Rising Colors
Photographing the magic of a balloon festival.
August went by in the blink of an eye. It was a great month, with a bit of travel, some quality time with family, as well as a few more memorable moments behind the camera. Since the month was book ended by two very different balloon festivals I thought this blog post should feature them and my chance to play with color, light, and perspective in a joyful and whimsical way.
Bristol International Balloon Fiesta
Wow, just wow.
When I decided to travel home to England during August we decided to tailor our plans coincide with the balloon fiesta, which is not only one of Bristol’s signature events but is also one of Europe's largest, featuring mass ascents scheduled each morning and evening normally involving over 100 balloons.
In my mind I really hoped for favorable wind conditions to ensure I could try to capture an iconic photograph of balloons over the Clifton Suspension Bridge high above the Avon Gorge. On Friday evening, after checking the forecast we decided the sunrise launch on Saturday would be our chance so we planned to set out at 4am to walk up to Clifton and the viewpoint over the Bridge. A few hundred other people had the same idea! but at least we got there in plenty of time to bag a prime viewing spot on top of the cliffs. On a side note we were also able to cross off one of the Wallace and Gromit installations when we found Wallace with an early morning cup of tea!
Clifton Suspension Bridge, Bristol, England
Clifton Suspension Bridge was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, and its construction marked a turning point in the history of engineering. It was opened in 1864 and to this day is a major symbol of the city.
In the end I was really happy with the picture above of the bridge and the balloons. Although it would have been nice to have had a colorful sunrise I think the texture of the clouds is a bit more in tune with normal English weather and because of this I’ve boosted the contrast of the photograph as well as adding a strong vignette in order to enhance the drama within the scene.
Nothing prepared me for the following morning!
On Sunday we headed to the festival grounds at Ashton Court to watch the launch. The forecast promised calm, cloudless skies, and with the wind blowing in a completely different direction from Saturday, we were relieved we’d chosen Clifton the day before. I’d last attended a sunrise launch at a small balloon festival about ten years ago. It was pleasant enough, but not especially memorable, so I arrived with fairly low expectations. What unfolded on Sunday morning, however, was on an entirely different level.
You’ll have to imagine what it’s like to be on the grounds of a stately home as dawn breaks with what seemed to be half the population of Bristol. People were pouring onto the grounds as we walked in and many families had come extremely well prepared with camping stoves, picnic blankets and breakfast food. The smell of coffee and bacon butties was enticing, but we had photography to think about as we awaited the Balloon Marshall’s decision re take off that morning. I typically like to work with a long lens generally facing towards the sun, the lens allows me to isolate color, shape and pattern whilst shooting into the sun provides dreamy backlighting, silhouettes and sunstars.
What I wasn’t prepared for was the sheer magic of a mass balloon launch. Later, we counted over ninety balloons drifting across one of our frames. Put simply it was overwhelming, the noise of the burners drowning out everything else, yet despite the hubbub it was so serene as balloons started to float into the sky. I took plenty of photographs, but just as often I lowered the camera to stand and absorb it all. It was an exquisite, breathtaking morning I’ll remember for years. Looking back, I’m not sure my images capture the full wonder of it—perhaps the perfect excuse to book flights and return next year!
Because I’d had so much fun in Bristol I decided to consider options to attend another festival once I got home to New York, I know there’s a large Adirondack event in September but was more interested in the smaller Hudson Valley festival at the end of August. It’s held at Tymor Park in Union Vale which, as a bonus is only a short drive over West Mountain from my home. The festival also promises fireworks and a moon glow each evening so if the weather worked I decided I’d give it a go.
I attended the Moon Glow on Friday evening, and the photograph below is my attempt to capture the spirit of the night. It’s a composite image, as the Moon Glow and fireworks didn’t actually happen at the same time—something I hadn’t expected. I set up on a tripod from a single spot on the hillside parking lot and worked from there. The photograph of the balloons was a 1 second exposure taken at 6.41pm, although it was still pretty light at this point. then the fireworks were taken at 7pm with a 9 second exposure ensuring that I captured the light from 4 different launches. The two images were then blended in photoshop, I darkened portions of the image to provide a little atmosphere, although I did leave the sky a little lighter to make the hillside into a silhouette and then I added a very slight wash of orange to the entire image in order to unify the white balance and tie all the elements together.
Over the weekend I made it to both sunrise launches, and I’m so glad I put in the effort. While neither morning carried quite the same emotion as the mass launch back in Bristol, what they lacked in numbers was more than balanced by the beauty of the conditions. Gentle winds, soft mist, and fewer balloons in the sky gave me chance to slow down, explore the light, and place the balloons within the broader landscape. Most of my images were made with the 100–400mm telephoto, as I love the compression that a long lens creates, flattening distance and pulling shapes, colors, and layers of atmosphere together.
This final image was the last frame I captured on Sunday morning. By then, I had switched to a 35mm lens to take in more of the scene. Look closely at it alongside some of the other images in this blog—you’ll see just how dramatically a change in focal length can alter the mood and feel of a landscape. Paying attention to focal length is a simple but powerful way to shape the mood and impact of your images.
I hope you’ve enjoyed these images and the story behind them as much as I did at the time - So now its on to September, would it surprise you to know that my plans involve waterfalls, the change in season and more exploration in The Catskills.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read, please feel free to reach out with questions, to leave me a comment or even buy me a coffee via my donation link here