Hot air balloons

The city I live in holds an international hot-air balloon festival every summer (. Here are the shots I think came out best from my latest outing there, last friday. They are kind enough to schedule the evening take-off right about the "golden hour"

1.

K10D + Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4.5 DC
23mm, f/5.6, 1/800s, ISO 200

2.

K10D + Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4.5 DC
63mm, f/8.0, 1/400s, ISO 200

3.

K10D + Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4.5 DC
17mm, f/8.0, 1/320s, ISO 200

4.

K10D + DA 12-24mm f/4
18mm, f/5.6, 1/15s, ISO 800

[bigben91682]

Great stuff. #3 is fantastic.

I have a balloon fest coming up in about 4 weeks and I can't wait. They are a lot of fun and a great photo op.

[troywhite]

great photos.

good to see they do it in the evening too. here in Canberra they have a balloon festival as well but they always launch in the early morning, which for me is undoable (not a morning person at all).

[ve2vfd]

They have a morning and an evening launch here...

Unfortunately I haven't had time to go this year... too busy with work!

Belles photos!!!

Pat

[vagrant10]

good stuff, I've always wanted to see a balloon launch... one of these days.

[roentarre]

Spetacular series. Very artistic composition you have done here.

[Venturi]

Originally Posted by bigben91682

Great stuff. #3 is fantastic.

Agreed. You nailed the exposure on that one. Backlit and with the sun in the frame to boot. Nice.

[RBellavance]

Thanks everyone. #3 is my favorite of the bunch as well.

I would have liked the balloon to "pop out" more, but given the extreme dynamic range of the image, I'm quite pleased with it.