself! Good on ya man for getting out there.
You should definitely try rotating the CPL as the amount of reflection that you'll get can vary by the position of the CPL. It can also reduce its affect against the sky so that it doesn't go so dark. But like Rick mentioned, in this instance I think I might have left it off unless I was getting alot of glare off the water. It seems to me that the CPL is a little too harsh in CO at this time of the morning with a wide angle lens. There is a bigger patch of sky at 90 degrees to the sun making the effect that much stronger.
Posted by Adam Schallau on September 5, 2006 at 8:52 PM
Nice shot Derek!
Posted by Adam Schallau on September 5, 2006 at 8:55 PM
it looks like dunking the basket into the lake is a "normal" thing?
Here in Taos the balloon companies fly the Rio Grande River Gorge, and when the conditions are good they attempt a 'splash & dash' and they try to avoid the 'dunk and gurgle'. It's a lot of fun to be at the bottom of a 700' canyon and skimming across the river in a hot air balloon.
Posted by Derek Sedillo on September 5, 2006 at 9:34 PM
Adam,
That sounds really cool to watch and photograph. Do you happen to have any photos or links to images of it?
I have heard that New Mexico is home to the largest Balloon event/fiesta (100+) in th Nation.
Derek
Posted by Derek Sedillo on September 5, 2006 at 9:44 PM
Great tips Rick and Mel on the use or non use of CPLs. I like its effects most of the time, especially for cutting glare off of water. But in this case the glare wasn't too bad and I was definately shooting pretty close to 90 degrees most of the time. That explains a lot.
Thanks again for the tips,
Derek
Posted by Dan Walters on September 5, 2006 at 10:37 PM
Nice shots. Looks like alot of fun.
Posted by James H Egbert on September 6, 2006 at 7:56 AM
Sweet shot Derek, Rebecca and I were out for the Glow Sunday night but spent Monday in Brekenridge. On that note the first spots of color are out all over Hoosier Pass, so the weekend of the 22nd-24th looks good for the trip we talked about.
Posted by Jamie Botdorf on September 6, 2006 at 8:41 AM
Hey Derek!
I attended the moonglow on Sunday night and the Monday morning liftoff - quite an event! My one year old son loved the balloons!
I was on the other side of the lake Monday - got some interesting shots of the balloons taking off with Pikes in the background...lots of fun!
Thanks for posting these!
Posted by Derek Sedillo on September 6, 2006 at 10:02 AM
That sounds great Jamie,
I am still trying to pick out the best places for interesting compositions. I like the idea of getting Pikes Peak in the background. Please feel free to post some when you get a chance.
While I like lake reflection shots I would also like to get more mountains in the frame. I found some of the most interesting perspectives when looking at the photo contest winners from last year.
One was near the Garden of the Gods and the other was near a local field with wildflowers in it. They are both in the digital category so I am not sure if the GoG's shot is a cut and paste or if the balloons actually flew over/near that area.
The balloon fiesta in Albuquerque is amazing! It's quite a sight to behold with nearly 700 balloons in the air at the same time. If you get a chance, definitely go. This year it's scheduled for October 6-15. www.balloonfiesta.com.
I was there with a shooting buddy on Sunday morning, but the balloons didn't launch until we'd already given up and left. What I did get is here, but none of it is very special: http://www.highdesertarts.com/PhotoEssays/9-3-06
Posted by Derek Sedillo on September 7, 2006 at 9:12 PM
Becky,
I know what you mean. The weather didn't really come together Saturday or Sunday.
None the less I like some of the close up compositions you took. That is one thing I would like to do more of next year.
Discussion
15 repliesI was wondering if anyone went to the Balloon Classic in Colorado Springs this weekend? The weather wasn't the greatest until yesterday. While not 100% nature photography, balloons make a nice subject in a natural environment.
http://photos.imageevent.com/dereksurfs/coloradoballoonclassic/huge/04Sep06_4574DPP2.jpg
It was my first time there. I really had to work at convincing my wife it would be worth waking up early to see.
Once we were there with our three small children she was really glad I talked her into it.
I am sure some of the local photographers got way better shots than I did. I think I have a better idea of where to shoot and what to look for next year.
Here are some of the other shots I took yesterday:
http://imageevent.com/dereksurfs/coloradoballoonclassic
Next time I will probably leave my CP filter off as it produced uneven skys with my wide angle lens.
It was actually quite impressive to watch. At first I thought the croud was rude or something because they kept shouting "Go in the water!" But after a while I realized that this is just part of what these guys do to wow the croud. I have heard of other events like this in other parts of the state as well like Telluride, Steamboat Springs, Denver, etc...
I had not experienced the uneven polarization problem this much before with my wide angle. Of course I was shooting alot more clear blue sky in the frame than usual. The other thing I was wondering with a CP is although it cuts glare, doesn't it also limit reflections as well? In this case more reflection is better, but not the glare. This should apply to mountain/lake reflections as well.
Do some of you remove the polarizer when shooting reflections?
Derek
A CP has the strongest effect when the lens is at a 90 degree angle to the sun, less as that angle approaches 0 or 180 degees. Since a wide angle lens can incorporate such a large angle of view, it's likely that varying degrees of polarization will be captured, as in your images. I rarely use a CP for skies when shooting in Colorado - the sky already comes across as a deep saturated blue in most shots.
A CP will modify/limit distracting reflections from water. I don't know the science behind it, but the CP will not eliminate a reflection of an object (e.g., a mountain) from the body of water. In fact, by eliminating reflected ambient light, the mountain reflection may actually come across more clearly and saturated. Might have something to do with the fact that the light is already being reflected from sky to the mountain, the mountain to water, and then water to lens; it may no longer be polarized at that point. I'm out of my league at this point...
I was kicking myself Monday morning for not getting up and going. Now I'm double kicking myself! Good on ya man for getting out there.
You should definitely try rotating the CPL as the amount of reflection that you'll get can vary by the position of the CPL. It can also reduce its affect against the sky so that it doesn't go so dark. But like Rick mentioned, in this instance I think I might have left it off unless I was getting alot of glare off the water. It seems to me that the CPL is a little too harsh in CO at this time of the morning with a wide angle lens. There is a bigger patch of sky at 90 degrees to the sun making the effect that much stronger.
Here in Taos the balloon companies fly the Rio Grande River Gorge, and when the conditions are good they attempt a 'splash & dash' and they try to avoid the 'dunk and gurgle'. It's a lot of fun to be at the bottom of a 700' canyon and skimming across the river in a hot air balloon.
That sounds really cool to watch and photograph. Do you happen to have any photos or links to images of it?
I have heard that New Mexico is home to the largest Balloon event/fiesta (100+) in th Nation.
Derek
Thanks again for the tips,
Derek
I attended the moonglow on Sunday night and the Monday morning liftoff - quite an event! My one year old son loved the balloons!
I was on the other side of the lake Monday - got some interesting shots of the balloons taking off with Pikes in the background...lots of fun!
Thanks for posting these!
I am still trying to pick out the best places for interesting compositions. I like the idea of getting Pikes Peak in the background. Please feel free to post some when you get a chance.
While I like lake reflection shots I would also like to get more mountains in the frame. I found some of the most interesting perspectives when looking at the photo contest winners from last year.
One was near the Garden of the Gods and the other was near a local field with wildflowers in it. They are both in the digital category so I am not sure if the GoG's shot is a cut and paste or if the balloons actually flew over/near that area.
Check it out here:
http://www.balloonclassic.com/Photo%20Contest/2005%20Photos/2005_photo_contest_winners.htm
- Derek
-Renee
http://www.highdesertarts.com/PhotoEssays/9-3-06
I know what you mean. The weather didn't really come together Saturday or Sunday.
None the less I like some of the close up compositions you took. That is one thing I would like to do more of next year.
Thanks for sharing your shots.
Derek