Happy HalloWishes: A Grim Grinning Ghosts Spooktacular in the Sky
I am going to start writing in my description that I'm open to all constructive criticism good or bad on the pictures from this recent trip. I thought more about composition and exposure on this trip than I ever have and really took some time to set up most of my shots. I figure maybe a little constructive criticism will hopefully help to advance my skills as a photographer. So if you've got a second and you see something about the photo that you like or don't like, don't be afraid to speak up!
I'll be honest, when Matt led us to the end of Main Street USA to shoot HalloWishes I was a little reluctant. I would have preferred to be a little closer. But I think it worked out and I'm okay with some of what I got, I zoomed all the way out to 70mm, framed the bottom of the castle with the bottom of the viewfinder as to not get heads in the picture, and fired away. I couldn't help but to keep thinking of my disadvantage that night and that Matt, Jeff, Tom and Sarah were going to get all the good ones. You see, I had accidentally left my shutter release cable back at the room, so I had to use the timer delay method (Don didn't shoot because he left his tripod in the car, the biggest disadvantage of all, I guess). Without the shutter release cable I wasn't able to use "bulb" exposure like I prefer to do for fireworks. So the timer delay was two seconds in addition to the one second mirror lock-up delay I had set up, which equaled a three second delay each time I pressed the shutter release button... So really all I could do was set the exposure for 4 seconds and just keep firing away as often as possible and hope for something halfway decent. I had never used the mirror lock-up before so I'm not sure if it helped or not but it seems like the castle is pretty sharp in most of the shots. This is one of maybe 3 or 4 that are usable from that shoot. Hope you like!
Quick EXIF:
Camera: Nikon D300
Lens: Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8DG HSM
Mode: Manual
Exposure: 4 sec
Aperture: f/18
Focal Length: 70mm (105mm full frame equivalent)
ISO: 640
Bias: N/A
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Disney Photo Challenge winner in "Halloween Fireworks" - thanks for your votes!
Comments and faves
huffmans, Paula~Koala, Branizer, Cody Townley (The Hatbox Ghost), and 72 other people added this photo to their favorites.
Wendy * Darling (44 months ago | reply)
I love it!!! I get too caught up in the excitement to get good pictures... so I love reliving my Disney memories through your lens. The castle looks great!!
Paula~Koala (44 months ago | reply)
Whats not to like ??? This is spectacular !!! Love the vivid colors !!
Ashlyn_Rose (44 months ago | reply)
Fabulous capture. I love it. I kinda wish the streetlamp wasn't there, but that can't be helped. Its beautiful, though.
DisneyDreamin [deleted] (44 months ago | reply)
Awesome shot...fantastic colors! WOW!!
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evelyng23 (44 months ago | reply)
amazing fireworks shot joe! lucky to be there for halloween.
deefordisney (44 months ago | reply)
Super cool! I love the colours on the castle :)
steamboatwillie33 (44 months ago | reply)
This is spectacular !!! This Photo makes you feel like your right there !
El Justy (44 months ago | reply)
awesome image joe, considering all the minor hassles you mentioned this turned out quite spectacular. everything is great, and i love how the castle is just a little slightly off center to the left. i actually like the street lamp bulb at the left because it compliments the white circle/clock in the middle of the castle. it would even be cool to clone that lamp and bring it over to the right side of the image for a triangle look, but i would completely understand not doing it, i am a natural (leave it as much as it is) person myself, but just a thought.
Cory Disbrow (44 months ago | reply)
It still came out pretty nice, especially with the disadvantages you were at. One question I would have is, why ISO 640? Seems a little high. If this is a crop, I might also go back and add a little to the left side so the Castle is dead center. This is still a beautiful shot, either way!
tltan (44 months ago | reply)
nice work. I also was wondering why ISO 640"?
dawnzy58 (44 months ago | reply)
Awesome shot Joe! I think I like this more for the castle itself than the fireworks. Not to say that the fireworks aren't good, I just really like the colors and clarity of the castle. We attended the MNSSHP for the first time and I loved it. The parade and fireworks were fantastic as was the rest of the party!
Matt Pasant (44 months ago | reply)
Wow - If you mentioned that you forgot your shutter release then I must have missed it. AWESOME. I think the colors are strong. I see what you were saying about the higher iso. I think having the shutter release enabled me to hold down longer than I should have resulting in some blown out shots.
Lets shoot the hub next year.
Tom.Bricker (44 months ago | reply)
I probably should have mentioned this when you first were debating over getting your shutter release cable, but the 25 second exposures I took of Illuminations and Wishes last year before I knew about bulb mode are some of the best I've ever taken. The additional time tends to 'equalize' and balance issues (or minimize them). Not that it helps you now, but if anyone else is reading this and doesn't have a remote release.
Only suggestion was the ISO. I'm on the fence about the blown highlights in the middle of the bursts. Sometimes they're unavoidable and/or they just look good. At the very least, they don't look bad here. I almost think I might consider making them a little (just a tad) more blown, or try to bring them in check more. I'm really not sure, though...
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Express Monorail (44 months ago | reply)
Thanks guys... the higher ISO is just a preference I have for fireworks. I won't go higher than ISO400 in the future though, unless shooting handheld. I could be totally wrong about this but it just feels like the slightly higher ISO helps to illuminate the entire scene better. At least that's been my experience (although limited).
The "street lamp" on the left is actually the clock. I wish I would have worked a little harder to recover it in this shot so that you can see it is in fact a clock.
The shot felt centered to me because I centered the upper spire. Looking back I see that the castle isn't centered. I did not crop from the sides only cropped from the top on this shot. I'll consider centering the entire castle next edit.
Thanks for the feedback guys!
jrtce1 (44 months ago | reply)
Unbelieveable! One of the best flickr shots I have seen in a while!!
Express Monorail (44 months ago | reply)
Tom, if you look at some of the exif data on some of my early fireworks shots, I too went real long with the exposure times. It does create a pretty cool look...
Peter E. Lee (44 months ago | reply)
The shot looks fantastic to me! Personally I think that having the castle slightly off-center makes it more visually interesting. The glowing circle (actually clock) is also a really neat visual element. I'd be curious to see whether it added or detracted from the shot if it were dimmed down so you could tell what it was.
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Jeff_B. (44 months ago | reply)
Fantastic capture Joe! The colours and light streams are stunning here.
JWGPhotography (44 months ago | reply)
Amazing shot - Disney could use this for an ad campaign! Awesome job Joe!!
joel8x (44 months ago | reply)
I think it came out great!
Kim's Pics :) (44 months ago | reply)
I think the colors are fabulous....I like the murky blend of them all in the sky!!
sith526 (44 months ago | reply)
Its a great shot!
WJMcIntosh (44 months ago | reply)
That is a truly spectacular shot! Was that really 4 seconds? I love how that came out!
{kidnurse} [deleted] (44 months ago | reply)
Looking forward to this parade.....great shot (with or without your cable)!!!!
EddyMixx (44 months ago | reply)
its a good shot although i personally think there is too much firework action and it overpowers the castle. but that's nothing you could do to fix...its just the way the fireworks went..and carried on by the winds.
you could fix the blowout clock if you edit the raw settings...some fiddling with recovery/exposure and clarity can do the trick.
its dumb to mention it since you already have the cable...but the wireless control has been really awesome for me for bulb captures. plus its super tiny..its just a one-button wireless remote that's flat and weighs nothing. you just have to reach your arm around the camera to start/stop the shutter.
IceNineJon (44 months ago | reply)
Fantastic fireworks display and masterfully captured!
Scott Barlow (44 months ago | reply)
Beautiful!!
G. H. Holt Photography (44 months ago | reply)
Most Excellent Photo, thanks for posting!
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cjbnc (44 months ago | reply)
Great shot. Thanks for the technique info... gives me ideas for new things to try. I'd have never thought to shoot down Main St, and I really like how it turned out for you.
Scott9432 (Back... Again) (44 months ago | reply)
Beautiful shot! Hallowishes is amazing!
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David.Stewart (44 months ago | reply)
The only criticism would be centering the castle.This shot is still better than 99% of my Wishes shots and i had a shutter release!
-MandarX- (44 months ago | reply)
great
tubblesnap (44 months ago | reply)
Awesome. Colour, composition, timing ,everything
camigirl (44 months ago | reply)
Pretty and spooky at the same time. I like the clock in there, it almost looks like a really low moon with the halo around it.
Kiki FL (44 months ago | reply)
I like the inclusion of the clock; it gives the effect of a full moon, although not in the sky. I like this, but wish there was some way to anchor the castle to the ground.
astanse♥(Angela Stansell) (44 months ago | reply)
Awesome!!!!
JannaPham (44 months ago | reply)
Fantastic light! Stunning night capture! Have a good time!
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Erps (44 months ago | reply)
Stunning image!!! We're going back to WDW in a few weeks and I am so excited.
*Symes* (44 months ago | reply)
Like it a lot Joe.
BookGuy: (44 months ago | reply)
Amazing capture!
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joelle.merinsky (44 months ago | reply)
This picture deserves an Oscar award! If you haven't already, please add it to the group pool.
if you haven't already, please click here to join!
Sam Ilić (44 months ago | reply)
super cool fireworks shot!
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DugJax (44 months ago | reply)
While this fireworks shot is way different than Cory and Matt's trademark shots, this capture rocks! The deep and bright lighting, to me, shows the awesomeness of the show. I think this is a really well done image!
Don Sullivan (44 months ago | reply)
Fantastic shot Joe!! The colors and motion are amazing.
Thanks for reminding me of forgetting the tripod that night (bows head in shame....)
Loren Javier (44 months ago | reply)
WOW! Just WOW! I love the way the fireworks look in this shot. It looks so magical!
espressoDOM (44 months ago | reply)
makes me want to HOP in the car and head to Disneyland... just to shoot something like this
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called *Swoon, and we'd love to have this added to the group!
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Alan Rappa (44 months ago | reply)
I am at a loss for words on this one...
~Life by the Drop~ (44 months ago | reply)
This is fantastic Joe! Wow!
Noodlesfur (44 months ago | reply)
Another fantastic shot!
左手掏潲水右手玩宾得 (44 months ago | reply)
我很喜欢这个如同梦境般的场景 迪斯尼乐园和焰火让我想起了童年心中的城堡