We chose the best place and asked the couple to get in position to release the lantern. We told them to enjoy the moment.. to wait until the lantern has filled with hot air and to just look after the lantern.. to ignore us and to not look at the camera.
„Ok guys, just enjoy the moment when you release the lantern.. just look after the lantern and enjoy! Forget about us – you don’t have to look at the camera at all. Just enjoy the moment“
Calm
Since we didn’t know how fast the lanterns would rise we decided to step back in a slightly elevated position. Also we wanted them full body in order to capture the entire scenery here. We kept the couple in the center of the image with enough space for the lantern above their heads.
Center Framed
Our focus point was on the grooms head because it was more noticeable for the sensor than the brides head. We used the viewfinder.
Single Shot Autofocus
Single Point
The Grooms face
The way the EXIF is written out follows the common photographic method (with the inclusion of White Balance at the end). Here it is broken down:
Shutter Speed @ Aperture ISO White Balance.
We waited until the sun had set in order to have the lighted lantern visible in the picture. The sky was overcasted so it was kind of moody without a lot of after light but dramatic blue hour sky.. The candle lighting from the lantern that shines down on the couples faces makes the picture very special. A few seconds later the lantern would have been to far away to light up their faces.
Natural Light
Evening
Cloudy
We had to bring the white balance to the very right which means 50000 Kelvin. We had to reduce the Saturation of orange a bit due to the warmer white balance. We tried to keep the moody look to stay close to the vibe of the evening. We used our CxR Preset to give the pic the color look we love and we put some noise reduction, due to the higher ISO. Also, we decided to use the brush to bring a bit more light and structure on the couple’s face and clothes.
The challenge was to wait for the right moment (after sunset) to release the lanterns! To be patient even though it meant there would only be a short time frame for the shot before it would have been too dark.
Prepare everything carefully so that you’re ready to go once the time has come.
Le Souffleur Cliffs, Mauritius
Le Souffleur, Mauritius
Beach / Coastal
Mauritius
When it comes to lanterns, balloons, confetti, doves or whatever flies away, make sure you are not too close to the object. Make sure theres enough space above your couple so you’ll bee able to capture everything. If it’s going to happen very fast (like doves for example) it’s helpful to use the continuous shot function of your camera with a fast shutter. If you’re in twos you should choose different focal length and angles. One could be closer using an 50 mm and the other a 35mm or example so you have more variety.
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