County Fair Photography Tips
While being an extension of event photography, county fair photography is very unique in the sense that there is always so much going on at the venue - a lot of your shooting options and subjects are going to present themselves in ways that you're not used to. In other words, there's a lot improvisation involved in this niche.
The advantage that county fair photographers have when taking photos is how they can shoot almost anything and the composition will almost always be acceptable. Why? Because people are having fun at the county fair. Unless you purposely make an effort to take a bad photo, it's almost impossible to not fill an exciting frame with each shot.
The disadvantage of taking county fair photos is the mechanical aspect. Transitioning from daylight to night time, dealing with all of the flashing lights, trying to freeze the momentum of all the spectacular rides - it's a lot to adjust to. One could argue that adjustments have to be made for almost every shot, but this depends on how comfortable and experienced you are with the venue. These county fair photography tips will help you with moving forward.
Making the Necessary Adjustments When Taking County Fair Photos
We might as well get the mechanical stuff out of the way first. It's common knowledge that when you are dealing with a darker venue, you have to open up your aperture and slow down your shutter speed, but there's more to it than that. A lot of county fair photographers will attempt to keep a more narrow aperture while using a higher ISO setting and longer exposure.
County fairs have a lot of bright lights, so when you are shooting at night it's important to be very aware of your surroundings when trying to maximize your exposure. The various lights around you will fluctuate and if you aren't being particular about your composition, you could easily blow out your final image.
As far as motion blur goes, this can be prevented by properly freezing action. If you are using a longer lens, let's say something around 300mm, you will need at least two shutter speeds faster than the traditional hand held speed. You would probably only be using a lens this long if you were trying to magnify a fair ride from a distance, in which case freezing action is often desirable.
However, don't always try to freeze action when shooting rides. Sometimes a little motion blur can make the photo more realistic - try slowing down your shutter speed to create the illusion of movement. Just remember to maintain your desired focus by altering your Depth of Field.
If you're using a wide-angle lens, then you can get away with a slower shutter speed for most shots. This is especially useful for when you're shooting at night. A slower shutter speed, a high ISO and longer exposure are the key factors for taking great evening shots, but knowing which one to prioritize over the others is what separates great photographers from mediocre ones.
Taking County Fair Photos - What to Shoot
Knowing how to adjust to lighting is fundamental for the most part - the important county fair photography tips involve helping you learn what to shoot and what to look for. Sometimes it's good to have a particular theme in mind for your photos. Maybe you want to take shots of the food or perhaps you would rather focus your shots on the rides. Families can usually be found at the food and animal areas - the rides most often have all the adults and teenagers.
Try telling a story. Emphasize the transition from daytime to night time and how the events change over the course of the day. If you want to capture everything then do exactly that, but be prepared to have to adjust quite often. A change in scenery means a change in settings. Don't bother trying to use a tripod when taking county fair photos - there's too much movement going on and you'll very rarely find a spot where your camera is safe to remain idle.
Hopefully these county fair photography tips helped get the wheels turning in your head. Focus on what kind of photos you want to take and then worry about the lighting adjustments later. Becoming savvy at dealing with lighting takes an enormous amount of experience and experimentation.
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