Tag Archives: Bonfire

Flame Details in the Bonfire

Bonfire night celebrations in Winchester included a big fire and fireworks demonstration in Wall Park. The bonfire was started in dramatic (i.e. fake) fashion with two cannons firing towards it and it igniting. It was quite a spectacle although clearly a bit contrived. The whole thing is contrived of course. As the fire got established, I found myself entranced by the flames. Watching fire is like watching the waves. Every one is slightly different and I can spend a ridiculous amount of time just staring at it.

Getting images that actually reflect what I saw is something I haven’t practised so I was winging it a bit. The brightness of the most intense parts of the flames is so much more than the cooler areas that it is hard to reflect the detail that can be seen without blowing everything out. I went with underexposing to try and show more of what was interesting to me. Then I would look up at the hot particles above the fire as they rose and dispersed. They looked beautiful as they swirled around and cooled.