Niagara Falls - Fireworks

[Manfred M]

I just got back from touring my daughter's in-laws through Southern Ontario. All overseas visitors want to see Niagara Falls, so not surprisingly, we ended up there for a couple of days.

Last year I took a shot of fireworks over the American Falls and thought I might try to capture some shots of the fireworks going off over the Canadian / Horseshoe Falls.

This is the link to last year's shot:

Niagara Falls Fireworks

Here is my first draft of the shot I took yesterday.



I've done some basic processing and am mulling removing the cables used for the zip-lines as well as some more local cleanup.

[zen]

I just got back from touring my daughter's in-laws through Southern Ontario. All overseas visitors want to see Niagara Falls, so not surprisingly, we ended up there for a couple of days.

Last year I took a shot of fireworks over the American Falls and thought I might try to capture some shots of the fireworks going off over the Canadian / Horseshoe Falls.

This is the link to last year's shot:

Niagara Falls Fireworks

Here is my first draft of the shot I took yesterday.



I've done some basic processing and am mulling removing the cables used for the zip-lines as well as some more local cleanup.

If it was mine, Manfred, I would. Hard to see them, but I'd be driven to clean it up!

Fireworks over the falls are always spectacular, though, as is this shot.

Zen

[NorthernFocus]

Nicely done, Manfred. Yes, IMO losing the cables is a good idea.

[John 2]

+1 wrt the cables but perfect timing.

[Manfred M]

How's this version?

[ccphoto]

How's this version?

Better with all the lines removed though one tends to look at the fireworks to the degree the lines aren't really a factor.

[rpcrowe]

Great capture. IMO, fireworks and star sky images benefit greatly by including the ground subjects within the image.

There is something to be said about visiting guests. It gives us an opportunity to visit places we don't normally frequent...

[Tom Barry]

That final version is superb, in my humble opinion.

[Shadowman]

Very nice, I think the inclusion of the lines actually help illuminate the effects of changing trends, artistically sans ziplines looks cleaner but for historians the ziplines are an actual boom or eyesore to the region.

[Manfred M]

Thanks for all the comments, everyone.

My first instinct was to remove the ziplines because they are a bit of distraction and end up dividing the image in two; one side is the exploding firework and the side that emphasizes the skyline. The zip lines do act as leading lines and take the viewer's eyes in towards the Falls themselves and the central area of the image. From there the viewer's eyes are left to wander to the competing bright areas of the exploding firework or the skyline. They also add a bit of material into a relatively uninteresting part of the sky.

Unfortunately, I find that in spite of the natural beauty of the area, Niagara Falls has long been home to what I generally refer to as "lowest common denominator tourism". Clifton Hill, a street just a few steps from where I was standing is definitely the tackiest street in Canada with brilliant lights and unabashedly base entertainment. This has been an issue for decades and the "anything to make money" philosophy that is rampant in that city has placed the zip lines in front of views of the waterfalls.

Clifton Hill:



If I use the image as photojournalism, I can leave the zip lines in but otherwise, I will show the second version of the shot.

[John 2]

The cleaner version for me in the interests of "making" an image but as you point out, if your making a record, it has to be the first. The strength of the composition for me is in the triangle formed by the light in the road, the lit buildings and the firework burst. Removing the Zip Wires IMHO, strengthens that.