As other points of interest, in case anybody wants to have other photo ops, there is the Basketball Hall of Fame, Six Flags New England is right there, and I will be heading to Forest Park for part of the day. They have an aviary, dinosaur footprints, a small zoo with a petting feature, a really wonderful playscape, lawn bowling, and a rose garden. Also, if any mom wants to come but doesn't like the idea of dragging kids to Springfield and staying in a room, I have a sofa bed in my basement with a t.v and microwave. No bathroom downstairs unfortunately. Anyway, I ran a daycare for a while so I also have a number of games and toys and kids books as well. Let me know.
Also there is Ingleside Mall up the road in Holyoke, a great fabric store called Osgoods where many of the New York designers get their fabrics, and Mt. Tom is pretty close too. They have a waterpark and some nice scenics up there of one of the mountain ranges in Mass.
for those interested in checking out the area the Mohawk trail is just a little North less than half hour.
Also the bridge of flowers in Turners Falls, also in Turner Falls are some nice shops and coffee houses.
There is actualy quite alot in the area north up 91 to 2
Don't let it fizzle. I really want to meet some of you. Anyway, the area is very tight and close and nothing is very far away. Bradley Airport in Connecticut is perhaps 15 minutes from Springfield. That area has an old trolley museum, the airport of course if you like taking pics of jets, and there is a place I really like to go to which is called Old Newgate Prison. It was a copper mine way back and became a prison in the 1800's. The actual mines were used to house some of the more undesirable prisoners. Solitary was really creepy. Solid rock chamber and no light. The Connecticut River also goes right through Springfield. There are some nice water vistas in the area if you can find a way off the highway and on to the back roads.
Just saw this thread ... I would be up for this... it is not that far from home. Since I have done morning balloon lifts, I would love to see them in the evening.
I'm in, though I will have all 4 little ones that day. I'm in Westminster - about an hour and a half from there.
I have lists and lists of great locations in that area that can be shot. Dang, I was trying to get permissions from the developers that bought the old abandoned Theme Park near my town to let a group of photographers in for the day with an escort. It would be about an hour drive from the Springfield area... I'm still working on it and trying to get the proper permissions and such, but I'll keep you guys posted if it comes to pass at all around the time the balloon fest is going on....
Count me in, and I'll be happy to help coordinating if I can. I can't offer beds (not with ALL the kids here that weekend unfortunatley) but I can maybe offer transportation...
BTW, Jason (The Saj) is complaining in another thread that he "really needs to learn levels". If someone has a good, fast laptop with Photoshop loaded up on it, we can do a seminar on contrast masking after supper :-) I guarantee you the night balloon shots will need expanded dynamic range to really work well...
Hell, I'll make a deal; everyone who chips in to get me dinner and a room can be part of the seminar :-)
BTW, Jason (The Saj) is complaining in another thread that he "really needs to learn levels". If someone has a good, fast laptop with Photoshop loaded up on it, we can do a seminar on contrast masking after supper :-) I guarantee you the night balloon shots will need expanded dynamic range to really work well...
Hell, I'll make a deal; everyone who chips in to get me dinner and a room can be part of the seminar :-)
Robt.
I could bring a laptop. But I'm not 100% sure if I'll be there.
Okay, I stuck it on my work schedule :-) I am pretty certain I can make it for some part of the event.
I still don't know if I will bring my oldest kid and that will depend on the plan really. I assume the 3 big shot times are basically Fri evening, Sat morning (that is SO early) and Sat evening. It appears the evening (both Fri & Sat - not clear??) are the "glow" thing that I guess makes a reasonable photo op if nothing else is happening :-)
What days are people thinking about doing? Is there anybody that knows some spots that work better than standing in the field under the balloons? I have never shot balloons (actually, not true but not ones so big using a camera anyway), so not sure but assume we would like to find somewhere in addition to underneath the basket.
I might be able to make Friday evening but just cannot say right now. I can almost certainly make Sat evening and probably Sat dawn (depending on work issues).
I don;t know what the rules are here, but it's worth noting that in some balloon gatherings you can't get under or even very close to the balloons during the inflation and launch phases unless you have a special permission. There are, of course, liability issues. Someone in the area might want to contact the organizers and see if this can be arranged for us?
