Fire Dance # 4

Taken on the beach in Roatan Honduras. Thanks in advance to anyone who

takes the time to comment or critique.

This is fantastic! Very well done. I really like the flame movement and the silhouette of the flame twirler. Congrats

Thanks. All that slow shutter work I practise came in handy for these ones. I got a fair number of keepers out of this series. The hardest part was having to wait for my 20D to finish doing its noise reduction on each image before I could get off another shot. I really tried to pick my moments because I know I had a long wait between clicks.

Well you most certain picked a perfect one. Brilliant

Thanks for the supportive comment. As I'm sure you are well aware, there is a fair element of chance in this type of capture. I had to decide the optimum moment to open the shutter but then had to hope for the best regarding what happened for the few seconds that followed :)

Of course that's true Gordon, but your to modest. Only one who knows and has mastered his craft can pull this one off.

I love the photo and give you all the props you deserve for the capture. But the dance! Oh, to have witnessed this event. You lucky dog :)

Thanks. It sure was something to witness. This guy and his girlfriend were nuts. They were using gasoline soaked rags tied to ropes and batons and there were flames flying everywhere. I uploaded several shots of this to my ' most recent upload' folder. As you can see in this image and some of the others, the gas was flying off of the rags and the sand they stood in was on fire.

I admire this image a lot. I have tried few times this "luminography", it is more difficult that it seems. You have a great result ! cheers Jana

You have such an inquisitive and artistic nature I am sure there is little you have not tried photographically. Thanks for appreciating the challenge of getting a shot like this.

Wow. The exposure was perfect. The motion generated a beautiful pattern. I like the glow of ground. The composition is just right too. Nicely done. Dan

Number 1 in the series.You start being my partner with dance photos ....;-)) the composition and lights are charming and especially the figure in/out of the fire.

So cool how you can capture this stuff on film. You are a master. Well I have never tried it but I'm sure you are really an expert now.

 

I love how it looks like he almost has NO feet!

 

The circles are perfect.

 

Wonderful!

 

 

Gordon, I like a wide variety of these fire dance images -- each for a different reason.

 

In this one the intricate overlapping circles form such a stunning geometric shape. I love that you have chosen a square aspect here. The circles inside the square are so wonderful. I'm impressed by the precision and fluidity of the dancer's movements too!

 

I like #2 for the perfect framing of the dancer within his circle of fire. The expression on his face and the smudged texture of the sand at his feet also stand out as exceptional.

 

I like #1 for the bent legs and the overall green-tone. The green-ness seems to slightly remove the associations with fire. I don't mean that it doesn't look like fire, I mean that is no longer the over-riding impression. Instead I notice the three-dimensionality of the space in that frame -- the pool light seems to go deeper back.

 

This image (#4) has the most immediate impact. It is probably the best image as a photograph of the event. But, I like #1 best as a "fine-art" image -- it seems to take the longest to digest.

 

 

This is totally killer, Gord! Bottom line: I can't imagine anyone better prepared to take this shot when the opportunity arose.

Amazing shot!

What can I say? This is wonderful. A bigger than life "Spirograph". I don't know how it could be better.

So, you bought a tri-pod? I know this wasn't done from a moving vehicle or hand held; or was it, hand held that is?

 

I love this, I propose it for the new symbol of the olympics!

The dark back and foreground with the fire light on the ground is beautiful and intense.

 

Kirk

Dan;

 

Thanks for the kind comment. I tried a variety of exposures. This one was 2 sec. @ f.16. The long exposure let the light build up on the sand.

 

Pnina;

 

I would be honoured to be your partner in any endeavour.

 

Micki;

 

I thought you would miss those feet. I know you have a foot thing :)

 

Ian;

 

Thanks for your thoughtful comment and for taking the time to look through the series of images. I am partial to the # 1 image myself. I was experimenting with the white balance seeing how the emotional impact changed with the colour shifts. I am still undecided about the green caste I like it most time but then sometimes I question the cool feel it gives.

 

Dave;

 

Thanks It is nice to be the right guy at the right place every now and then :) I did not know this was scheduled to occur. I was sitting at a table near the beach and these two people walked out onto the beach with a can of gasoline and all their stuff. I asked the bartender "what's up" and he told me. I jumped up and ran back to my room and grabbed my gear and got back just as they were starting.

 

Pawel & Graznya;

 

Thanks glad you like this photo.

 

Jerry;

 

Thanks, sometimes you get that lucky shot that works. I used to have a spirograph when I was a kid, so I see the relevance.

 

Kirk;

 

I did bring a tripod, but these were all hand held. This shot was a 2 sec. exposure at f. 16, ISO 200 spot metered for the flames. I was leaning against a palm tree and I held my breath when I pushed the shutter. It does look like that Olympic ring thingie.

I have visited your portfolio a few times,and have seen your name around, but I believe this may be the first time I have left a comment.A bit thoughtless considering the quality of your work. Although not sinister in nature, this to me looks like a devil showing off his power. The flame rings could be his symbol.His feet almost look like cloven hooves, at least if you squint a little :o) Technically well done and very artistic too.

Damn Gordon, I can't believe both him and you were still enough to get such a distinct impression of the fire twirler. It looks like he is spewing fire from his chest!

 

Kirk

I have never seen anything like this before! You continue to amaze me Gordon!

Lost for words.....I'm late on the wagon with this, and it's all been said already. This has to be a big competition winner - worthy of special wall space.

 

Please collect your golden certificate in school assembley!

 

Exciting and wonderfully done. A very fine shot. Regards...

I've been meaning to write something about it, for a while now. The fact is that it reminded me of something that I couldn?t pinpoint until a moment ago, when I showed it to a friend, who instantly said to me: -It looks just like the amulet of "The never ending story". Then it hit me, that's exactly what was eluding my memory.....well, needles to say, I love it!

The image speaks for itself, whether reminding about something from my childhood, or as something completely new. I'm sure I'll keep it in my memory for all times, this is a superb piece of work. Thanks for sharing it with us.