A chance conversation a week ago gave me the opportunity to make amends for a disastrous shoot I had last month, when I returned home from photographing a fireworks display with not one useable image. It happens, if you are not fully prepared (I wasn't), and I put it down to experience (and behind me), and set about the task of capturing the display scheduled for early evening on the end of Boscombe Pier, Dorset.
The event was part of the Boscombe Christmas Carnival, and I set up my tripod on the beach adjacent to the pier, while live music was played from the balcony of the Urban Reef Café on the promenade. I make the mental note of the tenacity of the performers - playing outside on a December night; something I would never have warmed to under such conditions - and wait for the off.
This time I know I am getting the results I am after, although it soon becomes apparent that I am a touch too close to the proceedings for the lens I am using. But it's not really about that; it's more about showing myself that I
can work in the darkness and get results. To cap it all, the majority of frames are useable, and convey the scene nicely. Well done, me!
It's what I do after the smoke clears that gives me the best sense of achievement, though, as I turn my lens out to sea and start making long exposures. I hadn't planned on doing this; it was a spur-of-the-moment thing, but since I was already geared-up for such shooting I thought I would give it a try. I am, of course, having to guess exposure (the camera's meter won't work in such low light levels), and I count 'elephants' to help gauge how long I need to keep the shutter open for to allow sufficient light buildup from the nearby beachfront buildings. This is helped by the fact that I am able to assess the results immediately on the screen of my camera - something I was not able to do when I last tried the technique in my film days (quite why I have left it so long to try it digitally is beyond me). I make no attempt to correct for colour balance during the exposure, allowing the warm light to contribute to the overall effect. I like the way the subject stands out against the unexposed blackness of the water, and the fact that the breaking surf has turned a milky white because of the long exposure.
24-70mm f/2.8G AF-S Nikkor.
Top: 3 seconds at f/11. ISO 400
Below right: 30 'elephants' at f/8. ISO 400
Tripod and remote release.
© 2012
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