Flame by The Brunette

Having just invested in a chimnea for the garden, I had an easy source of fire to hand for this shot, so you can guess which one of us suggested this topic :) I had never photographed fire before and was going to get a tripod all set up and make a big deal of it all. Then one evening the husband and I were out there toasting marshmallows and I thought "Why not just grab the camera and some lenses and try out a few different exposures and shutter speeds" I did, and was SO pleased with the results! I ended up using a very long focal length lens to allow me to get in close to the action and maximise a small aperture and fast shutter speed. I had so many shots I loved for different reasons, it was hard to choose my favourite, but I love the variety of different flames in the one I choose, the variations in colour and the almost magical / sculptural quality of the flames against the black background. Of the ones in the filmstrip, I nearly choose the second from left as I love the "D" shape created by the rounded edge of the chimnea and a piece of wood, and also the one on the far right capturing sparks from a block of wood. I'd quite like a series of these on a canvas print I think! As for post production - not much at all, a tweak to contrast, to blacken the shadows, and a tiny tad more saturation to bring out the colour range and that's all! Well happy with the results of this one!