Firework Display

Once again I was out trying to find some new things to do at the local Firework display, and I'm not entirely sure. I've got a bit more foreground in some of them, but the location of the display doesn't offer much. I was playing with my new (to me) Sigma 18-200 lens, hard to tell whether it helps much, though last year I had the 70-300 and kept finding the short end was too close. As I was closer to the display this year, I found the same. I did have a go at some of the effect suggested in a recent magazine but wasn't at all happy with the results.

1.

[IMG]http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a149/hpfirenza/Fireworks%202014/IMGP5960a.jpg[/IMG]

2.

[IMG]http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a149/hpfirenza/Fireworks%202014/IMGP5957a.jpg[/IMG]

3.

[IMG]http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a149/hpfirenza/Fireworks%202014/IMGP5953a.jpg[/IMG]

4.

[IMG]http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a149/hpfirenza/Fireworks%202014/IMGP5946a.jpg[/IMG]

5.

[IMG]http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a149/hpfirenza/Fireworks%202014/IMGP5937a.jpg[/IMG]

6.

[IMG]http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a149/hpfirenza/Fireworks%202014/IMGP5932a.jpg[/IMG]

7.

[IMG]http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a149/hpfirenza/Fireworks%202014/IMGP5919a.jpg[/IMG]

8.

[IMG]http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a149/hpfirenza/Fireworks%202014/IMGP5896a.jpg[/IMG]

9. Fairground ride

[IMG]http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a149/hpfirenza/Fireworks%202014/IMGP5877a.jpg[/IMG]

There's another display this weekend at a different location, so I might scope out a decent observation spot and have another go. As always, any comments and criticism gratefully accepted.

You didn't do to badly.1st and 2nd would be my pick,

All full of energy - 4, 6 & 7 stand out for me as they fill the frame better. I wonder if you could boost yellow saturation a bit, the colour temperature looks a little too cool to me ... and I'd give the colour balance a little push over away from green towards magenta.

Cheers. I did a little playing with the shots, but it was mainly levels and contrast with a little sharpening. I haven't got close to a basic familiarity with PS to be fiddling with colour balance, but it's on my list of stuff to play with.

OK - here's how to get going ... open the file in PS and hit ctrl B .. colour balance opens and you've got three sliders

1) cyan - red
2 magenta - green
3) yellow - blue

There are selector buttons along the button if you want to restrict your changes to either shadows, midtones or highlights. But for general colour balance changes stick to midtones, the default.

Make small changes to each slider in turn and note the effect. If one change is better then leave it there and try the next slider. Its just a process of too-and fro-ing until you get what you want. But I'd say 'steady as she goes' ... assuming the colour balannce was reasonably OK from the camera you only want to make small adjustments - anything over 10 units on the sliders is quite strong actually.

Cheers, I'll have a play.