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davidsantangelo

The Fire Breather

Went out to play with fire in the river

Went out to play with fire in the river
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NIKON D850

settings

Aperture 28/10 ISO 160 Shutter 1/200 Focal Length 850/10

location

Pisgah, North Carolina, US

upload_date

Aug, 2022

Views

432

Likes

+40

Awards

Photographer of the month!

Peer Award

+13

Absolute Masterpiece

Outstanding Creativity

Magnificent Capture

Superior Skill

Emotions

Impressed

Happy

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Behind The Lens

Location

This photo was taken in one of the many lovely rivers flowing in Craggy Gardens up the Blue Ridge Parkway. We were in a large pool of water where multiple streams flowed into the main river. The pool was surrounded by mini falls and lush greens, and despite being in a relatively touristy part of the parkway, our spot was thankfully very secluded and peaceful.

Time

We had to start our journey earlier in the morning as it took quite a bit of traveling to get to our location. We drove on the Blue Ridge Parkway for about an hour and a half to get to a parking lot for the main entrance to Craggy Gardens. From there we had to trek away from the lot for about 20 minutes to find the starting point of the river trail. Another 2 hours of hiking down a semi washed out trail followed. We recently had a storm in the area so much of the path to our particular destination had been destroyed, forcing us to hike in a roundabout way my body was ill-prepared for. But the rough hike was worth it, as this location was incredibly beautiful.

Lighting

It was a cloudy day and we were surrounded by tall trees, so our natural lighting was even but a little darker than usual for that time of day. The darker lighting helped the fire stand out on the model even more, and added the perfect glow on her face.

Equipment

To capture this image all I needed was my trusty Nikon D850. But to stage it, we used a long hollow tube filled with liquid white gas. One end had a burning flame which heated the liquid into a vapor form, and that vapor was then sucked through the tube into the model's mouth on the other end. The model then used a torch to light the vapor as she blew it from her mouth, creating the fire spout in the image.

Inspiration

Having a very talented fire breather and an amazing river location inspired us to play with the concept of elemental duality. Fire and water. There were multiple versions of that concept that we didcussed, but we settled on a soaked model blowing flames over the water. Perhaps we can explore some of our other ideas in another shoot!

Editing

The only processing done for this image was a moody color grade. I wanted to exaggerate the difference between the elements and tones, so I boosted the fire while giving the rest of the image more of a bluer hue. The classic orange/blue complementary colors worked great here.

In my camera bag

I normally carry multiple prime lenses, my d850, a backup d810, and several filters. But for this shoot since it involved a long hike, I just brought my d850, a 35mm and 85mm, and a waterproof camera bag.

Feedback

If you have talented subjects, use those talents! The creative concepts that can come from combining someone's unique skills with photography are some of the most incredible. Also never be afraid to explore a new area. Even if it takes a wild hike to get there, the location just might be worth the trip!

See more amazing photos, follow davidsantangelo

davidsantangelo

davidsantangelo

The Fire Breather

Went out to play with fire in the river

Behind The Lens

See more amazing photos, follow davidsantangelo

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