Fireworks on Lake Waramaug
Sunday, July 5th, 2009
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Warren, Connecticut. I’ve been meaning to hike up to The Pinnacle (a hill, not a pinnacle) to watch the fireworks display on this lake for a few years now. I even went on a scouting trip last year to think about how to do the shooting.
I shot this fireworks display in 2005 from our town beach but there are so many people there I thought it would be more fun to get further away to a place where few people would go.
The problem with the Pinnacle is that it’s a two mile walk in the woods to get up there. Not a big deal in daylight and I do the walk often but getting down at night seemed like it might be a bit more of a challenge.
As it was, the entire adventure went off without a hitch. Two friends came along and I packed camera gear, a small tripod, a foam pad to sit on, extra clothing, water, flashlight, batteries, first aid and of course, the iPhone. Enough to be safe.
The tradition is that at 9 pm each town and property owner lights road flares around the perimeter of the lake and the fireworks start at 9:30 pm. You can see the red flares in some of the images. A very generous individual who lives on the point right in the middle of the lake has not only allowed the fireworks to be staged from his property but he hires and pays for the pyrotechnicians.
We left the cars at 7:30 pm and were on top by 8:20 pm. Given that I’d never been up on the Pinnacle before on the 4th I wasn’t sure if others watched from there and I was hoping we’d have it to ourselves. As it was, about 15 young people (college age I’d say) were up there having a party but they were fine, not too loud and they had no fireworks. But, they forced me to find a new place to shoot and I’m glad that happened because I walked south along the ridge and found a better place to shoot, a bit sheltered from wind and with less hill in front to block the view of the lake.
I got all set up and was able to set the tripod up low so I could sit behind the camera with the remote shutter release and comfortably control things. I did some test shots before setting the camera to bulb, the AF to manual and focus to just shy of infinity (attempting hyperfocus), the aperture to f/11, the ISO to 100 (bumped up to 400 later).
I was afraid I might have trouble figuring out how to meter this situation because unlike typical city fireworks, the area around the lake is very dark and the fireworks bright. I used two meter settings, no doubt the wrong ones.
In some of the images you can see boats in the lake with their red and green lights.
The images are fine, nothing super duper but good enough to document what it looked like from up there. The important thing is that we had a blast and I hope to make this an annual tradition. Walking out was easy with flashlights; no one got lost, fell down, or got scared. We did talk loudly all the way down hoping to keep bears at bay.
Looks like a fun spot from which to shoot. Sounds like an enjoyable evening too. Your shots turned out nice, though it also looks like a great application for blended images as well since you’re blessed with so little light pollution as you mention.
Nice work.
Nice shots for the fist go-around, neighbor. It’s quite a nice view from up there…thanks for the invitation.
Thanks Dale. Yes, light pollution would have been a blessing, or, a more knowledgeable photographer! However, I’m happy and that’s what counts.
Richard, it seems that light pollution is present when we don’t want it, and absent when we do (or think we do). The scenes you captured have some additional appeal because of the the normal city lights we expect to see in fireworks photos.
Hey Bill, sorry, missed your comment in moderation. It was great to do that walk with you and Loren, I hope we do it again next 4th if not before. These mini-adventures get my blood moving and that’s a good thing! Next year, bring a guitar up and we’ll go a bit earlier and have dinner up there. Anne and Nancy will cook and carry it. NOT!
Just looked at all the photos of the big fireworks in NYC, Seattle, Wahington, DC., etc.
I much prefer your Lake Waramaug series. Nice job!
Sheryl: You are a gem, thank you for such kind words. The important thing is that I had a blast, and I have the images to prove it!
So, when are we going “junk shop shooting?”
Richard: I was watching the fireworks from Tom Fahsbender’s dock, and I was thinking what a great idea it would be to watch them from the Pinnacle next year. Looks like you beat me to it! Beautiful shots! If you do it next year, I’ll tag along.
Nora: Of course, glad to have your company (but don’t tell anyone else about it, we don’t want too many folks up there). Thanks.
Richard, these are spectacular!
Thanks Martha. The best part was just being up there at night. It’s a worthwhile walk in the daytime but at night it’s totally different and quite special. Consider coming along next year if we do it again.
Leave it to our ever enterprising photographer to find a new and exciting way of showing us a subject that we thought we already knew all about.
Well done, Richard.
David
Thanks David, it was great fun to see the show from up there. I’m sure it was more intense where you were on the beach but the serenity of being up on that hill was worth the lack of intensity.