As Simple Plan says, Get Your Heart On!!

You may recall in my first blog I mentioned that my family groans every time I pull out the camera and make them stop for a “photo op”, so you can imagine how fast they run when I need helpers to practice a photography technique where I have to try the same shot over and over again until I get it right.  That’s when recruiting small children is the only way to go because unlike teenagers they still find fun in little things.  They don’t worry about whether it’s cool or not! LOL

Today’s photo is from the same family reunion that I mentioned yesterday.  After fun in the sun all day, everyone gathered around a huge bonfire that night (fire ban, what fire ban?) to watch a fireworks display.  Plus there were sparklers for the kids.  Watching the little kids waving the sparklers around in circles, I was reminded of  a seminar I went to at the photography show last Spring in Toronto where they used flashlights in the dark to create amazing effects.  So, the recruiting began.  I talked to the kids and asked if they wanted to be part of my experiment.  Being young, they jumped at the chance.

Believe it or not, I actually knew that these would be long exposure shots which therefore meant that I needed a slow shutter speed (you see, I am learning).  I then had the kids light their sparklers and make the motions of one particular shape or letter over and over and over again in the air.  After experimenting with different settings, we finally ended up with a number or really cool shots, and when the kids saw the results they were so excited they wanted to do some more.  It was so much fun, especially since they weren’t whining that it was taking too long!!  This picture was one of the best – the exposure time was 2.5s, the aperture was f/4, and the ISO was set to 400.  Not bad for my first time right?

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