Just don't draw blood with the whip!

[dragon300zx]

Lets have it.

http://www.computerhelpmi.com/pics/hb1small.jpg

[bfjr]

Gary
It took me a few minutes to figure out what I was looking at, I'm not sure if that's good or bad. I also can't take my eye of the bright triangle in the upper right corner.

Other then that I think it's a cool shot and like it when I figured out what I was looking at yet. But then maybe I'm just getting older then I care to admit :D

[jwear]

too much ,i did get that it is a hot air ballon the blurred hand does not help not advice just a comment :):

[4labs]

I definately think you need a face in there and more of the balloon so clueless folks like myself have some idea what it is. The colors,exposure etc.. are spot on I think...

[Khaos]

I like the angle of the shot and the fact that you got close, it's different for a balloon shot.

There's too much in the pic though. Too much going on and too much blending color. It causes my eyes to go everywhere without focusing on something. There's no real seperation between things.

Fire is hard to photograph and here you can see why, it's blown out. To me the pic looks like a quickie-spur-of-the-moment one. Some careful planning needs to be done for something like this. You want the fire to be perfectly exposed and for it to give off the cool lighting and shadows fire gives.

Since you included a person, you need to include more of him. Seeing a face with the glow of the fire highlighting would be nice. The hand blur does not help. Body blur helps in suggesting movement, here, the movement does not enhance the picture.

Again, it looks like a spur of the moment shot that wasn't planned. You may get some great shots that way some time, but generally you'll get something that has poor exposure and a lack of a deifned subject.

[pathfinder]

Gary, it is a hard crew to satisfy. It is hard to decipher your image at first glance and the fire kind of goes every which way.

This is my attempt at a similar event. I don't think it is any better than yours - but the jackets do make it easier to understand for folks who have never been in a balloon. I'd have loved to have gotten their faces too - but I was helping hold the fan that inflates the ballon before they fire the burner.

http://pathfinder.smugmug.com/photos/17106265-L.jpg

[Shay Stephens]

Great visual action, color, and excitement. This photo says action! But I think it could say more. You have a good start with the person just coming into view. If you can reshoot this as you have but also include the human element more prominently, you would have a real winner.