Bonfire Night

[Farktographer]

Okay, I’ve tried explaining Guy Fawkes Night to my family so many times, and it seems to confuse them in each and every way, but sum it to say that in the UK on the 5th of November, they have fireworks and bonfires to celebrate the prevention of Guy Fawkes blowing up the Parliament building. For me, that meant my first time at getting the opportunity to get fireworks pictures up-close. Some of my favourites:

RGB format by Farktographer1, on Flickr

Star Spangled by Farktographer1, on Flickr

Intertwined by Farktographer1, on Flickr

Orion by Farktographer1, on Flickr

"Daddy, where’s Guy Fawkes?" by Farktographer1, on Flickr

We went out afterward to a local pub, and I used my external flash properly and out in the public for the first time. I only took a few shots, but was pretty happy with the outcome:

Right Back Atcha’ by Farktographer1, on Flickr

Dancing Wild by Farktographer1, on Flickr

As always, any type of criticism is welcomed! I’m still growing so if you spot anything that doesn’t look good, please let me know what I can do to improve it. I’m also not great at picking good photos, so if you see anything else in my flickr stream from this night that looks better than what I’ve posted, or if one of these just don’t belong, let me know – still don’t entirely get what makes some photos good and some bad…sometimes I just like things that nobody else does 😉

[fluffybunny]

Hey Farktog, like the pub shots. What did you mean by “used my external flash properly”, as some one who struggles with flash photography I am curious.

[ravnostic]

I like the pub shots, also. 🙂

[Farktographer]

Hey Farktog, like the pub shots. What did you mean by “used my external flash properly”, as some one who struggles with flash photography I am curious.

Thanks, Fluffy.

I bought a flash (Vivitar – I’m not able to afford the proper Nikon speedlights…yet) external to the one built into my camera. What I meant by using it properly was just that I’ve practiced a little at home or with friends, but this was my first time using it in public, and getting it right.

I’ve played with it a little bit, so I knew its capabilities and settings, but this was my first time shooting a big group of people, and it was in an enclosed area, so it forced me to explore the room’s shape – pointing the flash straight up gives a nice draping look over the room and the light falls off fast. Pointing it to a wall can give you some nice side-lighting. Pointing it up and to the front gives you draping but extends the light…etc.

I always learn the most from experience, so me “using it properly” just means I finally got it right, and it happened to be in a public setting so I was happy that things clicked for me at just the right time. I hate being the guy in the corner taking everything apart because I have no idea what I’m doing (I’ve been there too many times already, haha).

/Thanks, Rav

[orionid]

Nice. Everyone looks so…… British.

Also, a good friend of mine spent 18 months over there and put together a good video about an American experience with Guy Faux night. The highlight for me was one of her roomates asking as a burning effigy of Faux gets carried by “So, do you guys burn effigies of King George on the fourth of July?” and Sarah laughing and saying “No. No, we really don’t put much emphasis on Britain at all. It’s more like ‘Fuck you, we’re badass.'”

And by this point, anyone who hasn’t seen V for Vendetta needs to kick themselves in the junk then scrape their sorry asses off the floor and go buy it.

[Yugoboy]

And by this point, anyone who hasn’t seen V for Vendetta needs to kick themselves in the junk then scrape their sorry asses off the floor and go buy it.

I’m with you… between V for Vendetta and Thank You for Smoking, you’ve pretty much got my political philosophy – aggressive libertarianism, with a side of anti-authoritarian cynicism.

Knowing that Fawkes was the inspiration doesn’t completely explain him, though. His meaning keeps changing over time. He used to be seen as a villain… now he’s become more the V character than Tim McVeigh. Such is history.

Nice pics, BTW.

[Author]

Posts