Last Saturday, I decided to have a go at fireworks photography. I have always wanted to photograph the fireworks by myself, but I thought the Marina Bay area is too crowded on occasions such as New Year's Eve and National Day, where there will be fireworks display. As there are a few National Day Parade (NDP) Rehearsals leading up to the actual NDP on 9 August, I've decided to go to Marina Bay during on of the NDP rehearsal, thinking that there wouldn't be many people.
I arrived at Marina Bay at around 7.30pm. Well, I was wrong. The whole stretch of Esplanade Waterfront was filled with like-minded shutter bugs! As it was my first time doing fireworks long exposure photography, and I had no idea where the fireworks would be, hence I just grabbed an empty spot. It was pretty awkward at the beginning, while waiting for the "main fireworks show" to start. (It typically takes place at the end of the whole NDP. Most of the photography enthusiasts were adults, and even some elderly! I was the only "youngster" there hehehe.
I had never properly done long exposure shots before, and hence I was quite worried I wouldn't get the right setting. I did a bit of testing of long exposure before the fireworks started. Along with some pre-photoshoot research, I went on full manual with ISO 100 (to keep the noise down), aperture of f9, and a shutter speed of around 2.5 seconds. Since I had no wireless release, I used the 2-seconds timer thing in order to minimise the movement of the camera when I pressed the shutter. And also, I shot in RAW. Not sure if it's a good idea...?
When the fireworks display started, I realised it was rather close to me, separated by the body of water. The explosions were so loud that I jumped every now and then. #suchawimp haha. And the wind was blowing in my direction, hence all the smoke and dust was on my bag and probably all over my face and hair too. But oh my! The fireworks were amazing. My favourite ones are still those that are golden and look like stars in the sky. :)
The fireworks show ended earlier than I thought. I wanted to attempt some silhouette shots but I didn't get the chance to :( I reviewed some of the photos, and realised what I found online was true - the first few shots of the fireworks are usually the clearest, before the smoke from the fireworks start appearing. And my lens wasn't wide enough, even though I shot at 18mm...
Nevertheless, it was an interesting experience. I might go back to Marina Bay again, to brush up on my skills. I will not be posting all the photos now, but here's a sneak peek:
Click here to see the rest of the photos of the fireworks!
On Sunday, I did volunteering work at Gardens by the Bay again. We had a Middle Eastern-themed storytelling session, and I was dressed up like Jasmine from Aladdin haha. The floral display inside Flower Dome is currently Persian garden, and some of the flowers featured are Persian Violet, Cyclamen and Jasmine. Besides that, the display also shows the key element of Persian gardens, such as water, shade and geometry.
A visit to Flower Dome wouldn't be complete without taking photos. So here are the photos!
The beautiful sea lavenders.
Macro shot of sea lavenders, taken with my iPhone with a clip-on lens. Both photos edited with VSCO Cam because it is awesome.
Cyclamen (well I believe that's the name of the flower)
Those daisies were huge! I can't remember their name though /inserts sheepish laughters/
Kangaroo Paws! What a cute name hahaha.
Check out that rainbow lens flare 8D
Different colours of begonia. I love the shape of their petals!
Some Persian display in the Flower Dome.
The beautiful geometry.
Fuchsia! They're like a pumpkin hahaha. Well this isn't part of the whole Floral Display but I thought I should upload it hehehe.
iPhone shot of (almost) the whole Floral Display. :) Well it isn't a good photo but yeah. I should have taken a photo from a higher ground...
And yeah that's all for this post. School is gonna get busier, but hopefully I can still find time to do things that I enjoy doing. :) See you guys soon!
Elsaaaaa.
