BI8A1635
Firefighters put the finishing touches on a car fire.
Firefighters put the finishing touches on a car fire.
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Jan, 2016Views
599
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Awards
People's Choice in Anything Firefighting and fire trucks Photo Challenge
Peer Award
Superb Composition
Outstanding Creativity
Superior Skill
All Star
Top Choice
Absolute Masterpiece
Genius
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Behind The Lens
Location
I captured this scene on the side of a rural road, in front of a vacant house, in northeastern Texas. An abandoned car had been set ablaze, and the local Volunteer Fire Department responded quickly to my 911 call to battle the inferno. The car was a total loss, but luckily no one was injured.Time
I was coming home from an evening karate class I teach in a nearby rural community, the sun having recently set, when I saw a car just starting to be consumed by flames on the side of the road. I stopped at the church next door and dialed 911 for emergency services. It was only after all of this that I remembered that I had my camera in the car and thought about grabbing some shots of the action.Lighting
This scene was lit solely with the lights from a small handful of firetrucks; the stark lighting from the powerful flood lamps on the front of the vehicles was offset by the flashing red of their emergency lights. Though I usually shoot with mostly natural light, I like how this added a raw, emotional edge to photo.Equipment
Being spur of the moment, I just grabbed the camera out of my bag and started shooting with the lens that was still attached to the body; this had me shooting a 5D Mark III with a Rokinon 24mm f/1.4, handheld and without a flash, since I had been planning on getting some shots of the night sky.Inspiration
Sitting on the dark rural roadside, the only light from a small car that was rapidly being consumed by flames, I was struck by both the beauty and tragedy of the moment. When the firefighters arrived and charged into action it completed the scene, and I knew that I had to capture the moment.Editing
This picture was powerful enough on it's own, so the only post-processing I used was a touch of color correction for the strange lighting and sharpened it up a bit with a high pass filter.In my camera bag
These days my bag consists of the 5D Mark III, 50mm f/2.8, 24-70mm f/2.8L II, 70-300mm f/4-5.6, and the Rokinon 24mm f/1.4.Feedback
The only advice for getting a shot like this is always be ready to shoot. Have your camera charged and with you just in case you run across that can't miss action. After all it's better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it. ;)
